Available alongside Clearing, this tool is designed to help you find your perfect course.

With so many different courses available, we know it can be hard to find the right option. To speed things up, we’ve taken what we know about you, and what universities are looking for, to suggest some courses you might like. If you express an interest in a course, the university or college can contact you.

If none of the courses take your fancy, you can still browse courses in Clearing using our search tool.

How do your Clearing matches work?

Clearing matches are only available if you’re unsuccessful with your application or are applying for the first time for a place in Clearing. You’ll be able to ‘view your matches’ in your UCAS Hub.

Here’s how it works:

  1. First, we look at the original choices you applied for, combined with your qualifications and grades. 
  2. Universities and colleges have already told us what courses they’d like to make available (only relevant courses are included in your matches), and the entry requirements for them. 
  3. Then, we analyse what students in Clearing went on to study in previous years.
  4. Our team then matches your profile to each course.

If you’re eligible, you’ll see a button in your application called ‘See matches’. Once you hit that, you’ll be able to see a full list of your matches. If you express an interest in a course, that university or college can contact you.

Remember, courses in Clearing fill up quickly, and you may not always receive a call, so we recommend you also keep your options open and look for courses using Clearing.

Here’s an example of how it works. Just remember, the matches are individual to you.

  1. Rosie receives her exam results.
  2. Unfortunately, they weren’t the grades she needed for her firm or insurance choices.
  3. Rosie signs in to her application. She sees a ‘See matches’ button. Once she clicks it there’s a list of her top 50 matches based on her original choices.
  4. She clicks ‘interested’ on four of her matches.
  5. She gets a call from one of them. They ask her some questions about why she’d like to study the course and is offered a place.
  6. Rosie adds the course as a Clearing choice and is off to uni.

Top tips for using your Clearing matches

Everyone has a match

First, we match you to every course.

We then take what we know about you: your choices, qualifications, what unis have told us they’re looking for, and what previous students like you have gone on to study to narrow down your matches.

No choices? No problem

If you’re a new applicant and haven’t submitted any choices, you’ll still be matched in Clearing Plus.

We’ll base your matches on the qualifications you have and what previous students like you went on to study.

See a course you like?

Hit ‘interested’. This lets the uni or college know you’d like to be considered for a place.

If there are still places available, the uni may contact you. You should still look at Clearing vacancies using our search tool too.

It’s not your only option

None of your matches interest you? No problem. You can still browse all courses with Clearing vacancies in our search tool.

  1. Find a course.
  2. Contact the uni.
  3. Add a Clearing choice.

It’s that simple.

Remember, saying you’re interested in a course through Clearing Plus doesn’t guarantee an offer.