Transcript Slide 1

Farmor’s Sixth Form
Where Next?
Applying to HE
Summer / Autumn 2012
Post A-Level Options
University
 Employment
 Apprenticeship
 GAP Year
 Vocational Training
 Internship (experience with little
remuneration)
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Introduction – Why apply ?
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Have Fun
Love of Learning
Friends
Get Away
To Grow up
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To develop important
transferable skills
Initial employability
Improving career
prospects
Course range &
flexibility
To pursue career goal
Why NOT to apply NOW
Really no idea of course / career
 University is not for you – don’t kid
yourself
 Financial – is this a valid reason?
 Not utilising your strengths
 Aspirations lie elsewhere
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The Process
When ?
What ?
April 5th
Cirencester HE convention
(Open Days begin in March)
March-July
Connexions interviews where relevant
June / July
HE/Careers Days – after AS exams
Mock Interviews – early July
Subject specific careers lessons
Oxbridge / Medicine / Law / Veterinary prep
UCAS forms completed (ongoing support)
Online applications - APPLY
School Deadline: Friday 18th November
Oxbridge Deadline: 14th October
Medicine / Dentistry / Veterinary: 14th October
Offers, Open Days, talks, make acceptances etc.
Sept./October
October onwards
February
June
Update on Loans / Student Finance evening
UCAS Extra
Universities to have replied to all applications
made by 14th January (some maybe later)
Students must reply to offers by this date: select
firm choice and insurance choice
Exams
August
Results / Confirmation / Clearing
31 March
4th May
Overview
A massive choice: 50,000+ possible
courses at over 325 institutions
reduced to a maximum of five
 Approximately 8 months to make
choices – but the earlier the better
 A combination of practical, personal
and academic factors
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What if I want a Gap Year ?
Finances
 Generally well received by universities
 Usually best to apply now and defer – where
will you be in October/November next year ?
 Odd courses do not defer entry – watch out
 Ask yourself ‘why do I want a Gap Year?’
 What if I apply for 2012 and then decide I want
a gap year?
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The UCAS tariff
AS level
A level
A*
A
B
C
Points
140
120
100
80
A
D
60
B
C
D
E
E
50
40
30
20
OFFERS
Still vary between:
• a points offer: eg. 340 points and
• a grades offer eg. BBC
Some offers include AS grade, others do not - BEWARE
Choosing courses and institutions
A vast amount of information available:
 Tutors / Sixth Form Management Team
 Teachers
 Parents
 Connexions PA
 Library – Books
 HE/Careers days
 Websites
 Literature from institutions, careers guides and UCAS.
 Higher Education Convention – UWE
 Open Days
 UCAS Applications – Student Guide
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5
April HE Day
109 seminars on different aspects of
post A level options.
 Only £4
 Includes University information on a vast
range of courses as well as Oxbridge,
Medicine and vocational options.
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How to Choose a University
& make the most of Open Days
Campus or City University
What’s the difference?
The University
Teaching facilities
Study facilities etc.
Accommodation
How much university
accommodation available
Student Lifestyle
Social Life / Clubs &
Societies / Cost / Sporting
facilities
Distance from home
What is the optimum
Quality
League Tables – more info
to come
How to Choose a Course
Interest
Type of Qualification
Foundation / Honours
Single / Joint
Opportunities to Specialise
Duration of Course
Entry Requirements
Be realistic
Course Content / Structure
Methods of Teaching and
Assessment
Career Opportunities /
Intentions
Sandwich / Industrial Placements
Subject Specific Open Days
Tuition Fees, Scholarships,
Bursaries & Grants
Employment opportunities
Choosing Courses and Institutions
The Internet
www.ucas.ac.uk :UCAS – One Stop Shop
(University Clearing and Admissions Service)
www.prospects.ac.uk - where your
subjects may take you
the Stamford Test – On the UCAS
website. Gives some initial ideas - FREE
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Choosing Courses and Institutions
Books
 The Times Good University Guide
 The Guardian University Guide
 The Heap Guides – Course Offers / Details
 The Virgin Alternative Guide
 The UCAS Directories
 Open Days
 How many to go to?
 How to make the best of them?
 www.opendays.com
University League Tables
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Existed since 1993
The Guardian / The Times / the Complete University Guide
Many indicators used often taken from common sources
(HEFCE)
Can be useful but beware!
The Guardian results based on more current information
Unistats
www.unistats.com
 Benefits from being student centred and current (2010
results currently being displayed)
The Russell Group Universities
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University of Birmingham
University of Bristol
University of Cambridge
Cardiff University
University of Edinburgh
University of Glasgow
Imperial College London
King's College London
University of Leeds
University of Liverpool
London School of Economics & Political
Science
University of Manchester
Newcastle University
University of Nottingham
University of Oxford
Queen's University Belfast
University of Sheffield
University of Southampton
University College London
University of Warwick
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Likely to demand
higher qualifications
Oxbridge require at
least 8 A* grades at
GCSE as well as
A*AA at A level.
Competition can be
higher in popular
courses.
Money Matters
Student Finance
4 prongs
 Maintenance Grant
 Student Loans to cover Maintenance /
Living Costs
 Loans to cover Variable Tuition Fees
 Sponsorships / Bursaries / Discounts /
Offers in Kind
Money Matters
Maintenance Grant – ‘Free Money’
Maximum grant of £2906 pa
 Based on Household Income
 Below income of £25,000 = £2906 grant
 £25,000 – £50,020 = Partial maintenance
grant
Non-repayable – NOT part of loan system
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THIS MAY CHANGE AS A RESULT OF
TUITION FEE INCREASES
Money Matters
Student loan for Maintenance
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72% available to everyone regardless of parental income
28% dependant on parental income
Annual Amount but allocated termly
Higher figures if attending London universities
Eg. for a non London university living away from home
£3564 approx– not based on parental income
£1386 approx – based on parental income
Potential Maximum Student Loan: £4950 (London - £6928)
Approx £145 per week during term time
Money Matters
Variable Tuition Fees
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Maximum of £9000 per year (England)
No-upfront payment – annual loan is added to
final debt
Payment is paid automatically by ‘Student
Finance England’ to the University
Sandwich courses: For year away tuition fee
often lower
UCAS website details
www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinance
Money Matters
Total Debt & Repayment
£9000 tuition fee pa
£3564 Maintenance Loan
Total Debt
£27000
£10692
£37692
Repayment based on earnings after graduation (this was the old
picture… what will it be now?)
Under £15000 – No repayment
£16000 £7 per month
£18000 £22 per month
£21000 £45 per month
£55000 £300 per month
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Written off after 25 years
Rate of Interest linked to Inflation
Some facts….
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The difference in gross hourly earnings (fulltime workers) between graduates and those
educated to A-level is 47%.
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The average lifetime earnings of a graduate is
£160,000 more than those of a non-graduate
with two A-levels.
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Within this average there is a range from
£340,315 for medical and dental graduates to
£51,549 for a humanities degree and £34,949
for an arts degree.
Money Matters
Discounts / Scholarships / Bursaries
With increased tuition fees all universities are tasked to
encourage less wealthy students to attend. They do this
through:
Discounts – likely for shortage subjects (Cash Sum)
Scholarships – to encourage able students
Bursaries – for low-income / disadvantaged students.
Students receiving full maintenance grant and paying full
tuition fee will receive a bursary of at least £319
Offers in Kind – free laptops / rent rebates / sports
memberships etc
Look for specific offers at your chosen Universities; ask
at open days. Get the highest grades you can.
Choosing the wrong course / uni …
Many people do it
 Can be a very costly mistake
 Do everything you can do make sure
you choose the right uni / course
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“I’m too good to be rejected”
Applicants
Offers
Entrants
Cambridge
806
297
198
Durham
2026
499
116
Edinburgh
1683
481
136
Warwick
1400
450
95
An applicant for
History
“I can accept the
rejection from
Cambridge, as
so many able
students apply,
but I could not
understand why I
was rejected by
the other
universities”
(Durham,
Edinburgh,
York),
The Times,
9th May 2005.
Competition
23% increase in applications
 200,000 more students applying than 4
years ago
 No increase in places and £449 million
cut in HE funding
 Popular courses at top universities have
had up to 20 applicants per place
 Higher offers and increased numbers of
unsuccessful applications
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HOW TO GET IN?
The UCAS Form
Basic Information
 5 Course Choices – Unis can NOT see
other choices made
 Personal Statement
 Reference – From Subjects / Put
together by the tutor
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The APPLY system
Students will be applying online
 This enables UCAS applications to be
done at home
 Training to be given in the summer term
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They will receive a guidebook and full
support
Entry Tests
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BMAT: for Medicine, Veterinary & Pharmacology at Cambridge, Oxford, Royal
Veterinary College, UCL, Imperial - £21.50 (2009)
Test on the 2nd November. Apply by the 30th September.
UKCAT: Medicine - £60
Aberdeen, Queen Mary (Barts and The London), Birmingham (graduates only),
Brighton and Sussex, Dundee, Durham, East Anglia, Edinburgh, Glasgow,
King's College, Hull and York, Imperial (graduates only), Keele, Leeds,
Leicester, Warwick (graduates only), Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham,
Oxford (graduates only), Exeter and Plymouth (Peninsula), St. George's,
Sheffield, Southampton, St. Andrew's, Cardiff, Queens (Belfast)
Book by 24th September – taken at a Pearson test centre
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LNAT: for Law at Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Durham, Glasgow, Kings,
Leeds, Nottingham, Oxford, UCL - £40
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Other Entry tests – for example: Maths @ Cambridge, History @ Oxford,
Natural Sciences @ Cambridge
ROLES
Role of the Student
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Carry out research – and get going NOW
Work Hard – it’s a competitive world
Ask for help
Role of the tutor
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Provide support and guidance with personal statements
Check forms / personal statements
Write the reference
Monitor offers / rejections
Primary source of advice
Head and Assistant Head of Sixth Form
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Check all Personal Statements & References
Guidance & Support
Parents’ Role
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Open days
‘Gentle’ encouragement
And now?
Refreshments by PTA
 Information about Student Finance.
 Information about Gap Years.
 Prospectuses for Universities.
 Open Days on Notice board.
 Information on Connexions / Year in
Industry etc.
 Information about 5th April HE Day
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Thank you
… any questions?