Offers for 2025

[ontheturn]

I noticed that in 2024 there was an offers thread where people shared when their children. had submitted to ucas and what offers they had received. Anyone interested? We have offers for Manchester, Bristol and Leeds all within ten days of submitting ucas but still waiting on Edinburgh. We do know others who submitted at the same time who have had Edinburgh offers already.

DS1's contextual offer wasn't lower grades, it was not having to sit the TMUA exam for Maths at Warwick. It was based on his KS4 school - not directly the postcode but the overall GCSE results and the proportion of students on free school meals. There's a link on the Warwick website to the eligibility checker but I think it is an assessment from another organisation that is used by more than one university.

Sorry if this has already been covered. DS has just found out he has to whittle his choices from 5 to 2 after they have all made their offers? Is this correct?

@TheGander Yes, if he has conditional offers he will need to choose his favourite as his Firm choice (meaning he will go there if he meets the conditions they have set out) and, optionally but advisably, a backup choice as his Insurance. He’s got the UCAS site to explain all of this:

www.ucas.com/applying/after-you-apply/types-undergraduate-offers/replying-your-ucas-undergraduate-offers

Thank you @JessyCarr . Very helpful! I see from the UCAS site you need to reply by 5th June- am I right in thinking the universities will look on you favourably if you make a decision before then? Once all his offers are in he could make his choice and send the form in.

I wouldn’t rush, unless accommodation is an issue and you’ve attended all the Open Days? You should now receive invitation to Offer Holder Days, which are subject specific, so you can visit the uni, see the accommodation, speak to the staff of the department/tutors of the course modules and ask lots and lots of questions. If there is any SEN/ND issue or support needed this is the time to chat and ask specific questions as to your YP’s needs.

Thanks that is so helpful. I haven’t paid as close attention to all this as I probably should have so I really appreciate your post @CautiousLurker01

No worries - I follow the WIWIKAU [‘what I wish I knew about university’] threads on FB and from what I gather people often change their minds about their first choice once they’ve been to offer holder days? We’ve just had the dates through for Kent and there are about 7 from Feb-May, so I’m expecting similar for the other 4 unis. My DD is adamant that they want KCL, but a parent I chatted to chose UCL over KCL after the OHD so I’m encouraging her wait if she can bear it.

First offer here for Psychology at Northumbria - contextual at 104. DD’s school only submitted yesterday so she’s very relieved to have at least one offer!

Just posting as well to say thanks to all who post on this thread, it’s very informative

Amazing news. Such a relief to have one offer banked so quickly! Well done DD!

Sorry I did not grow up in the uk so I am very confused and would be grateful for advice thank you.
Re the students firm and insurance…if for some reason they get lower grades then their insurance will one of the three choices not chosen as the firm or insurance still consider taking them? My son is predicated A*AA but he borderline for each one, and while he did get mostly 9s and 8s in his GCSEs, he’s struggling a bit not loving the poetry etc in English literature and he has adhd so we are concerned the wheels might come off on the day and he drops a lot lower than predicted grades.
in my home country the students apply for unis after their results come in

The advice is generally to take the most desired (often highest) or most realistic offer as your firm, and for your insurance one chose a low/safe one? For my DD her lowest offer is Kent at 106UCAS points so she’ll accept that one (unless she hates it when she visits for the offer holder days in March). She will then likely chose KCL or UCL as they are her preferred choices but they will likely want AAA/ABB (144 UCAS points) - which she has been predicted, but is obviously not guaranteed.

That said, if you miss the first choice by 1-2 grades you can usually speak to the uni. If the references and personal statement were strong they may accept lower grades (several friends kids went through this last year). Alternatively, you can go through clearing. Grades were not as anticipate last year in a local college - 40% of the students went through clearing and still got places on RG and highly ranked uni courses. There is a lot of movement.

So my personal advice is: make a realistic firm choice plus a sensible/safe insurance choice and then try not to worry about it as there will be loads of courses and great universities in August if things go a bit pear-shaped.

@justthatreallyagain The offers not chosen as Firm or Insurance must be rejected. So while the Firm and/or Insurance choices may (or may not) forgive some slippage on results day, the rejected courses are out of the running.

Thanks so much CautiousLurker01 and JessyCarr - your comments have been very helpful to shape my son’s choices.

Just to say you will not be looked on favourably for replying earlier - some universities may offer you first dibs on accommodation (unethical to do so imo but that's another matter) but most won't and you should never accept a second/third/fourth choice on that basis alone, always hold out for the one you really want. A computer is doing this, not some university employee who will treat you better because you showed you liked them - it's not personal. You can take as long as you want to reply and shouldn't be rushed

Totally agree with @periodiclabel take all the time you need - it’s important to try and get it right, not to rush in.

I'd add I often see posts here and on other forums saying people are going to accept a uni offer because they were quick to respond so it seems polite to respond in kind and ditto they think it's so rude of their number one uni to be slow to offer they're going to "show them" and reject them in favour of someone else. It's not a party invitation!! There is no emotion from the unis pov, it's a business and often - though not always - part of their strategy is to offer quickly in the hopes they can manipulate a quick reply.

I have twins - the wait for offers is excruciating!! Extra tricky when they have both applied to the same uni (Exeter but different courses) and one got an offer within a few days for Exeter which they consider a good option but not currently first choice - and the other who considers Exeter their top choice has been waiting for weeks to hear back and hasn’t yet.

@justthatreallyagain and I thought I had it bad to have two going a year apart - double the angst with twins blows my mind! Hope you have plenty of wine/gin on hand!

@periodiclabel while I agree overall, the fact that Durham offered within a few weeks (my DD had three A stars in hand) but Bath took six months... she was turned off by the latter partly due to the long wait. By the time it arrived (too late to book the last offer holder day) she'd already dismissed it. Very happy at Durham. You can't dismiss the 'they want me' feeling when you get an earlier offer.

I agree there's no need to rush it, but it's useful to have reasonable time to plan visits and look at all the practical stuff.

DS1 hasn't got an offer from Oxford so he now has 3 good universities to choose between. I believe Warwick for Maths is seen as most prestigious, but he wasn't that taken with it on Open Day. My sister lives and works near/in Manchester and she and I both graduated from there but in very different subjects, and he'd get a lot of support and help from her there. My mum was a lecturer at York University through most of my childhood, and I used to go with her in school holidays sometimes and hang out in her office and in the cafeteria when she was teaching with a book. I do think that he'll enjoy wherever he ends up, both study and social life.

Thanks yes it’s very tricky - I went to 15 uni open days and the pressure during mocks / course work being due…they are at different schools so I don’t even have then working to similar mock exam schedules. I normally like having twins but yr13 is not a good time for having twins!

I get your dd's impatience but presumably she already really liked Durham and wasn't cutting her nose off to spite her face. And it's a bit different to "They want me, it's only polite to accept them" which is thinking many adopt. Great she's happy at Durham

@periodiclabel she hadn't been to either for open days though had been to the city of Bath and I was kinda pushing her towards it as we both loved it and it meant I could visit! But yes it's not the same as 'being polite' but I've actually never heard of that, much more they want me vs 'I'm just an afterthought'.
I think it was the collegiate system that really won her over to Durham and fortunately she got her first choice. But overall uni is what you make of it and she is determined to get her money's worth!

Two offers so far, one from Queen Mary and one from Sheffield. The latter is particularly good news as it's his top choice - tbc following offer holder days ...

I've read about offer holder days for Sheffield and Nottingham but ds hasn't heard from either with days ? I'm a bit paranoid he's missing some info or not looking in the right place.