The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service – or UCAS as it is commonly known – is a renowned organization that takes care of university applications in the UK. Any student who desires to apply for a full-time degree program anywhere in the UK is expected to apply through UCAS.
Feel free to start applying for UCAS courses as soon as the courses are available online (around May every year, for programs starting the following year).
SHOULD I APPLY THROUGH UCAS?
- You can apply through UCAS for the following courses and more:
- A full-time undergraduate program (BA/BSc/LLB)
- A full-time undergraduate program (BA/BSc/LLM) with foundation year
- A full-time foundation program
- A full-time certificate of higher education.
- You can apply through UCAS regardless of which country you come from, or your age and educational background, or when you left school.
HOW DO I APPLY THROUGH UCAS?
- Note that all UCAS applications are made online. Inorder to apply, you have to go to the Apply and Track section on the UCAS website. You need to register and provide them a few personal details, including your name, address and date of birth, and then go on and complete an application form. Since UCAS is a centralised service, you only complete one form.
HOW CAN I WRITE A UCAS APPLICATION?
- We encourage you to set aside enough time to fill in and cross check your UCAS application form before you submit it. Do well to include your educational history, your qualifications (including predicted grades for any pending examinations) and your work experience, and include a personal statement as well. You can equally check the UCAS website for advice on how to draft personal statements.
- Assuming you are applying for a 3-year full-time degree through UCAS, you should not name a particular university in your personal statement as this personal statement will be shared with all the universities you are applying to.
COSTS
- Currently, UCAS charges £13 to apply for one program and £24 to apply for two or additional courses. Thus, institutions, colleges and education centres can provide advice on payment, while those applying independently can pay for it online.
DEADLINES
- Generally,15 January is the first UCAS deadline and most university applications through UCAS are submitted by then.
CAN I APPLY FOR STUDENT FINANCE THROUGH UCAS?
- The answer is no, student finance applications are submitted online through Student Finance England.
- We encourage you to complete this application at the same time or immediately once your UCAS application has been submitted, to ensure that it is processed – and that you’ve been awarded the full amount of loan you are eligible for – before the start of the academic period.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU APPLY?
- UCAS will provide the universities you are applying to access to your application, which will be accessed and reviewed by an academic member of staff, who may decide to award you a spot to study at their university.
- Assuming you are successful, confirmation will be sent to UCAS, who will then provide you Track account with the confirmation information. UCAS will then send you a confirmation letter once your place has been officially confirmed and sealed.
- Suppose you submit your application before the 15 January deadline, you will receive notification of your decision latest by May.
But if you apply after 15 January, your application will be considered a ‘late applicant’ and we inform you of their decision by July at the latest.
