University Applications 2026 - Support Thread

[Ventress]

DS is applying to start university in Autumn 2026. He's done several open days and has a reasonable idea of where and what he wants to wants to study - History or History & Politics.

He loved UCL and Exeter, liked Warwick, didn't like Bristol. He's also talking about early application but can't decide whether to apply to Oxford or Cambridge. He's also muttering about Durham, which he didn't visit but others in his History class did and loved it.

Anyone join me for a thread to support our DC as they navigate this process? DS is my only child so this is all new to me!

Hmmm, so do you think he should just put Cambridge and UCL down?

when the poster says “aspirational” it was very much in the context of aspirational for her son, ie he’s putting down courses with high grade requirements for him. Thats what people mean when they talk about aspirational….im not sure you understood her post. Obviously if her ds was predicted 4x A star it wouldn’t be aspirational for him.

However saying that Southampton is still a very good Russell Group uni which is very well thought of. Nobody is saying it’s Oxbridge or Durham, but it’s a decent uni which is well thought of by future employers 🤷‍♀️. It’s ranked 17th overall in the Good University Guide. So according to that is the 17th best university in the country. You mention Cardiff which btw is another good university and is 22nd, so it’s 5 places above Cardiff. Newcastle is 31st so it’s significantly above Newcastle.

I think he should put down whatever he wants.
And I think it is pathetic to get so angry.

Hi all,Thanks so much for the thread @Ventress joining late to the thread. Can see many of us are from support thread too. DD is looking for Engg, like @Muchtoomuchtodo with list of all aspirational unis and there is no plan B.
Prep for ESAT going on, jumping from ENGA is too hard, couldn’t finish in time, and ESAT book exams are too easy( book published last year with helpful exams as examples)
first draft of PS ready I think, but I can see she is worried about school in a week and they also have practical books and some assignments, no idea what for.
Anyone in similar situation please let me know how you are going through and any tips for last minute help. I have seen one of the old thread mentioned someone getting help with entrance exams, but I don’t know if it’s doable or needed
Southampton is the 5th I think, they also need 3 As, and wouldn’t come in clearance. So I think that’s aspirational too.
With good predictions and A in AS exam, I wonder do you still look for another one, incase we don’t meet required grades ( or may be I am ovethinking this)

You don’t understand aspirational in the context of talking about an individual and which courses would be best advised for them to apply for. For some people Teesside is going to be aspirational!

My definition, and I think the one most people mean when using it in the context of UCAS applications, is one that is offering slightly above predicted grades for a particular student.

The idea is that you go for a couple of aspirational unis, that might be just what the YP is predicted or slightly above, then a couple that are more around what they should get (as we know predicted grades can be inflated in many schools) and then one or two insurance places that the YP should comfortably get the grades for.

For many students Southampton will be aspirational because they're asking for ABB (the offer my YP had from them) but the student might be more likely to get BBC. Worth a punt if the YP thinks they can work hard and hit the target.

Have you looked at Belfast? We visited and at the time my daughter was considering maths and/or physics, though she’s settled on maths now and we really liked the university, and the physics department specifically. I think they’re ranked reasonably highly but are slightly lower grades.
Another thing with maths is that a lot of the very slightly lower grade unis we’d looked at were in clearing, and while obviously there’s no guarantee for next year there were enough of the unis she’d visited and liked there to think she’d probably get something ok in clearing if alevels don’t go quite as predicted. I’m not sure if physics is the same but you could try and look into that?

Ridiculous isn’t it? My DS is actually applying to Imperial, Manchester and Warwick as his ‘aspirational’ choices given he is expecting 3xAstars… Southampton was mentioned in reference to having a couple of mid table unis in the list.

Some people are like a dog with a bone!!

That’s a good suggestion but he’d be too far from home - he is on the autism spectrum and although most people would not know this as he masks really well, we’d prefer him to be within 1-1.5 hours of family as a safety net. I noticed Loughborough had places in clearing, though not necessarily for the courses he wanted, but you’re right, I think he needs to have a look at some more outside the top10-15 rankings (we look at all the tables - the Times, THE, the guardian etc as they all have different criteria).

We struggle a bit as Physics is offered at so many universities and we are trying not to spend every weekend between sep1st and Dec at open days… he has to actually do the studying LOL. It was much easier for my DD as she chose a niche subject so there were much fewer colleges to look at/choose from!

@CautiousLurker01

Of course somewhere (at any level) can be aspirational based on the predicted grades of the DC. Ignore the other PP.

A word of warning for anyone with an AStar (poss only one) prediction.
As you might expect, those courses (with AStar,A,A std tariff), if competitive in any nature, will have a lot lower offer rate (the chance a DC with that grade profile will get an offer) for those predicted only one AStar. As you might expect the offers, averagely, are more likely to go to 3x AStar and 2x AStar, and with a very good GCSE profile.

Def would recommend at least two at AAA and prob one at AAB.
DC needs to get offers, not think they can get in at all the top (to them) places just because they have, in theory, the grades.

If DC is predicted 3x AStars but more confident in getting AAA, then some places (at AStar,A,A) may/will still accept, on results day.
If not confident in getting AAA, then best to have 1/2 AStar,A,A, 2/3 AAAs and one AAB/ABB.

Yes, DS has a spread sheet he’s worked on at school in tutor sessions. I think he has ranked the unis by where they are in the table rather than ordered them by grade requirements. I think I’ll suggest he groups them as you say (High/mid/safer lower offers) - and picks 2 high ones (Imperial +1 other) and then the AAA-ABB unis and then finds one that is at BBB level as the banker).

If the offers come through in Jan-April he’ll have another set of mock exam grades, his ESAT score and lots of other data his tutors can use to advise on for the best insurance place. He’s on a high after AS level grades at the moment and I hate to rain on his parade by suggesting a few more modest uni courses!

If he is predicted 3 Astars (?) then BBB could be too low for a banker.
Did he/you manage to look at what was in clearing just gone.
In my DS's case there were some that dropped a few grades so they could be bankers even though they may be AAA or AAB, to start with, as gives (if next year is the same) more leeway, rather than starting at BBB (they might be CCC in clearing!).

Thanks for explaining… so if my DS is expected/predicted to get 3x Astars, there are no ‘aspirational’ universities? Just ones that align with his predicted grades and others that are safely below those?

I was using the term with respect to the higher grade/highly ranked unis as, in my logic, they are aspirational unless/until he actually has those grades in hand… and there are so many variables that might scupper them. 😣

Sorry, yes, he’s predicted 3x Astars on the basis of achieving AAB in his AS levels and continuous assessment where grades are never below 80%. [However he was predicted 7-9s for GCSE but had covid 4x and glandular fever, so ended up with 6s, so we had our fingers burned once in relying on those predictions.]

re clearing, by the time.I got on there were very few physics courses in clearing and, tbh, I wasn’t sure I understood the data on the lowered grades. Is there an idiots resource to look at?

Well as I said it depends what is aspirational for a specific YP. And of course there's no guarantee in 3 A stars as many places over predict. So for your YP it doesn't really matter what you call a uni that is looking for 3 A stars - call it aspirational or realistic or whatever. It doesn't matter.

But most YP aren't predicted 3 A stars as I am sure you know, so the term is more useful to them.

He could have an Emergency Clearing list if he wants to keep his initial choices very high.

While things may be a little different next year (suspect the number of international students will rise as the USA continues down the authoritarian path) its unlikely to change massively as the financial pressures will be the same.

Welcome to the new joiners - good to have you onboard for this exciting year!

Please may I remind pp that this is a supportive thread and to please post in this spirit.

@CautiousLurker01 my two pennies about "aspirational" when predicted 3 x A stars is that these are the ones where even with top grades the student still isn't sure they will get an offer. As you say, places like Bath, Imperial, Oxbridge, LSE. For my son's subject "aspirational" choices would include UCL and St Andrews, not Southampton. But for other subjects Southampton is very much aspirational. In my opinion choices are not just based on the overall rating of the university but a combination of subject ranking, whether it's achievable and the overall university rating. Plus, very importantly, whether the student would enjoy the course and the university.

My son, like others, really doesn't see the point of a safe insurance choice. All of his choices are top 10 in their subject. He won't be shifted on this. Not by me at least. Perhaps the school will do better?! He would rather take the year out and reapply with grades in hand as his Plan B. I have pointed out that potentially getting no offers would be extremely demoralising. However, I am just support staff after all 😀

So, the UCAS search has a toggle for showing the courses in clearing, but there are probably few in there now.

Southampton is, still, in clearing, at BBC (for the BSc)
https://www.southampton.ac.uk/clearing/course-vacancies?subject=All+Subjects&filter=physics&studentType=uk&availableOnly=false

So, even though it is AAA (standard) then it would be a good banker.

Also, if there is genuine evidence of the possible under-achievement at GCSE, then make sure he/college puts it on the application, so Unis aren't given the ammunition to say he's wildly over-predicted.

Good to know your place @Ventress 😂

When ranking courses on how hard they are to get into, we have found the UCAS stats on “average accepted grades” and “percentage who get an offer”more useful than the headline grade requirements.

LOL I think our DSs may be the same! I’ve pointed out that many unis don’t really like it if you have a year out for maths heavy courses. And yes, we’ve had the conversation that he should be happy if he gets 3/5 offers, even with his predicted grades and glowing references (the staff are amazingly supportive and encouraging… but that’s a double edged sword isn’t it?)

I think he may be coming to the opinion that Southampton would be his insurance given it also has a foundation year course that he might (emphasis might) be able to transfer to if his grades bomb… plus he has two really good mates going there this year. But it is still a A*AA-AAA required grade course (MPhys with year abroad, his dream placement would be in CERN).

I just worry that if he pins his expectations on AAA+ grades and doesn’t leave any slack he could also end up with nowhere to go if he misses the grades. His DSis got 5 offers with only an Access to HE diploma (but stellar GCSEs) and I think he is benchmarking himself against her. The access course is easier to gage as you get your grades as you go, like a BTEC, so by the time she chose her firm and insurance she already knew she had the grades for her first choice. The second choice was really just in case she changed her mind about the course itself - it had the same grade requirement. Whilst I am over the moon DS’s confidence is flourishing again, I am obviously [over?] anxious that we could have a repeat of the GCSE disaster and trying to hedge a total wipe out on course places next summer.

Think I need to pour myself a gin and tonic large mug of coffee and try not to fret so much!

Thanks for explaining… so if my DS is expected/predicted to get 3x Astars, there are no ‘aspirational’ universities?

Well currently he is only aspiring to get 3x A star, he hasn't got them yet. So yes a top university would technically be aspirational - he is hoping/aspiring to get the grades for that course.

If he applies somewhere like Cambridge/Oxford (and others) they will have more people apply than places and pretty much everyone will be predicted A stars. And he could be up against people with better grades than 3x A star.

Nobody is guaranteed a place just because of good results. So while he meets the grades on his predicted grades he still may not get an offer. So yes, in that respect it's still aspirational. He is hoping they make him an offer.

DD got offers for places she met the grades for and didn't get offers for other places which she also met the grades for - sometimes there seems to be no rhyme or reason. She had an interview for Cambridge, straight reject for Nottingham and offers from Manchester and Edinburgh. Think UCL rejected her too. But for her subject I think Manchester is actually the better course compared to Cambridge.

I work at a university on a course which is very over subscribed, I reject hundreds of applicants every year who are predicted the right amount of UCAS points for my course. They can't all come!

Apologies. Didn’t mean to derail the thread with a debate over the meaning of aspirational - but the phrase has come up a few times in the bumpf DS has brought home and DD referenced it. I think going forward if his tutors use the phrase I will ask what THEY mean by it, especially in respect to advising DS about his choices!

At the moment just going to university for DS is ‘aspirational’ as this time last year he didn’t even have a 6th form/college place! 😂

@Ventress
To give some (possible) comfort, you still have time, just, to do an FOI to the places DC is interested in to get offer rate data.
I did this with DS's aspirational choices, but he only (!) has one AStar prediction, so is more relevant.
PM me if you want more info.

Would never have crossed my mind to do that - are you able under FOI to ask how many places were taken up via clearing?