Gap Year & UCAT

Hello, i am applying to dentistry 2020, however i need to take a gap year. My predicted grades were seriously low (ABBD) and i am trying to get 3 A s at the end of this year. Because of my lower predicted grades i could only apply to a dentistry course In Newcastle and the rest (4 unis)for dental therapy and hygiene course. I was thinking to call the universities (eg. Plymouth) as a Clearing process in the results day if i get A or above. But now i need to take a gap year... So my question is can i call the unis for clearing and then if i get accepted can i take a gap year or not?

Thank you.. Does that mean i have to take UKCAT exam again for 2021 or not?

That’s what I did! I’m going to York in 2020 and got in through clearing because I was a few marks off what I needed when I got my results in August of this year. When you call you just need to ask if they offer deferred clearing for 2021, if they do they will put you in for a 2020 start application (it’s not a full UCAS application, it’s just a few details and took me about 10 minutes) and then they’ll change it over to 2021 on their end! I don’t know how it works with dentistry and I can’t promise it’ll be something those universities offer but it’s definitely a possibility!!

Thank you.. Does that mean i have to take UKCAT exam again for 2021 or not?

Dentistry is different because it is more competitive than most other courses. For that reason, there won't be many vacancies in Clearing and the few unis advertising will be very unlikely to consider deferred entry. This was the situation last year

https://www.themedicportal.com/dentistry/a-guide-to-dentistry-clearing/

Hi I just wanted to ask what a clearing offer is?

UCAS Clearing is the process by which unis that still have vacancies in July/August advertise them and candidates without any offers can apply. Some subjects will have lots of vacancies in Clearing, although not Dentistry I'm afraid.

What are the chances of getting into dentistry in 2020 through clearing, considering Covid and international students?
Also I applied this year but didn't get any offers; my predicted grades are A*A*AA in Bio, Chem, Maths and Welsh baccalaureate respectively. I come from a very small, rural town so most people in my year quality for contextual offers too just to give you perspective on the situation. I had 2 weeks work experience, one week private and one NHS, I've had 2 years retail experience and 1 year volunteer experience caring for elderly with dementia, 6 weeks caring for children living with autism and down syndrome, I was the head girl of my school etc. I believe my ucat score let me down - 600 average and SJT 3 but I applied to the schools without cutoffs and don't consider SJT. So I have decided to resit the ucat and reapply but what if that's not what was wrong with my application? I'm going mad here, someone help me out because I can't be the only one.