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Three tips to choosing the right course

Mon 23 September 2019 - 16:01

By UCAS in UCAS advice

Have you considered a career in music, dance, or drama? If so, check out what’s on offer with UCAS Conservatoires.

But how do you know which is the right course for you? Our tips will make sure you choose the course that best suits you.

1. Research courses in our search tool.
The first place to start will be our search tool. Once you’ve found a course and conservatoire that’s taken your interest, find out more about the course, the conservatoire, the entry requirements and the audition fees by clicking on the course in question.

2. Attend open days
Open days will give you the opportunity to check out the facilities, meet current students and staff and give you the chance to ask them questions. Search for open days by conservatoire on our...

Charlotte's blog post on writing an undergraduate personal statement

Sun 22 September 2019 - 21:24

By Charlotte Stevenson in First year

A popular past post of mine was about how to construct a personal statement. Since that time, I myself had to re-write my own personal statement in order to re-apply for my literature degree. Going about doing this on my own was quite tricky, as I didn't have the same amount of advice as I had had in sixth form due to already being at university. Also, second time round I was writing for a more academic institution opposed to a performance based one (conservatoire)

In my second personal statement, as I have mentioned fairly briefly in another post, I was able to veer away from the specialist music performance element I had first had to focus on when writing for a conservatoire directly. This was interesting as it meant although the academic side of things was not too different (I talked about my A levels, how they tied together with useful links and resources) yet my hobbies included not only my music education and extra curricular but also my interest in writing, being...

Decision, decisions… when are you likely to hear back from unis?

Sun 22 September 2019 - 16:07

By UCAS in UCAS advice

The wait for decisions on your application can be agonising. It’s a good idea to use this time effectively by familiarising yourself with the decisions the unis you’ve applied to could make, so you know what to expect and what to do when the time comes.

Each university and college will make their decisions at different times, meaning you might hear back before your friends do, or vice versa. However, there are deadlines by which they have to decide:
  • 6 May 2020 – if you sent your application by 15 January 2020
  • 13 July 2020 – if you sent your application by 30 June 2020
  • 20 October 2020 – this is the...

Career options for a maths graduate

Wed 18 September 2019 - 09:22

By Ella Hendrix in UCAS advice

There are many benefits to studying a degree in maths. You will have almost certainly gone into your maths degree with a flair for all things numerical, but perhaps less of an idea about what job you want to do at the end of it. Unlike many other degree subjects, that can be more vocational, one of the good things about maths is that it gives you a broad knowledge, and a base from which you can choose the best career path for you.
 
Studying for a degree in maths can give you a wealth of skills and knowledge, including:
  • the analysis, presentation and interpretation of data
  • the ability to carry out experiments and studies
  • problem-solving
  • information technology
  • presenting mathematical arguments
  • the ability to deal with abstract concepts
  • logical thinking
  • advanced mathematical thinking
  • communication skills
  • good time management
  • decision-making and...

The importance of completing your own personal statement

Sat 14 September 2019 - 16:11

By UCAS in UCAS advice

Writing your personal statement is one of the most important things you’ll do when applying to university – it should be personal, engaging, and most importantly, written by you.
It’s extremely important to write your personal statement yourself. This might sound obvious, but you shouldn’t rely on websites or other people to write one for you.
 
Remember, your personal statement is all about you, so you should use it to showcase your personality, experience, achievements, and future ambitions. Universities want to get to know you, and why you’d be an asset to the course – they don’t want to read something that’s written by someone else.
 
While it’s good to get inspiration from previous personal statements, make sure you don’t just copy and paste someone else’s work. We put all personal statements through our...

Ten places to get personal statement pointers

Thu 12 September 2019 - 16:39

By UCAS in UCAS advice

If a bit of personal statement inspiration is what you need, then look no further – here are the ten best places to pick up more than a pointer or two!
  1. The UCAS website
    Start your planning here. There are tips on how to get started and what to include. It also covers the technical aspects you need to bear in mind, such as the character count.
  2. Personal statement timeline
    Check out our personal statement timeline. It’s packed with advice on how to spread out the planning and writing stages so you’re not cramming at the last minute.
  3. Our blog
    A few years ago we asked uni admissions tutors to tell us what they’re looking for in the personal statement and the advice they shared has been so well received that it’s still our...

The benefits of disclosing a mental health difficulty

Mon 9 September 2019 - 15:32

By Student Minds in Support

Students with mental health difficulties can disclose this on their UCAS application to ensure they can access the support they are entitled to. What are the benefits of disclosure? UMHAN and Student Minds answer these questions in this short blog.

When submitting your UCAS application, you have the opportunity to disclose a mental health difficulty. In the section marked ‘Disability/Special Needs’, you can select the option ‘mental health condition’.

You can then enter any particular needs related to your mental health difficulty. This information is passed on to the course providers you have applied to as part of your application, so they can begin to think about what support to provide...

Replying to offers – your questions answered

Mon 9 September 2019 - 12:57

By UCAS in UCAS advice

We’re approaching the time of year when lots of you will be replying to your offers. For some, this can be a tough decision and a nerve-wracking experience. We’ll try to put your mind at ease by answering some of the top questions we get asked at this important time of year:

1. I’m in Track but I don’t have an option to reply to my offers. What’s going on?
This is usually because you haven’t had a decision from all of your choices yet. However, if you’re ready to reply and don’t want to wait for the other choices to make a decision, you can choose to cancel them. To do this, click on 'view' for each outstanding choice and then you’ll have the option to 'permanently withdraw from this choice.' Once you’ve done this, the ‘reply to offers’ button will be available in the ‘Your choices’ section of Track.  
 
If you’ve been offered an interview, you’ll need to decline it first and then cancel the choice before you...

How to choose a course

Thu 5 September 2019 - 14:05

By UCAS in UCAS advice

There are over 30,000 courses listed in our search tool. Quite a daunting statement if you haven’t made your mind up yet about what you want to apply for, right? It doesn’t have to be though, after all every year there are hundreds of thousands of people in exactly the same situation as you’re in now, and they all manage to choose. So wouldn’t it be great if you could ask how they did it? How they narrowed down 30,000 to five course choices, and then ultimately just one? Well that’s exactly what we did.

We asked those of you on Facebook who already know what you’re going to study, or what you plan to apply for, how you decided that your course was right for you. Thank you to everyone who shared their stories, we had heaps of responses. Reading through them all, I could see that most people chose their course through one of five ways, so here they are in...

Take that leap of faith and do it!

Wed 4 September 2019 - 09:02

By PwC in UCAS advice

Apprenticeships are a way to gain the skills, knowledge, and experience you need to get into many careers. They combine work, training, and study, letting you 'earn while you learn'. Ella, from PwC, shares her story.

Why did you choose the programme?

I read about the different apprenticeship opportunities and I chose management consulting because it offers such a wide range of experience. For example, having the opportunity to travel nationally and internationally to different clients.

What have you gained from the experience so far?
I feel like I’ve had a head start in my career by starting at a young age – I’ve had such a breadth of experience that I never thought I’d have at this point in my life. I’ve learned technical skills, how to present, found out about cutting-edge technology, and developed an...

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