How to Choose Your Five UCAS Courses

Hi everyone, 👋

As applications have opened and lots of people are starting to think about their five UCAS choices, I thought I’d share how I narrowed down my options — it can definitely feel overwhelming at first!

For me, the first step was looking closely at the course content. By this point, I knew I wanted to study Psychology, but I quickly realised that Psychology courses can look very different between universities. I made sure to pick a BPS (British Psychological Society) accredited course and then went through the module lists to see which ones caught my interest.

Next, I looked into the assessment methods and the opportunities offered within the department. For example, I was really interested in gaining some hands-on research experience, so I chose a course that allows students to use the on-campus labs for their own projects.

I also made the most of open days and virtual open days to find out which universities felt right for me. Visiting in person makes such a difference and it really helped me decide whether I could picture myself living and studying there.

Finally, I considered the location and wider student life. I knew I wanted to move a bit further from home to gain independence and experience living away, so that was a key factor in my decision. I also looked at the accommodation, societies, and the general location of each university such as how close it was to nearby cities.

By comparing all of these factors, I was able to confidently choose my five universities!

What factors are most important to you when choosing your universities? It could be anything (from course content to nightlife) that influences your final five. I’d love to hear how others are making their decisions (or how you made yours in the past)!

Eloise
Third Year Psychology Student