Your guide to UCAS Clearing: Time for Plan B

With A-Level results day this Thursday, students have been told to prepare themselves this year as results are expected to drop from last year and competition for university places rise. According to an analysis by DataHE, the number of students without a confirmed place at University has increased from 16,000 in 2019 to 28,000 in 2022 leaving many feeling anxious for the expected outcome later this week. The decrease in top grades is essential, according to the UCAS Chief Executive, Clare Marchant, stating the government had to halt grade inflation to bring results back to the pre-pandemic level. Many students throughout the UK will be disappointed, after leading figures have estimated 80,000 fewer As and A*s than last year, resulting in tens of thousands of students not securing their course or university of choice.

Many students will be forced to think of a back-up plan. Luckily, MyTutor, the UK’s most trusted tutoring platform has put together a guide to UCAS Clearing so you can be prepared for whatever results day throws your way.

For everything else you need to know about applying for university through UCAS, download The MyTutor Guide to UCAS.

What even is UCAS Clearing?

Being in Clearing means your teen didn’t get a place in the unis they’d applied to. But it’s OK– they can still go to uni. Clearing is how universities fill places on their courses that still have spots. Your teen can check on the UCAS Hub to see what courses still have space. It officially kicks off on July 5th and closes October 18th.

There are a few reasons why your teen might be in Clearing:
They didn’t get the grades they’d hoped for.
They’ve changed their mind about the course they want to study.
They didn’t get the offer from the unis they wanted.
They want to give university a go after a break away.
Understandably, your teen might feel down about having to pick a university course through Clearing. But it might help them to know that they’re not alone. In fact, last year, 29,00 students got their final university places through clearing.

Clearing offers you the opportunity to attend right after A-Levels, even if you missed your first and second choice offers. Numerous top universities offer places through Clearing, from Leeds to Liverpool, Edinburgh to Exeter, and Newcastle to Nottingham.

You can also use Clearing as an opportunity to change your course at the last minute. Maybe you’ve decided you want to be closer to home, or that you want to study Law instead of Biology. You can use Clearing between July and September, meaning there’s time to think about your next move after Results Day, without having to rush into choosing a new degree. All courses available through Clearing can be found on the official UCAS vacancy list.

Still have questions about Clearing? UCAS have compiled a helpful guide to the process, which is available here.

From Plan A to Plan B, and back again

On the day of her A Level results, Science tutor Natalia missed her offer to study Medicine at St Andrews University (by one mark). She submitted one of her papers to be remarked, but in case it didn’t come back with a higher grade, she looked for Clearing places as a back-up plan.

“I went onto the UCAS site and looked at the available Biochemical, Biomedical courses. Then I rang up each university and asked about the places available. I went through a quick application process on the phone with the university staff. After each phone call I received an offer to my email address that had to be confirmed within a given deadline (some deadlines were 2 days, others up to 3 weeks).”

In the end, St Andrews made Natalia a new offer through Clearing, which she accepted once her paper had been re-marked. Going through the process was still important though, to make sure she wouldn’t be left without a place in a course.

Here are MyTutor’s top tips for anyone going through Clearing this year:
Call the universities you’ve found through UCAS Clearing Hub as early in the morning as possible. The sooner you call, the more places will be available.
Ask for an offer to be made even if you’re unsure about the course (usually you can transfer once you’ve started).
Keep calling universities for updates. Waiting lists change every hour (lots of people cancel their offers). Keep at it!
Make sure (if you can) to visit the campus before you start. It gives you a better picture than just looking it up online.
It’s good to ask for advice from others, but ultimately you know what’s best for you.

It can be really tough not getting into a university, but your teen should be proud of their results regardless– they put in the time to revise and did their best! It’s important to remind them they still have lots of options and are not alone in this process. Clearing could even be the best thing to ever happen to them.

MyTutor’s Chief Customer Officer, Nicola Anderson, comments on the lower grade expectations for A-Level results day, and options for students who didn’t get the results they were hoping for:

“We are expecting exam results to be lower this year compared with last year but it’s important to note that results will still be higher than 2019, which was the last year that in-person exams took place. Whilst it will be tempting for everyone to compare results based on the previous two years – where teacher assessed grading led to a dramatic increase in grades for both GCSE and A Level, with the proportion of A/A* grades awarded at A Level rising from 25.2 per cent in 2019 to 44.3 per cent in 2021 – the real point of comparison is 2019. To reassure teens and parents who are concerned about the impact of this, universities have already announced that they will adjust to these margins and sixth form colleges are likely to do the same

“Results day is already an emotional time for young people, so our advice is to try not to worry about these headlines and to remember that everyone who sat exams this year is going through the same situation. If your child doesn’t get the results they were hoping for, although disappointing, it’s important to remember that there are lots of options available, including exploring different universities through clearing, or getting work experience and earning a degree through an apprenticeship with a top company. If students are really unhappy with their results they can always resit their exams later in the year.”