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How can I get to university with low UCAS points or how can I gain more points?

Hi, I am in need of some serious advice on what my options are and what I can to to get into university. Any advice would be much appreciated.

So basically, during my time at college (three years ago), I sort of messed up. I didn't know what I wanted to do and due to various personal issues and problems I was not able to complete my course to the best of my abilities. I ended up just scraping by with the bare minimum grade which is far from a true reflection of what I am actually capable of.

Three years down the line I have finally worked out what I want to do, I want to go to university and study however I do not have the required UCAS points to do so. I currently have 120 UCAS points which is extremely low.

Due to my low UCAS points and being out of education for the past few years I decided to try and apply to universities that offer a foundation year with a full course, as the minimum UCAS entry requirements for these courses are much lower and studying a foundation year would be a great help to ease myself back into education.

Unfortunately there are few universities that offer a course in the subject I would like to study, and the ones I have applied for I am a little short of the minimum required UCAS points for the course, however I decided to apply anyway with the hopes that they may overlook my UCAS points and score my application based on my personal statement, reference, and work experience. Unfortunatley I have been unsuccessful in doing this, which is understandable as I do not meet the requirements (the ones I applied for have around 160-180 UCAS points minimum requirements).

My next hope was to apply through clearing, so I requested feedback on my application and spoke to one of the universities I applied for, who advised to me that my UCAS points were too low. I asked if applying through clearing would be a realistic option with the amount of UCAS points I had, and they advised that it was not.

At this point, I do not know where I can go from here. I am currently working full time, I have moved away from home to a different city and receive no financial support from my parents or family. I support myself financially and I simply cannot afford to pay for any extra courses or any further education and even if I could it is unlikely I would be able to fit time in to do this whilst working full time.

Is there any way I can gain more UCAS points to gain access to university?

What are my options at this point and where can I go from here because I am really stuck, if anyone can help me I would be extremely grateful.

This is really frustrating for me because I believe I am good enough to go to university and I really want to work hard and do well but I just have nothing to prove this.

Thank you for reading my post.

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I know this is not helpful but I wish you luck! :colondollar:
Original post by ch3008
Hi, I am in need of some serious advice on what my options are and what I can to to get into university. Any advice would be much appreciated.

So basically, during my time at college (three years ago), I sort of messed up. I didn't know what I wanted to do and due to various personal issues and problems I was not able to complete my course to the best of my abilities. I ended up just scraping by with the bare minimum grade which is far from a true reflection of what I am actually capable of.

Three years down the line I have finally worked out what I want to do, I want to go to university and study however I do not have the required UCAS points to do so. I currently have 120 UCAS points which is extremely low.

Due to my low UCAS points and being out of education for the past few years I decided to try and apply to universities that offer a foundation year with a full course, as the minimum UCAS entry requirements for these courses are much lower and studying a foundation year would be a great help to ease myself back into education.

Unfortunately there are few universities that offer a course in the subject I would like to study, and the ones I have applied for I am a little short of the minimum required UCAS points for the course, however I decided to apply anyway with the hopes that they may overlook my UCAS points and score my application based on my personal statement, reference, and work experience. Unfortunatley I have been unsuccessful in doing this, which is understandable as I do not meet the requirements (the ones I applied for have around 160-180 UCAS points minimum requirements).

My next hope was to apply through clearing, so I requested feedback on my application and spoke to one of the universities I applied for, who advised to me that my UCAS points were too low. I asked if applying through clearing would be a realistic option with the amount of UCAS points I had, and they advised that it was not.

At this point, I do not know where I can go from here. I am currently working full time, I have moved away from home to a different city and receive no financial support from my parents or family. I support myself financially and I simply cannot afford to pay for any extra courses or any further education and even if I could it is unlikely I would be able to fit time in to do this whilst working full time.

Is there any way I can gain more UCAS points to gain access to university?

What are my options at this point and where can I go from here because I am really stuck, if anyone can help me I would be extremely grateful.

This is really frustrating for me because I believe I am good enough to go to university and I really want to work hard and do well but I just have nothing to prove this.

Thank you for reading my post.


what is it you want to study and what are your current qualifications? :smile:
Have you considered the open university? I'm not sure but they might do foundation courses which would be helpful, as you can continue to work fulltime?
Reply 5
Original post by claireestelle
what is it you want to study and what are your current qualifications? :smile:


Something related to marketing/advertising. My options are very limited with the amount of points I have. I have a BTEC National Extended Diploma in IT with the grade PPP (yes, I seriously messed up college).

I still have some chances to apply this year as a late application but I'm looking into it. There aren't really any universities in locations I like that offer a course that I may be able to study. I understand I am hardly in a position to be picky with the grades I have but if I am to go to university I am going to be committing at least the next four years of my life to it, and I don't want to go somewhere where I am going to be unhappy, although I guess if I have no other choice I am going to have to.

MMU would of been perfect for me as it is not too far from where I am currently and the course looks great, but I didn't meet the grade and they told me realistically I have no chance at applying through clearing.
Original post by ch3008
Something related to marketing/advertising. My options are very limited with the amount of points I have. I have a BTEC National Extended Diploma in IT with the grade PPP (yes, I seriously messed up college).

I still have some chances to apply this year as a late application but I'm looking into it. There aren't really any universities in locations I like that offer a course that I may be able to study. I understand I am hardly in a position to be picky with the grades I have but if I am to go to university I am going to be committing at least the next four years of my life to it, and I don't want to go somewhere where I am going to be unhappy, although I guess if I have no other choice I am going to have to.

MMU would of been perfect for me as it is not too far from where I am currently and the course looks great, but I didn't meet the grade and they told me realistically I have no chance at applying through clearing.


So ideally you are looking for options in the north west? :smile:
I recommend a foundation degree or doing a degree through the Open University. Do you plan on going to university this year or next year? As the tariff is changing and therefore points change in score but remain the same value.
What do you want to study?


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Reply 9
Original post by claireestelle
So ideally you are looking for options in the north west? :smile:


Ideally somewhere up north, yes, however MMU is the only university I can find that offers a foundation year in a course that I would be interested in. There are a few universities in London that offer courses that look okay but I still don't quite make the grade however they may be more lenient with UCAS points on applications, who knows. I am going to apply anyway to keep my options open however I don't really want to move to London.

In a perfect world I would like to study at MMU because of it's location and the course it offers, so I am looking for any way I can boost my UCAS points or do any sort of course that would allow me to gain entry, however this is going to prove difficult with my working and living situation.

Thanks to everyone that has offered support and advice so far by the way, it really is appreciated.
Original post by ch3008
Something related to marketing/advertising. My options are very limited with the amount of points I have. I have a BTEC National Extended Diploma in IT with the grade PPP (yes, I seriously messed up college).

I still have some chances to apply this year as a late application but I'm looking into it. There aren't really any universities in locations I like that offer a course that I may be able to study. I understand I am hardly in a position to be picky with the grades I have but if I am to go to university I am going to be committing at least the next four years of my life to it, and I don't want to go somewhere where I am going to be unhappy, although I guess if I have no other choice I am going to have to.

MMU would of been perfect for me as it is not too far from where I am currently and the course looks great, but I didn't meet the grade and they told me realistically I have no chance at applying through clearing.


I think your best bet is either you get an access qualification through OU or something similar, or you look into doing an FDA such as the one manchester college offers and topping that up or you happen to be 20 points short of what you need for a foundation year at cumbria uni in lancaster (so if you havent already you could contact them when clearing opens).
Original post by ch3008
Hi, I am in need of some serious advice on what my options are and what I can to to get into university. Any advice would be much appreciated.

So basically, during my time at college (three years ago), I sort of messed up. I didn't know what I wanted to do and due to various personal issues and problems I was not able to complete my course to the best of my abilities. I ended up just scraping by with the bare minimum grade which is far from a true reflection of what I am actually capable of.

Three years down the line I have finally worked out what I want to do, I want to go to university and study however I do not have the required UCAS points to do so. I currently have 120 UCAS points which is extremely low.

Due to my low UCAS points and being out of education for the past few years I decided to try and apply to universities that offer a foundation year with a full course, as the minimum UCAS entry requirements for these courses are much lower and studying a foundation year would be a great help to ease myself back into education.

Unfortunately there are few universities that offer a course in the subject I would like to study, and the ones I have applied for I am a little short of the minimum required UCAS points for the course, however I decided to apply anyway with the hopes that they may overlook my UCAS points and score my application based on my personal statement, reference, and work experience. Unfortunatley I have been unsuccessful in doing this, which is understandable as I do not meet the requirements (the ones I applied for have around 160-180 UCAS points minimum requirements).

My next hope was to apply through clearing, so I requested feedback on my application and spoke to one of the universities I applied for, who advised to me that my UCAS points were too low. I asked if applying through clearing would be a realistic option with the amount of UCAS points I had, and they advised that it was not.

At this point, I do not know where I can go from here. I am currently working full time, I have moved away from home to a different city and receive no financial support from my parents or family. I support myself financially and I simply cannot afford to pay for any extra courses or any further education and even if I could it is unlikely I would be able to fit time in to do this whilst working full time.

Is there any way I can gain more UCAS points to gain access to university?

What are my options at this point and where can I go from here because I am really stuck, if anyone can help me I would be extremely grateful.

This is really frustrating for me because I believe I am good enough to go to university and I really want to work hard and do well but I just have nothing to prove this.

Thank you for reading my post.



Hi,
You can apply for a foundation year as the entry requirements are quite low.
Reply 12
Original post by Farah_786
Hi,
You can apply for a foundation year as the entry requirements are quite low.


I understand this, the entry requirements are much lower than standard courses but I still do not meet the minimum requirements. I have already applied for foundation courses and have been declined. I spoke to MMU inquiring about what my chances were of getting onto a foundation course through clearing and they advised me that I pretty much had no chance due to my points being too low.
Reply 13
Original post by claireestelle
I think your best bet is either you get an access qualification through OU or something similar, or you look into doing an FDA such as the one manchester college offers and topping that up or you happen to be 20 points short of what you need for a foundation year at cumbria uni in lancaster (so if you havent already you could contact them when clearing opens).


I have had a look on the OU website and could not find anything related to Marketing aside from a BA Honours in Business Management which isn't what I want to do. Am I looking in the wrong place? I couldn't find a list of access courses on their site.
Use clearing to get into uni with low UCAS points

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Reply 15
Original post by samzy21
Use clearing to get into uni with low UCAS points

Posted from TSR Mobile


I have asked MMU what my chances are of getting accepted through clearing and they said it would be extremely unlikely that I would even be considered due to how low my UCAS points are.
Original post by ch3008
I understand this, the entry requirements are much lower than standard courses but I still do not meet the minimum requirements. I have already applied for foundation courses and have been declined. I spoke to MMU inquiring about what my chances were of getting onto a foundation course through clearing and they advised me that I pretty much had no chance due to my points being too low.



You can apply to certain colleges for an undergraduate degree.
Good luck. Also, why don't you pick up an A level.
Original post by ch3008
I have asked MMU what my chances are of getting accepted through clearing and they said it would be extremely unlikely that I would even be considered due to how low my UCAS points are.


What about an Access to HE course? The ones I looked at only needed GCSEs so you could do one and go straight into uni after. There's a site that lets you search for one:

https://ava.accesstohe.ac.uk/SubSites/PublicSearch/search.aspx
Reply 18
Original post by ch3008
I have asked MMU what my chances are of getting accepted through clearing and they said it would be extremely unlikely that I would even be considered due to how low my UCAS points are.


Original post by emiloujess
What about an Access to HE course? The ones I looked at only needed GCSEs so you could do one and go straight into uni after. There's a site that lets you search for one:

https://ava.accesstohe.ac.uk/SubSites/PublicSearch/search.aspx


I'm also going to suggest an Access to HE course, assuming that you're over 18.

It's typically taken over one year, and you could apply straight to the degree of your choice without the foundation year (subject to achieving the appropriate grade profile), so you're not going to lose any time. :smile:

I can imagine the most appropriate pathway for you being Access to HE Business. You should check around at your local colleges to see which pathways they are offering in September!
(edited 7 years ago)
Reply 19
I would highly recommend Open University. It is the only option you have and plus it's cheaper.
good luck

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