The Student Room Group

Changing your Firm and Insurance, and After! FAQ 2010

Choosing your Firm and Insurance is an important decision and it is worth taking time over it.

Don't let worries such as missing out on accommodation choices bounce you into making a hasty decision that you may repent at leisure, and perhaps at length on TSR :wink:.

See also TSR Wiki: Firm and insurance choices.

The most commonly asked questions are covered below, but I will add to it if/as other questions crop up.

Deadlines
Everyone gets a letter from UCAS confirming their personal deadline, once all decisions are in. Check here for the deadlines that apply: Replying to Offers. Your personal reply deadline is also shown on your Track.

I've missed my deadline for making my choices, what shall I do?
Ring UCAS immediately and ask for advice.

I don't understand my offer/s!
If you are not sure what you can count towards meeting your offer and what you can't (most common with tariff based offers) email the uni to request clarification. That way you have a record of what you were told, should you need it come Results Day.

How do I decide?
It is essential to visit. However wonderful the course, however “prestigious” the university, if you hate the place it is not the right choice for you.

Things to consider include:

Course content

are you happy with the compulsory modules?

how much choice do you get, and when?

what if it turns out that the module options that interest you are not available for your year? Are there alternatives that you would be happy with?


Offer conditions
How realistic is it that you will get the grades you need? Don’t assume the worst, but on the other hand it is worth revisiting your predictions in the light of module/resit results from January.

In general, your firm should have higher conditions than your insurance. For instance, AAA not including GS is more demanding than AAA in any subject. If you have additional requirements such as STEP or AEA grades, then an offer which doesn't specify these is worth having as an insurance, even if the headline A2 grade requirements are the same. Check out the Wiki article linked above for more on this.

A point to bear in mind is how flexible your unis might be about taking you if you miss your offer, as this varies considerably. Last year, many 'near miss' applicants were turned down. This should be an important consideration when choosing your insurance, if your offers are all very high. Nevertheless, if you are completely sure that you do not want to go the uni making you a lower offer, there is no point in putting it down, as it just causes problems later by preventing you from getting quickly into Clearing.

This will be the second year when the Adjustment Period will be available, when people who have exceeded their offers are given a brief opportunity to look around and see if they can "trade up". This can mean that people who have just missed offers will have to wait a little longer to find out whether their uni will take them anyway, while unis check out the 'adjustment' applicants. 382 people used this route successfully last year (see UCAS data here). The UCAS guide to Adjustment is here.

If you think you could be eligible to be an Adjustment applicant (eg your probable firm offer is ABB but you are expecting to achieve AAA) it is still important to make your choices on the basis that you are choosing your definite firm/insurance unis. There is no certain way to predict which courses/which unis will be offering to take Adjustment applicants, and even if the one you fancy is 'available' your application may not be accepted. So, it is definitely not a good idea to assume that you will be able to change your firm if you exceed their offer.

Other useful things to do:

ask around (but don’t believe everything you read on TSR!)

try and find the student handbook for current undergraduates – the style and structure of this can tell you quite a bit about the Department, much more than is in the standard prospectus.

check out the Students' Union and Residences sections of the uni website

ask your parents/school for their advice – yes, really! You don’t have to take it, but you might be surprised by what they say.



You do not have to have an Insurance choice: you can’t anyway if your Firm is unconditional, or if you are an Extra applicant, but - I'll say it again - there is no point picking an Insurance if you have no intention of going there (this saves a lot of hassle later).

Do I have to pick my Firm and Insurance at the same time?
Yes. You can't pick a Firm and go back to choose an Insurance later.

I'm trying to make my Firm and Insurance choices and the system won't let me.
Are you sure all your decisions are in? If you have an application pending you don't have to make your Firm/Insurance choices yet. If you are really really sure that you don't want to wait for that last decision, cancel the choice and you should find that you can select your Firm/Insurance offers and decline any others. Whatever you do, make very sure that you are not withdrawing your whole application; if in doubt, ring UCAS before you do anything!

Can I change my mind?

When you have made your choices, UCAS will send you a letter confirming them so that you can check the details are correct, and if anything is wrong you have 14 days to make any amendments. After that, as UCAS tells it, your choices are final, and it is better to work on that basis.

If you have second thoughts about your choices either before you get your confirmation letter from UCAS or within 14 days of receiving it, you can make changes. A common one is to switch over your Firm and Insurance. Some people on here seem to have been able to restore offers they declined, but it would be unwise to assume this is always possible (and if it is, it will only be during this 14 day 'cooling off' period).

After the 14 days, you have a contract and the only way you can get out of it is by the uni/s concerned rejecting/releasing you (see below).

Can I decide on Results Day which uni I want to go to, if I have met both my Firm and Insurance offers?

No: if you have met the offer conditions for your Firm, or you missed your offer but they decided to accept you anyway, you can’t decide to go to your Insurance instead. If you really don’t want to go your Firm, you either withdraw altogether, or persuade them to release you, in which case you will become eligible for Clearing, not for your Insurance place.

However, if your Firm accepts you but for a different course you don’t have to accept it and can take your Insurance place/go into Clearing instead.

Can I carry an offer over to next year?

No. You can only reapply next year if you have withdrawn completely from this year’s UCAS round.

I’ve decided I would like to defer entry until 2011.

You will need to ask the uni if they would be prepared to consider this. If they are, they will tell UCAS for you.

I want to change course at my Firm/Insurance.

Contact the uni for advice; it is sometimes possible to do this. If the uni agrees to make a change, they will notify UCAS accordingly.

I’m happy with my course choice but want to change uni.

You will only be able to do this by negotiating your release from your Firm and/or Insurance, preferably before Results Day so that you are ready for Clearing from Day 1. Depending on how early you make the change, you may be able to use Extra - see below.

I don’t want to go to my Firm any more: what can I do?

If you have decided this any time up to a week before Results Day, contact the uni and ask to be rejected (rather than released). You will need to provide some explanation. If you have an Insurance, this will become your Firm, unless you decide to withdraw from that too (you will need to contact each uni separately). If you end up holding neither a Firm nor an Insurance offer, you will be eligible for Clearing immediately on Results Day, and you may be eligible for Extra until that route closes at the end of June. You will need to discuss going into Extra with UCAS (Clearing will happen automatically). Experience of people on here suggests that some UCAS advisers aren't happy to put people in to Extra in these circumstances while others are, so it is worth having another go if you don't get the answer you want first time round.

In the week leading up to Results Day, unis won’t talk to people as they are processing the exam results. Negotiating a release on or after Results Day takes time and is much better avoided, and remember that you are released into Clearing, not to your Insurance. Your insurance choice will only be able to take you as a Clearing applicant, and since they will have known for a couple of days at least that you met your firm offer, the place they were holding for you is quite likely to have gone to someone else.

However, if you have decided that you don’t want to go to university at all this year, then withdraw your application altogether, by contacting UCAS.

I'm happy with my Firm but I don't want to go to my Insurance any more: what do I do?
If you have decided that whatever happens about your Firm you definitely don't want to go to your Insurance, and would rather go in to Clearing instead, you can ask to be released before Results Day. You will need to contact the uni concerned direct to request this.

I am waiting to see what grades I get before deciding whether to reapply for 2011.

Even if you meet the grades for your Firm and/or Insurance offer, you can decide on Results Day that you don’t want to go. In that case, it is courteous to let the uni concerned know that you won’t be taking up your place, and to do this quickly so that they can offer it to someone else. You will also need to let the Student Finance people know in that case, otherwise things could get complicated and cause you problems later.

If I decide not to take up my confirmed place, will I have to pay tuition fees?
Not unless you have actually enrolled on the course, and even then you get a few weeks' grace. However, if you have signed an accommodation agreement you could find that you are committed to pay anything up to a year's rent, so check before you sign anything that you are sure about your choice.

I made my choices on UCAS Track ages ago but I haven't heard anything from my Firm yet
This is completely normal. Some universities write to you with all sorts of things once they know you have picked them as your firm, others don't send you anything for months. As long as your Track/confirmation letter from UCAS is correct, you have nothing to worry about.

I'm really worried I won't make my grades; how likely is it that my Firm will let me in anyway?
No-one can say for sure, since even universities/courses that were lenient in previous years may not be this year, for all sorts of reasons.

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1
I wish I could choose my firm/insurance...why oh why won't YSJ just reply! :')
I've got 3 unconditional offers on my UCAS - i'm going to accept one now - because they're unconditional and i accept it - thats my place secure right? - i don't need an insurance choice do i? i just do 'firm' on the one i want and then decline the other two?
Reply 3
Yep. Just firm the one you want and decline the others :smile:
LexieNoodle
Yep. Just firm the one you want and decline the others :smile:


Did that :biggrin: :woo: St Mary's Twickenham :h: - lol - thank you :smile:
Reply 5
...How easy is it to get out of your insurance uni on results day??
I firmed on ucas yesterday but what do I do now? When am I meant to apply for accomodation? Am I gonna get an email orrrr??? :frown:
koop
...How easy is it to get out of your insurance uni on results day??


Easy enough as in they can't force you to go there, but it will make things much more stressful for you if you're looking at entering adjustment or clearing because releasing you will not be top of your university's priority list so it might take several days.

Remember that you do not have to have an insurance... if you have one it needs to be somewhere that you are totally happy to go to if it comes down to it. Should you totally change your mind about the insurance (or firm) uni its preferable to get it sorted out before results day meaning should you miss your firm offer you would go directly into clearing.

dancingshoes10
I firmed on ucas yesterday but what do I do now? When am I meant to apply for accomodation? Am I gonna get an email orrrr???


It varies between universities - they will contact you and tell you what to do now, which will be either by email or post. You could also do some research on their website and on TSR to see what other people are doing who have firmed your university. You will need to accommodation at some point at your firm. Whether you apply for accommodation at your insurance (if you have one) is dependent on the university and again, they will inform you of what to do now.

You will also recieve a confirmation letter from UCAS with your choices.
Reply 8
Basically, my choices are Southampton and Sussex.

Southampton is going to be my first choice, with Sussex as my insurance.

However I am still thinking of staying at home (in Sussex) and come September, I may change my mind and want to stay home.


Is there anyway I can say I really don't want to move away in September and go for my insurance instead?
Reply 9
just tell them?

although personally I would advise you to move to Southampton - it will undoubtedly be a great experience!
Reply 10
i got grades for firm and ended up going to insurance, from personal choice, so yes, its possible. :smile:
i think its kinda complicated if you want to do that. coz if you get grades for your top uni, the insurance one will normally retract the offer and give it to someone else. you might be able to get in through clearing though i guess
Reply 12
Basically here's my situation.

Sussex and Southampton are both AAB offers.

I am more likely to move away, but I am still undecided. I just want to feel I have the summer to decide.

If my mum comes down quite ill again, like she has done before, I will more likely want to stay home...


Can you have a Firm and Insurance with the same offer?
Getting the decision right in the first place (and you have plenty of time for thinking) is very important as things can go badly wrong later. While sometimes possible, it is not easy to go to your insurance if you meet the offer requirements for your firm, and the process is fraught with risks. For a start, if your firm releases you it will be to clearing - not to your insurance. It may take several days or even longer to release you (the university won't see your UCAS administration as a priority while they are playing the clearing game), during which time any clearing places at your insurance are being allocated elsewhere. And your insurance university may not have any spare places at all, especially if they over-allocated places and need to reduce numbers as many did last year. Any opportunity to keep numbers down will be seized on in those circumstances.

If you really want to change your mind, do so a week or two before results are published and cancel your firm choice before the UCAS system closes down in advance of the results so that you will be left with only your insurance (and no back-up plan of course).

You can have a firm and insurance with the same offer requirements, and many do.
I've already picked the Universities which I wish to be my insurance and firm. However, I'm having doubts as to whether or not i've made the right decision. If, after results, my firm and insurance are willing to accept me, would it be possible to refuse my firm and go with my insurance instead?!?!

P.S I know this sounds a little strange and perhaps not the most coherent piece of writing you've ever read.
If you had taken just a moment to look you would have spotted the sticky thread that explains everything about this subject: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1208746

In general, the answer is no, not without serious difficulty and risk.
you cannot reject your firm if they accept you on results day
if you want to change them you can within 14 days of getting your letter from UCAS confirming what you chose for firm and insurance i think
I've met the grades for my firm offer but I now want to go to my insurance choice. What should I do?

You have made a commitment to your firm choice so if you no longer want to attend the course you should contact the university or college to discuss your situation. As soon as you were accepted at your firm choice, your insurance choice would have been informed - this means that the place is no longer held for you, even if you have met the terms of the offer, so you will need to contact them to see if they can still offer you the place. If your firm choice agrees to withdraw your offer, you will be entered into Clearing - if your insurance choice can still offer you a place, they can make you an offer in Clearing.


Sourced from the UCAS website.
Reply 18
I was pretty sure I was going to go for Edinburgh, BBB offer and I love the city! But I just found out I got a place for PPS at Leeds (AAB) where you spend a year in Washington and now I'm completely stuck! Any help would be much appreciated?! Thank you!
Reply 19
smithh1
I was pretty sure I was going to go for Edinburgh, BBB offer and I love the city! But I just found out I got a place for PPS at Leeds (AAB) where you spend a year in Washington and now I'm completely stuck! Any help would be much appreciated?! Thank you!
Only you can decide how much you want to do that year in Washington :smile:

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