About Clearing and results day Going through Clearing can be stressful for both students and their parents – but preperation and research can make it easier
“At one point during results day, I considered scrapping my plans for university altogether. I thought I might apply to Sandhurst to become an army officer instead,” says Tristan Bacon.
Bacon ended up graduating from Liverpool John Moores University last year after going through Clearing in 2010 – and he doesn’t regret for a minute how things worked at.
But results day is stressful for everyone, and for students who miss out on grades and the offer of a university place, it can be particularly difficult to handle. For parents, watching your son or daughter go through this process can also be challenging.
Heather Ellison, assistant principal at Rochdale sixth-form college, says: “Many students and parents will be concerned about exam grades as results day approaches, and most of this concern is unnecessary.”
But if the dreaded day rolls around and your son or daughter hasn’t got a place at their chosen university, they may want to find a place through Clearing – and you could be a big help. This is our guide to the process.
What is Clearing?
Universities use Clearing to fill extra places they have on a course. If a student doesn’t get the grades they need to take up the conditional offers they have already been made by universities of their choice, they can go through Clearing to try for a place at a different university or college.
There won’t be places available at every university and on every course – Oxford and Cambridge don’t offer places through Clearing, and over-subscribed courses such as medicine, which require top grades, usually won’t lower these for Clearing.
But for most courses, it’s a good option. It means students can go to university this September – they don’t have to wait another year and reapply. Last year,61,000 people found a place at university through Clearing.
How does it work?
Students can log on to the Ucas track system from 8am on A-level results day, Thursday 13 August, where they can see if they have a confirmed place at university.
Not getting the grades they need doesn’t necessarily mean they have to go through Clearing – sometimes universities let students in with slightly lower grades than their offer. This happened for Michael Taricone, who didn’t get the required grades, but saw that there were places available through Clearing on the course he’d wanted to go to at Surrey.
He called up the admissions tutor directly, sent over some examples of his work, and received an offer that way. This doesn’t work for everyone though; Bacon spent an hour on the phone arguing with an admissions tutor at Oxford Brookes to no avail.
If you or your son or daughter are using Clearing, you can research which universities are offering places through the Ucas system. This year, Clearing places will be shown from 6pm the day before A-level results day. Students can search for courses, then call up the relevant university.
Students who have done the International Baccalaureate (or another course where results are issued earlier than A-levels) already have a good idea whether or not they will be in Clearing, so they can start looking around now.
This year, Ucas has introduced a new service where students in Clearing are matched up to available courses similar those to those they originally applied for. Universities are sent details of the students, so they area able contact them directly from 1pm on results day to offer them a suitable place.
However, Ellison advises students to take matters into their own hands rather than sitting back waiting for a call: “It’s important that students research courses and contact universities themselves for a place in Clearing; they shouldn’t rely on universities contacting them.”
The matching service runs alongside the existing one, and students can still search for Clearing places in the usual way.
Making the call
Once your son or daughter has decided on a course they’d like to apply for, it’s time to ring up the university. Callie Hawkinsat Ucas saysparents should encourage students to “take the time to prepare carefully for these calls – think about why the course interests them, how their qualifications and experience match up, and re-read their personal statement”.
Students don’t have to apply for the subject they originally chose, but they must have good reasons for changing their minds.
Parents should tell students not to call in panic. It’s essentially a mini-interview, so make sure your son or daughter doesn’t rush into the call and takes time to calm down.
Universities usually keep their offers open for 24 hours, so it’s worth your son or daughter taking time to think about whether the university and course is definitely right for them. They should also have another look at what else is out there.
If students need advice, teachers and careers advisers at their school will be on hand throughout the day. Plus Ucas have a dedicated exam results helpline on 0808 100 8000.
And, from 1pm on results day, there’ll be a live Q&A with experts from Ucas, university admissions tutors and Student Finance on Guardian Students. You’ll be able to start posting questions from Monday.
How can parents be of most help?
Clearing begins on what is often a tense and hectic day, with a mad rush to secure university places. Taricone says: “There’s a lot of pressure because all the students in Clearing are calling universities to secure places. The longer they wait, the fewer options they have.”
That pressure can make students want to grab a place, regardless of whether it’s right for them. But Karen Iley, admissions tutor for nursing at Manchester, says parents should encourage students to choose carefully.
She says: “Students should really pick somewhere where they’d like to go, because they don’t want to make the wrong decision and find that six months into the course they don’t like it. When we’ve got students here, we want to keep them. We’re not in the business of taking people for the sake of it.”
The best thing you can do is stay level-headed and offer support to your son or daughter if they need it. Ellison says: “Most importantly, tell them not to worry. It is not the end of the world if a student does not get the grades they were expecting.” As Bacon puts it: “Don’t freak out.”
