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Preparing for A Level Results Day 2013

Everyone anticipates Results Day with mixed feelings. On the one hand you want to know what you got and whether that dream has come true; on the other you are sure it all went horribly wrong in the exams and, quite honestly, you’d rather not know what the results were. It’s also very common to be having second thoughts about your uni choices and to be feeling more than a little nervous about going to uni at all.

However you are feeling, 15 August will come round sooner than you think. In the meantime there are several things you can do to make life easier for yourself and reduce the stress levels.

Extenuating Circumstances
Make sure that any information you want a uni to take into account when making a decision about your place, should you have missed your offer, is with them well before Results are published.

Stick around for Results Day
The most important thing you can do to help yourself on Results Day is to be here. This is not the time to be out of the country if you can possibly help it. Even if you are supremely confident that you will meet your offer for your firm, and/or that you won’t be interested in Adjustment or Clearing in any case, you will still need to get hold of your results somehow and to be able to make phone calls and/or to send emails. Modern technology is wonderful but can’t do everything; if something does go wrong your advisers can’t help you if you are a long way off!

If it is really impossible for you to be at home on Results Day, then careful planning is even more important. You will need to make arrangements that your school/college is happy with to get your results forwarded to you or collected on your behalf. This is not something to be organised at the last minute unless something unexpected comes up.

Getting the admin in order

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If you have been using a term-time address or have moved house recently, make sure that both UCAS and the unis have your correct home address. This is really important.

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Likewise, if you no longer have access to the email account you registered with UCAS, update your details accordingly. Remember that this is absolutely not the time for 'joke' email addresses - so if you haven't got a sensible one, create it now, tell UCAS and your unis that you have done so, and remember to check the account regularly!

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Check that the names on your UCAS application and your exam entry form/s are the same. A discrepancy here will cause delays in matching up your results and forwarding them on to your unis. Contact UCAS as soon as possible if the names are not exactly the same.

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Check that the pending examinations listed on your UCAS application match what you actually did. If you have changed (by dropping subjects or adding new ones) the exams you stated you would be sitting at the time you applied, you need to make sure that you have informed both UCAS and the unis. The reason for this is that – apart from it being a material change to your application which you agreed to let UCAS know about when you signed up – if your exam results can’t be matched up with what UCAS/the uni were expecting to receive, this is likely to delay confirmation of your place.

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Whatever happens on Results Day, this is not the time to find out you have mislaid some vital piece of paper. Therefore, it’s worth making sure beforehand that you have collected together

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all your UCAS paperwork, especially the letter confirming your choices, a copy of your PS, your CRB and/or health clearance if appropriate, and any other information you have sent to unis (perhaps as part of an application through Extra, or to report mitigating circumstances)

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any information you have received from your firm and/or insurance unis relating to contact on Results Day, accommodation, or anything else that the uni will want you to do quickly once your place is confirmed

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all your exam certificates – GCSE and AS – so that you know where they are if/when you are asked to produce them

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your results slips with your UMS scores on them

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your Student Finance paperwork

Other things you can be getting on with while those weeks between now and 15 August (well, all right, 6 August for you Scots :smile:

) are passing by:

Make sure you understand what happens on and around Results Day
Read the TSR Wiki articles on Results Day and UCAS Track on Results Day. These will help you work out what’s going on and why.

Planning for Adjustment
If you think you might be eligible for Adjustment you need to give some thought to whether you would like to try your luck elsewhere and, if so, where, bearing in mind the need to be realistic in your expectations. If you do turn out to be eligible, you will have very little time to do anything about it and you don’t want to waste what time you do have on research you could have done earlier.

Things to remember about Adjustment:

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It is optional. If you are happy with your existing firm, stick with it. This is after all the uni you chose after careful research, visiting on open days, gossiping on TSR, etc etc.

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Getting a place somewhere else at this late stage could mean that you are further back in the queue for accommodation etc than you are at your existing firm.

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The most competitive courses/unis are unlikely to be offering places through Adjustment; some have definitely said they will not be.

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Even if a uni is taking applicants through Adjustment, this does not guarantee success for you, so you may find yourself getting your hopes up only to have them disappointed.

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Because the range of choices in Adjustment will be limited, you may do better to take a gap year and re-apply with your actual grades.

If this all sounds rather negative, it’s not meant to. Some people will certainly benefit from Adjustment, but they are most likely to be those who have done their homework first (see below for advice about preparing for Clearing; much of this is also useful in planning for Adjustment) and who target their applications appropriately.

This will be the fifth year for Adjustment. Last year the numbers of people changing university through Adjustment more than doubled to 1,329, compared with 552 in 2011, 377 in 2010 and 382 in 2009 (the first year this option was available). It's important to remember that this is a tiny proportion of the numbers of people accepted into university overall. In 2012 there were 464,910 successful applicants, of whom 55,721 got a place through Clearing. Interestingly, while the overall number of successful applicants dropped from the 2011 total of 492,030, the numbers getting in through Clearing rose significantly from 51,169.

Preparing for Clearing
Even if you don’t think you are going to need it, or don’t plan to use Clearing whatever happens on Results Day, it’s worth reading the Guide to Clearing and Clearing Experiences. There’s no harm in having a Plan B just in case. If you are waiting to go in to Clearing, or think there’s a good chance you might need to, here’s some suggestions for making sure you are ready to go on the day, as soon as the Clearing lists are published:

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Use the UCAS Course Search to find the courses that were in Extra at the end of June, as this can be a guide for what might be available in Clearing.

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Use this information to identify courses that interest you, with standard entrance requirements you are likely to be able to meet, or come within a grade of being able to meet. Be flexible – consider alternatives or joint honours - think laterally!

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Check out those courses/unis as much as you can – look around on TSR and make the most of the uni/department websites. Don’t forget to take into account the uni’s accommodation policies for Clearing applicants, and other factors such as the Students Union and the support it offers.

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Use this information to pull together a shortlist of options so that, if they do come up in Clearing, you know what you would want to apply for. This way you are ready to go as soon as your results are in your hand. You will also be able to demonstrate to the admissions tutor a level of knowledge of the course and interest in it that will help your cause considerably.

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If there is something that interests you that isn’t in Extra but may have been in Clearing last year, there’s no harm in working that up too, just in case. Not being in Extra reduces the chances of the course being in Clearing but doesn’t remove them. Equally, courses do turn up in Clearing that weren't on offer in Extra.

Having a Plan B can make you feel a lot better as Results Day approaches – you are in control and can make informed choices quickly if you need to. This is a significant advantage, not just because you will be at the front of the queue, but also because it reduces the risk of making a bad decision that results in you dropping out a few months later.

Don't want to go to your Firm or Insurance any more?
If you have changed your mind about your Firm and/or Insurance and are sure about it, see Changing your Mind. It is much better to organise any changes before Results Day rather than after. This is particularly true if your wish is to cancel your Firm so that you can go to your Insurance. Remember that your insurance is not obliged to accept you as a ‘conditional firm’ applicant, so success is not guaranteed. If you wait until Results Day to negotiate this change you will find that you will be released into Clearing, not to your Insurance, who may still be able to offer you a place (as a Clearing applicant) but is not required to. The deadline for negotiating a pre-Results Day rejection - in practical terms - is around 6 August, since after that unis are getting organised to process the Results. In any event the unis won't usually speak to you about your application from the week before Results Day (ie on or after 8 August).

And finally.... just to reinforce PQ's messages in post #2 from last years thread.

(edited 10 years ago)

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

Fortitude

Thank you for the informative post, greatly appreciated. :smile:

Reply 2

31541

What 'decent' (i.e. top 10) unis generally end up in adjustment?

Reply 3

Pallas Athena

Hi! First of all, the information posted on here is extremely useful so thanks! :smile:

This was posted: "Use the UCAS Course Search to find the courses that were in Extra at the end of June, as this can be a guide for what might be available in Clearing." I wanted to know how I can know if courses were in Extra because I did the course search but only ended up seeing the universities offering it and the course type. How do I know which ones were in Extra out of these?

Thanks.

Reply 4

fruit_bowl3103

What happens if you get the grades for your firm, however you wish to go to your insurance instead? can you call up your firm and reject your place and then phone up your insurance to confirm your place on results day?

Reply 5

Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by fruit_bowl3103

Unfortunately not - if you've met your offer grades and your firm has accepted you then your insurance will assume you're going there and may well have given your place to someone else. You firm can release you but that would place you into clearing (and in some cases your insurance would be able to accept you via clearing but there are no guarantees)

If you know NOW that you want to go to your insurance then ring them up today to check if they'd take you as firm choice.

If they say yes then contact your firm and explain to them that you no longer want to take up your place and that your insurance have agreed to take you as firm.

Between the two unis they'll be able to arrange it so that you're accepted into your insurance (providing of course that you get the grades) without having to do a lot of ringing around on results day.

Reply 6

username937760

Original post by Minerva

[*]Check that the pending examinations listed on your UCAS application match what you actually did. If you have changed (by dropping subjects or adding new ones) the exams you stated you would be sitting at the time you applied, you need to make sure that you have informed both UCAS and the unis. The reason for this is that – apart from it being a material change to your application which you agreed to let UCAS know about when you signed up – if your exam results can’t be matched up with what UCAS/the uni were expecting to receive, this is likely to delay confirmation of your place.

Hi, I have a question regarding this. Upon application, I was sitting 3 A2 Levels (Maths, Further Maths, Physics) and 1 AS (Additional Further Maths). However, after getting all of my offers in and after March results, I decided to take three additional exams in order to get A2 Additional Further Maths. This means that I still sat all the exams I said I was going to, plus a few extra. I communicated this to my firm university, but never informed UCAS. Should I have done this and if so should I inform them now?

Reply 7

Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by DJMayes

Call UCAS this week to let them know.

On friday this week UCAS have to match your results to your application - if the two are different that can cause admin delays in getting your place confirmed. Let them know and it should all run smoothly.

Reply 8

username937760

Original post by PQ

OK, will do that. Thank you!

Reply 9

Killer_94

I recently got my password for edexcel results plus and when I log in it says that results day s on august 16th friday, whereas everyone is saying its on august 15th??

Reply 10

hollyyytr

I did a GCSE this year and so have to wait an extra week to know if I got in to uni or not. My school are texting me my GCSE result on the GCSE results day, but my firm uni choice will get it the day before as that's when they first come out.

My firm uni choice requires AAA and a B in the GCSE, my insurance just wants AAB.

I have a feeling I might get A*AA but with a C, if not lower in the GCSE. The GCSE is Additional Science, I already have a C in just Science, the one you do in year 10, and in year 11 I did a BTEC in Science instead and got a merit, so equivalent to a B.

So, all I need to do is wait until I get my GCSE result and then email my firm as soon as possible to beg them to take me anyway?

Not entirely sure what my procedure ought to be when I'm waiting on the GCSE result and whatever I need to do will be a week after everyone else does it..

Reply 11

star238

Thank you for this post :smile:

Reply 12

Pompeygirl

I never knew the uni got your results the weekend before you do?? :-o

Reply 13

ACBLISS

My firm uni won't reject me for some reason? I want to go to my insurance?

Reply 14

fifitrixiebell

Thanks for your post, so so helpful!
Would you recommend checking UCAS before opening your results, or the other way around?

Reply 15

Minerva

Original post by ACBLISS

My firm uni won't reject me for some reason? I want to go to my insurance?

Your insurance may not be willing to accept you as a conditional firm applicant at this stage - they don't have to. I would get on to UCAS and ask them for advice in dealing with this.

Original post by fifitrixiebell

Thanks for your post, so so helpful!
Would you recommend checking UCAS before opening your results, or the other way around?

UCAS Track on results day is worth a read :smile:

Reply 16

ACBLISS

Original post by Minerva

Your insurance may not be willing to accept you as a conditional firm applicant at this stage - they don't have to. I would get on to UCAS and ask them for advice in dealing with this.

UCAS Track on results day is worth a read :smile:

My insurance are fine with it, my firm say they can't reject me as it's to late?

Reply 17

Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by ACBLISS

My insurance are fine with it, my firm say they can't reject me as it's to late?

It's too late for them to do it if they're sticking firmly to UCASs rules (some universities will bend the rules but many wont)

Speak to your insurance and ask if they can speak directly to your firm to work within UCASs rules and get you sent to your insurance on results day.

There are 3 different ways your unis can manage it depending on your results:
If you meet your firm offer then your firm can confirm your place and then release you into Clearing and your insurance can pick you straight up from clearing (as long as they've all got confirmation from you that this is what you want they can do it behind the scenes so that it's settled on results day morning).
If you miss your firm offer then your firm can then reject you within UCAS rules and you'll be passed on to your insurance as usual.
If you exceed your firm offer then your unis can either use the first option above OR instead of using clearing you can use adjustment to get to your insurance uni.

All that matters is making sure your firm and insurance both know what you would like to happen and that they're able/willing to talk to each other to make it happen in the week before results day while track is frozen.

Reply 18

Pallas Athena

Can universities ask you to send them a CV if you end up in clearing? If yes, what exactly should this CV include? I am quite worried as I only came across the CV thing today. Any help will be highly appreciated :smile:

Reply 19

Minerva

Original post by sneha.vag

Where was that? It may have related to people who have not already put in a UCAS application. If you have, I can't think that a uni would want a CV as well, as they can already see everything they might need once you give them your number.