Making the grade
If you haven’t got the grades you hoped for or you’ve changed your mind about what to do next Karen Phillips, principal of Coleg y Cymoedd, offers some advice...
■ I haven’t got the grades I need to go to university
If you’re unhappy with your results, don’t panic – there are always options. Talk to your teacher, tutor or member of the pastoral team. They will be able to best advise you.
Call the university you were hoping to head to.
Even if you didn’t get the grades you needed for your conditional offer, you could still have a place, especially if you were only a couple of grades short.
The university might also offer you an alternative course or foundation year, so it’s worth a try.
■ What is Clearing?
If you haven’t got the grades you need for the university course you applied for give Clearing a call. Clearing is a Ucas service that enables universities to advertise places they still have available.
Clearing opens on results day and every year thousands of students find ideal places at great universities through it. You can search to see if your desired course is available elsewhere, or browse through other courses that might interest you, which have lower grade criteria than your first choice university.
Start by looking at universities you originally selected through Ucas as you’re likely to have already researched and visited these. If they felt like a good fit then, they’re likely to still be a good fit now.
■ What about re-takes?
If you’d prefer, you could speak with your school or college to discuss options to retake exams you feel you could improve upon.
■ I got better than expected grades. What are my options?
First things first, congratulations. If you’ve exceeded the grades you needed, it’s time to celebrate.
Next, think about whether your grades might open doors that you’d not considered before – that’s where Ucas Adjustment comes in.
Adjustment is an optional service that allows you to reconsider where and what you study, enabling you to swap your place for another you prefer. The process works similarly to clearing, enabling you to browse through available courses that require higher grades than you were predicted to achieve.
A lot of competitive courses are likely be full, but other applicants may have missed conditions or swapped a course too.
You’ll need to register for Adjustment via Ucas Track and your original university choice will remain safe until you confirm you’d like to go elsewhere.
Be sure to research your options and talk to universities before you make a final decision. Just because a course requires higher grades, it’s not necessarily a better course for you. Adjustment is available until August 31 so take your time making this decision.
■ Why should I go to university anyway?
There are lots of good reasons to go to university and only you know if it’s the right path for you.
Whether you need a particular degree to pursue your desired career, or you simply want to explore a subject you’re passionate about, university offers you the chance to take your education to the next level and provides you with great life experiences.
■ What if I don’t want to go to university?
University isn’t necessarily the only option open to you. There are many paths available to you aside from university. Unless you need a specific degree for your chosen career, university is not your only option. Your college or school will be able to outline routes available to you, but the most important thing to ask yourself is what do you want?
■ What about apprenticeships? Apprenticeships are available for a wide range of careers and disciplines. Alternatively, you can study more vocationally specific courses at college.
You don’t necessarily need to go to university to study a higher level/university course as many colleges work with partner universities to deliver programmes that incorporate degreelevel elements into their curriculums.
Colleges and universities can usually give you options to make education more flexible to allow you to study around work and family commitments.
■ Should I train as an apprentice or get a job?
Apprenticeships can offer an excellent route to your chosen career as they enable you to combine working with studying; a mix of on the job and classroom learning. This allows you to gain invaluable real-world experience, while your employer supports you to gain qualifications you need to progress.
Today, employers, colleges and universities work together to build programmes that equip apprentices with skills that will serve them for their entire careers.
There are a vast variety of apprenticeships available, ranging from construction and engineering, to multimedia and digital, so do your research to determine what’s right for you.