A level results not what you were expecting?

You might be able to turn your success or disaster into the best day of your life when you find a better course

Universities and colleges use clearing to fill up remaining places they have on their courses, so it’s a great opportunity for those who have missed their required grades, or even those who have changed their minds since applying. Clearing offers many thousands of places to pupils, so don’t panic if you are disappointed with your grades. If, however,  you’ve exceeded your required a level grades, Adjustment enables those who did better than expected to upgrade their course.

In 2021, UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) reported that over 47,000 students secured their university place through Clearing.

Dr Tim Bradshaw, chief executive of the Russell Group said  “There are also lots of options available to those who decide to go through clearing, including at a number of Russell Group universities.”

This year, there are around 30,000 clearing course vacancies.

Clearing is open from 5th July – 18 October 2022, but you cannot enter clearing until you have your exam grades. It’s best to apply quickly as many of the best places go as soon as results come out.

You can use Clearing if you’re not holding an offer and your Track status says
‘You are in Clearing‘

If your results weren’t as good as you had hoped then re-marking may be an option but most marks don’t actually change – discuss an appeal with your school adviser.  A copy of your script will be helpful if you are considering retaking.

Have you done better than you had expected in your A levels?

You can use Adjustment from Results Day until 18th August if you want to ‘trade up’ but it is very important that you –

• Discuss with your parents and school adviser first
• KEEP YOUR CURRENT OFFER
• DO NOT WITHDRAW until you have confirmation of your new chosen offer
• If you self-release from your offer then your place will have gone for good

The process is simple – it’s just like Clearing but you can call ANY university to ask for a place.

Can you contact the UK universities from outside the UK?

If you can’t easily call from overseas, then consider installing a Virtual private Network (VPN) (we use NordVPN) and  a VOIP internet phone number (we use Soho66 – register as a single user and you need a UK credit or debit card) so you can make calls as if you are in the UK.

Good luck!

This article appears in the following categories  Courses & Exams