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Original poster

Clearing 2023 - getting prepared short idiots guide to Clearing

120 replies

Ginola2345 · 02/08/2023 07:06

Long back story but DD will require a massive improvement in her results to be offered either her firm or insurance choice.

I have taken results the day off work to celebrate, relax or help with clearing. I don’t want to panic DD but if she misses out on both her firm and insurance I know she could would go into Clearing but I don’t know much about it.

Basically, in short what do we need to do first in 5 easy steps and what info do I/we need to have to hand to be ready to move quickly incase we need to? What I need is a short easy to understand ‘idiots guide to Clearing’ or 5 point brief instructions in bullet point form.

I have just googled and seen lots of links taking me back and forward I saw something about UCAS Extra and how do I find Clearing Helpline Numbers is it the normal admissions numbers or are these numbers different etc.

OP posts:
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Mixituposis · 14/08/2023 17:26

The whole going into school thing is REALLY annoying and time wasting if they end up in clearing, as DS did last year. We were on two phones in the car on the 30 minute drive home speaking to different unis. Fuck knows why school expect them to go in - it’s a complete waste of time and adds hugely to the stress.

DD won’t be going in next year - we will insist she gets the results online.

SunnyEgg · 14/08/2023 17:36

So does every minute count with clearing? I guess so

Mixituposis · 14/08/2023 17:43

SunnyEgg · 14/08/2023 17:36

So does every minute count with clearing? I guess so

It depends on the unis - also as pp said above accommodation is the big issue as well. DS was very very lucky to get a place in private halls after having him on waitlists of 400+ for a week - but this meant he had to work really hard his first year to connect with other Y1s, who had it easy being together in uni halls, which were completely full.

Again no way doing that with DD.

GCSister · 14/08/2023 17:50

Do you need to phone the dept of a particular subject or find the number for the admisssions team ? Thanks.

Phone the advertised Clearing number. There will be literally 100's of people working the clearing helpline for each uni and subject and admissions teams will all have a role to play in the process. So, you either won't get through or will be redirected to the main clearing line if you try an other way.
The number will be very prominent on each institutions website.

JazzyminnC · 14/08/2023 17:54

Sorry - more questions here. Clearing seems to be a time-sensitive process but I read that it extends all the way to sept/oct, does anyone know if it means we still have time to keep trying even if no luck in the first few weeks?

SmartHome · 14/08/2023 17:58

Can I also say a big FU to Bristol Uni who have apparently already published that they are not offering any Clearing Places to UK students, only international. It astounds me that a UK university can get away with that.

GCSister · 14/08/2023 18:01

JazzyminnC · 14/08/2023 17:54

Sorry - more questions here. Clearing seems to be a time-sensitive process but I read that it extends all the way to sept/oct, does anyone know if it means we still have time to keep trying even if no luck in the first few weeks?

It does...it starts in July and ends in October. However the main day is Thursday for obvious reasons.

Course do fill up though so if you are looking for a popular course at a popular university then it will probably fill up by Thursday lunch time. However, a little tip..... the numbers are dynamic and until an applicant adds a choice on UCAS it's not final. This means occasionally a course may be 'full' by lunch but not all of the people offered a place accepted the offer so the odd place becomes available on Friday morning when UCAS has updated.
However, I really do mean very small numbers but it's worth a try.

Summertime2 · 14/08/2023 18:01

clary · 14/08/2023 13:15

Yes for sure it is worth looking at other similar unis. Some may have struggled to fill for whatever reason and be accepting lower grades.

I've posted this before but the standard offer at DD's eventual uni for her course is ABB (or maybe AAB) but for her it was BCC in clearing. The following year is was CCD!

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Thank you so much, that's reassuring

Brintons · 14/08/2023 18:04

GCSister · 14/08/2023 18:01

It does...it starts in July and ends in October. However the main day is Thursday for obvious reasons.

Course do fill up though so if you are looking for a popular course at a popular university then it will probably fill up by Thursday lunch time. However, a little tip..... the numbers are dynamic and until an applicant adds a choice on UCAS it's not final. This means occasionally a course may be 'full' by lunch but not all of the people offered a place accepted the offer so the odd place becomes available on Friday morning when UCAS has updated.
However, I really do mean very small numbers but it's worth a try.

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Do Unis have a waiting list of candidates who phone up after the initial batch of places have been filled? Or do you have to phone them regularly to see if places have not been taken up?

JazzyminnC · 14/08/2023 18:05

GCSister · 14/08/2023 18:01

It does...it starts in July and ends in October. However the main day is Thursday for obvious reasons.

Course do fill up though so if you are looking for a popular course at a popular university then it will probably fill up by Thursday lunch time. However, a little tip..... the numbers are dynamic and until an applicant adds a choice on UCAS it's not final. This means occasionally a course may be 'full' by lunch but not all of the people offered a place accepted the offer so the odd place becomes available on Friday morning when UCAS has updated.
However, I really do mean very small numbers but it's worth a try.

Show quote history

Thank you, that is quite insightful. My son is applying in the coming round and I am already a little worried from reading this thread!

GCSister · 14/08/2023 18:17

Do Unis have a waiting list of candidates who phone up after the initial batch of places have been filled? Or do you have to phone them regularly to see if places have not been taken up?

It will vary.
I have known course teams have a waiting lists whereas others don't and will just update the website to say there are places available. It can be worth calling back sometimes as the numbers can change in those first coupe of days. I would say though, for very popular courses they will most definitely be full by Friday afternoon so if you don't have a place then then it will be a case of looking at alternative options.

GCSister · 14/08/2023 18:18

thank you, that is quite insightful. My son is applying in the coming round and I am already a little worried from reading this thread!

Ah don't be worried! It works it for most people! There is also no shame in clearing...it's is now a pretty common way of securing a university place.

SlightlyJaded · 14/08/2023 18:22

Has anyone come across a one-page list of clearing phone numbers. Trying to put a spreadsheet together and some Unis list them and others don't. Can't find a definitive list on UCAS site either? No worries if not...

Mixituposis · 14/08/2023 19:01

SmartHome · 14/08/2023 17:58

Can I also say a big FU to Bristol Uni who have apparently already published that they are not offering any Clearing Places to UK students, only international. It astounds me that a UK university can get away with that.

York did that last year.

SmartHome · 14/08/2023 19:05

I know about quotas and the cross funding and the unis cant help it yadda yadda but its just looks so poor.

clary · 14/08/2023 19:07

Agree with those saying it is time sensitive.

DD at about 2pm had IIRC four offers (Leeds Beckett, Birmingham City etc) and then Dh spotted Leicester which had a brilliant clear clearing page with literally her grades on. It ticked so many boxes I have no idea why she didn’t have it in her list from the start.

We called in the afternoon and there was still a place for her. Clearing open day the next day which was great and place in halls guaranteed too. That’s deffo worth looking for.

So what I am saying is, it’s not necessarily a mad scramble but yes, you need to be quick. This is why there’s no point wasting a call on a uni that has already said no (ie your firm place).

Those saying ugh to going in to school, I hear you if it’s a 90 min round trip, but for us it was good (we are 2 mins away tbf) as the head of sixth form was v helpful and even called places for us, plus quite a few of DD’s pals were either in the same boat or just trying to change course. Her lovely mate that did French with her had is in stitches “I got a 7 in maths. Yes I know it’s a number. Yes some GCSEs were numbers two years ago. No not all of them. Yes 7 is the same as an A” while rolling her eyes at us. 😂 Made a tough day a bit easier.

clary · 14/08/2023 19:08

The friend was on the phone to an ill-informed uni clearing staffer btw in case that’s not clear!

clary · 14/08/2023 19:11

Tbf wrt no clearing places - loads of unis had v few in 2021 (bc of TAGs) inc Lboro, noting at all (only looked bc ds2 was going there!). So maybe there is still a bit of a hangover from then? Hopefully not too bad. But some candidates for Leeds I think were offered £10k and free hall fees if they deferred for a year :O

GCSister · 14/08/2023 19:28

clary · 14/08/2023 19:08

The friend was on the phone to an ill-informed uni clearing staffer btw in case that’s not clear!

It's important to remember that not all clearing staff will be experts! They will have people supervising them that are, but some of the people staff the lines could be students or staff that have been roped into doing a shift but know very little!

I was running training for our 200 'volunteers' today and it was like herding cats!

I will say though, we make it so easy for people as they just need to follow the instructions on the computer and the computer decides yes or no!

GCSister · 14/08/2023 19:31

clary · 14/08/2023 19:11

Tbf wrt no clearing places - loads of unis had v few in 2021 (bc of TAGs) inc Lboro, noting at all (only looked bc ds2 was going there!). So maybe there is still a bit of a hangover from then? Hopefully not too bad. But some candidates for Leeds I think were offered £10k and free hall fees if they deferred for a year :O

Yeah, that's because we were told to honour ALL offers and popular uni's were so oversubscribed that they literally had to bribe people to defer. It was a nightmare!

clary · 14/08/2023 19:31

Yes @GCSister i presume so. One place I called where DD’s grades were one lower, just said “no”. They aren’t experts and don’t have the leeway to negotiate.

It was just quite funny the faces she was making - she was a bit of a joker - and of course by then almost all GCSEs were numbers - but if you were a uni student you wouldnt know.

Justbetweenus · 14/08/2023 19:32

@clary I've posted this before but the standard offer at DD's eventual uni for her course is ABB (or maybe AAB) but for her it was BCC in clearing. The following year is was CCD!

So lets say the eventual uni was her first or insurance offer, and had offered ABB. if she then ended up getting BCC, would they have just confirmed her place despite grades below the conditional offer.. ? Damn this is complicated 😏

GCSister · 14/08/2023 19:36

clary · 14/08/2023 19:31

Yes @GCSister i presume so. One place I called where DD’s grades were one lower, just said “no”. They aren’t experts and don’t have the leeway to negotiate.

It was just quite funny the faces she was making - she was a bit of a joker - and of course by then almost all GCSEs were numbers - but if you were a uni student you wouldnt know.

Yeah, there is no room for negotiation. You either meet the grades or you don't.
The person you speak to is unlikely to be an academic and you'll only get through to one if you meet the requirements. They're literally reading it off a computer screen.

it can be quite stressful for those taking the calls as it is awful having to say no to people. I'm the one who speaks to the people who won't take no for an answer....it's exhausting!

clary · 14/08/2023 19:36

Justbetweenus · 14/08/2023 19:32

@clary I've posted this before but the standard offer at DD's eventual uni for her course is ABB (or maybe AAB) but for her it was BCC in clearing. The following year is was CCD!

So lets say the eventual uni was her first or insurance offer, and had offered ABB. if she then ended up getting BCC, would they have just confirmed her place despite grades below the conditional offer.. ? Damn this is complicated 😏

@Justbetweenus i presume so. Her insurance was in clearing but the grades required were similar to her offer IIRC ie ABB or similar. But Yy I imagine if she had put Leicester (that’s where she went) as her insurance then they would have said yes and saved a lot of hassle.

We were all a bit over focused on blardy RG tbh, I know now that that’s far from the be all and end all. Ds doing v well at non RG, DD’s friends at RG not all wonderful and plenty at non RG had a good time and have good jobs now. So all ends well (more or less).

Thefatbutteredpig · 14/08/2023 20:52

SmartHome · 14/08/2023 17:58

Can I also say a big FU to Bristol Uni who have apparently already published that they are not offering any Clearing Places to UK students, only international. It astounds me that a UK university can get away with that.

Waiting to hear if DD gets her place confirmed at bristol.

Dont know if I am comforted they arent in clearing ( and potentially accepted lower grades) or cross they have nothing to offer home students