The days of Clearing being the bargain basement of university admissions are long gone – Helen Thorne, UCAS’ Director of External Relations, gives her top ten reasons why.
- A record 64,300 students found university places through Clearing last year – the system has transformed into a respected and important route to higher education.
- That means around one in eight people accepted to full-time university courses got there through Clearing.
- Of these, more people than ever (15,000) entered higher education by applying directly through Clearing after the 30 June deadline.
- Students from outside the UK can use Clearing too – over 5,500 EU and international applicants were among the total accepted this way.
- A UCAS survey last year showed that 92 per cent of students starting courses they discovered in Clearing said they were confident they’d made the right choice. Three quarters said their experience of the Clearing process was either great or good.
- Over 30,000 courses were listed as having vacancies on the UCAS website when Clearing opened last summer – from law to zoology.
- Most universities now recruit students through Clearing for some of their courses, including those with the highest entry requirements.
- Two thirds of 18 year old applicants from the UK are accepted by their first ‘firm’ choice – of the rest, just over half still get a university place; roughly half of these through their insurance choice, and half through Clearing.
- Close to half of those using Clearing will be placed by the Monday after A level results day. The system works efficiently – with no cap on numbers in the majority of HE courses in England, and a falling population of young people, universities are very keen to recruit suitably qualified students.
- And if Clearing isn’t right for you? There’s always next year. Around half of 18 year olds who don’t get in to university apply again – and 85 per cent get in the second time.
A level results day is just around the corner (Thursday 18 August). Signing in to UCAS Undergraduate Track from 08:00 on 18 August will show you if your university place has been confirmed.
The UCAS website has all the information and advice you need to find out about the Clearing process, if you think you may need to use it.
About UCAS
UCAS, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, is a charity and the UK’s shared admissions service for higher education. We manage applications from around 700,000 applicants each year for full-time undergraduate courses at around 380 universities and colleges across the UK.
UCAS Press Office: 01242 545 469
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