The UCAS points system.

English, Welsh and Northern Irish Qualifications

Volume and depth of study/Tariff points and Grades

Volume and depth of study (GCE A level or equivalent) Minimum number required: 2
Number preferred: 3

Tariff score Points accepted: 240 - 280
Minimum points required from qualifications with the volume and depth of A level or equivalent: 180
GCE A/AS level grade range

These are entry requirements for a uni i'm interested in going to but I don't understand the tariff score. I got 418, 366, 316 in my results so logic says I could easily get in but that can't be right because I only got CCD, not overly brilliant grades yet alot of the uni's have similar numbers.

What does this mean? I'm taking a year out so I an't ask a teacher. I just don't get how it works.

Reply 1

Juno

you need to read this

The UCAS points system is a way of changing grades into numbers. It's nothing to do with your UMS score.

Reply 2

*pitseleh*

A-levels:

A = 120 tariff points
B = 100
C = 80
D = 60
E = 40

AS-levels:

A = 60
B = 50
C = 40
D = 30
E = 20

So if you had CCD at A-level, you have 80 + 80 + 60 = 220 UCAS points. :smile:

EDIT: However, if you have any other grades at AS, you should be able to add those on as well, so if (for example) you got a C at AS in a subject that you dropped, you could add an extra 40 points (the score for a C at AS) - so you'd have 220 + 40 = 260 UCAS points.

Reply 3

Katy200

you need to find the tariff for your grades. I think its 120 for an A at A Level and it goes down. You add them up to get a number. I think 280 points is BBB equivelent as that is what i needed. Have a look at the link it explains it well.

Reply 4

*pitseleh*

Katy200

BBB = 300 points. :smile:

Reply 5

chia

Thanks for the info, I looked evrywhere for it. Obviously just not the right places.

One thing I don't get is this "Minimum points required from qualifications with the volume and depth of A level or equivalent: 180
GCE A/AS level grade range"

What does the 180 mean? I really really want to get into this uni and am 20 points short (damn being off a grade B by 2 points!!!) Is there still a chance I could get in?

Reply 6

*pitseleh*

chia

Well, the grade range they've quoted is 240-280 points.

So they're saying at least 180 of those points must have come from whole A-levels (rather than AS grades).

That means the remaining 60-100 points can come from AS or A-levels, and some universities also accept Key Skills, music qualifications etc etc to make up an extra 10-20 points here and there.

Did you sit any AS levels, chia?

Because if you did, you can add them to your UCAS score, and then you should fall within the 240-280 points banding. :smile:

Reply 7

pcok

I don't understand what the range is about, as there's quite a difference between 240 points and 280 points... :s-smilie:

Reply 8

*pitseleh*

Well - if you're just looking at A-levels (as opposed to AS qualifications, music awards, key skills etc), then 240-280 points translates as CCC-BBC.

So they're effectively saying they'll make offers of BBC, BCC or CCC. Which offer they make can depend on a number of things, such as your predicted grades, your AS grades, and how much they like you. :smile:

Does that make sense?

Reply 9

pyrolol

You could consider re-taking one module in the 418 subject. That would possibly push your CCD (220) up to BCD (240).

Obviously for some subjects it may not be possible to do this yourself easily, I don't really know.

Music exams do count, but you need to be pretty good. I get 95 points from them for example, but I've been playing 2 instruments for most of my life.

Reply 10

*pitseleh*

pyrolol

Music exams do count, but you need to be pretty good. I get 95 points from them for example, but I've been playing 2 instruments for most of my life.

Not all universities accept them as worthy of UCAS points, though - so it's probably best to concentrate on the points you've been given from your A and AS levels unless you know for sure that your chosen universities do accept music grades. :smile:

Reply 11

chia

My favourite uni is 260/300. I took one AS in which i got an E... it means i can get into other uni's but not that one.

I was expecting BCD, I really did my best in sociology and yet was still 2 marks off :frown:

Can you still be excepted into uni's even if you don't get the required scores?

Also, what are key skills? I don't play any musical instruments.

Reply 12

*pitseleh*

Thought about re-sitting to get those extra 2 marks?

You can be accepted into universities if you have an outstanding reference and personal statement and/or you perform really well at interview (if you get one) - but it's not very common for that to happen, and it's not something I'd recommend staking all your hopes on (though you've got five choices, so there's no harm in giving it a go - I just mean brace yourself for the possibility of rejection).

Key Skills are weird little things they make you do in high school (I never did mine, to be honest, so I'm not entirely sure) - but I think it's basic IT, English and Maths skills courses. You'd know if you'd done them, I think. :smile:

Reply 13

*pitseleh*

Also, chia, would you be willing to wait for another year before you go to university, if it meant you could apply to better universities?

If yes, you might want to consider doing an Access course. They're accepted by most universities, and if you do it full-time (so around 16 hours per week) you can complete it within a year. It's basically just an alternative to A-levels, and it gives you a basic grounding in quite a few core subjects, although you can also specialise (e.g. Access to Teaching, Access to Nursing, Access to Business etc). They offer it in heaps of places, all over the country (most likely at a sixth-form college, or somewhere like that).

Might be worth a shot? :smile:

Reply 14