APPLYING TO HIGHER EDUCATION SEPTEMBER 2018

Why bother going to Uni? Learning Thinking, speed of processing, analytical ability Independence Money The average graduate starting salary is approx £24000 (NI) Average lifetime earnings of a graduate are £227,000 more than those of a non-graduate with two A-levels

How do you apply? Most applications will be through UCAS (electronically) or UCAS Conservatoires Applications for universities in Ireland are through CAO (electronically) A few situations require direct application to the specific institution Many European countries charge lower tuition fees than the UK (www.studyineurope.eu)

Applications through CAO Closing date of 1 February (meeting in November) Up to 10 degree and 10 diploma choices Listed in order of preference No personal statement or reference Different values for grades compared to UCAS tariff No conditional offers – selection by order of preference and results in August www.cao.ie Student Contribution fee – up to €3000 a year, loan available.

UCAS application Timetable Oxbridge and Medical / Dentistry / Veterinary Applications Closing date 15th October 2018 Forms completed and handed in by 5th October Sent by 12th October 2018 All other applications Closing Date 15th January 2019 Forms completed and handed in by 19th October Sent by 12th November 2018 UCAS Student Guidance Interviews - September 24th 2018 – 12th October 2018

The UCAS form www.ucas.com Register Undergraduate Username and password

The UCAS form Personal details – name, address etc Education – schools attended, exams completed and pending Employment – not very relevant to majority of pupils Choices – maximum of 5 realistic courses Personal statement Cost £24

The Personal Statement Justify course choice (very important for a vocational course) Work experience Activities inside & outside school Positions of responsibility Skills, qualities Concluding statement

UCAS Guidance interview Pupils will be allocated to a teacher Pupils are responsible for booking an interview in the 3 week time period Pupils bring a printout of their whole UCAS form, including personal statement, and grades required for their courses Teachers check their courses are realistic and check form and personal statement

What happens next?? Make any corrections as quickly as possible Pupils then bring a finalised paper copy of their form to Mrs Rea The form is checked one more time and pupils can now “pay and send” £24 paid online by debit/credit card The form is automatically sent electronically to school The school now writes the confidential reference and attaches this to the electronic form and sends this to UCAS

What happens then?? UCAS sends the form electronically to all the universities Admissions tutors then make a decision based on the personal statement, predicted A-Level grades, admissions test scores, GCSE grades & A/S grades, evidence of motivation and the school reference Some pupils may have to go to interview They may reject an applicant, make a conditional offer or (rarely), an unconditional offer

What does an offer look like? May be expressed as grades eg ABB May be expressed as UCAS Tariff points eg 120 points May be expressed as a combination of the two eg 120 points to include an A in chemistry A detailed break down of tariff points is available on the UCAS website At A2, A*=56, A=48, B=40,C=32, D=24, E=16 For a 4th AS, A=20, B=16, C=12, D=10, E=6

What next?? Pupils must wait until all five decisions are made before they can confirm any decision By early May, pupils accept a Firm Conditional offer and an Insurance Conditional offer which should have lower grades These are binding but there may be some leeway If rejected, the decision is final but pupils can ask for feedback UCAS Extra is available online from the end of February to the end of June if a pupil has no offers – provided a pupil used all their options Pupils can only apply to one course at a time in Extra

Tuesday 23 and Wednesday 24 October Mock Interviews Tuesday 23 and Wednesday 24 October 6-9 pm

Finance 1 – Tuition fees Universities in England, Scotland and Wales have now set their own tuition fees to a maximum of £9250 (2018) NI have set fees for NI students at £4160 All students will be eligible for a non-means tested loan to cover their tuition fees. The student takes the responsibility for the loan which is repaid directly from their salary when they earn over £18330 Loans are optional

Finance 2 – Maintenance Loans Loans are also available for living expenses Amount available depends on household income (pre-tax income minus pension contributions and allowances for dependents) London £6780 Living away from home £4840 Living at home £3750 If a pupil receives a maintenance grant, the amount of maintenance loan available will be reduced Also optional

Repayment Loans are repaid at 9% of earnings above £18330 The time to repay is based on income and amount borrowed – not on a fixed time period After 25 years, any remaining debt is wiped Interest on the amount is linked to inflation BUT, this means that you will owe the money for longer and potentially repay more Loans do NOT go on credit files

Pre-tax Earnings (annually £) Monthly salary (£) Monthly repayment Up to 18330 1527 £0 19000 1583 £5 21000 1750 £20 24000 2000 £42 27000 2250 £65 30000 2500 £87

Finance 3 - Grants Grants are non-repayable Students from lower income households will be eligible for a non-repayable grant up to £3475 If household income is less than £19203, student is eligible for the whole grant Sliding scale up to £41065 If a student is entitled to the maximum grant, the maximum maintenance loan is reduced

Finance 4 - Bursaries Universities often provide additional support to students https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/university- tuition-fees/other-financial-support/university-bursaries- and-scholarships/ Scholarships are available in many subjects Hardship funds Health Professional Degrees (S&LT, OT, Radiography etc) can have fees paid if pupil is accepted on NHS funded place Individual university websites

Finance 5 - Sponsorship Some companies offer employment and pay for university – Higher Apprenticeships Deloitte – software, consultancy, finance https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/careers/ap prenticeships.html?icid=top_apprenticeships Thales – engineering https://www.thalesgroup.com/en/united- kingdom/news/degree-apprenticeships- future-career-development Army - https://apply.army.mod.uk/what-we- offer/regular- officer/~/~/link.aspx?_id=773F62DBCA8F43 28B3E1A95193C8E2FD&_z=z

How can I help? Talk to your son / daughter about their choices Check the form is completed correctly Discuss the content of the personal statement and ask to read it Try to remind them of key dates Encourage, encourage, encourage!!

Information available www.prospects.ac.uk (Careers advice – what can I do with my degree) DEL – “Financial Support for Higher Education Students” (Apply in February/March) https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/information- and-services/higher-education/student- finance www.studentfinanceni.com www.moneysavingexpert.com www.unistats.com

What if I need help?? www ucas.com/parents (sign up to receive the UCAS parent guide and quarterly email bulletins) Contact Mrs Rea at school (90702777 or grea551@c2ken.net) Check the school’s website – all dates, presentations and useful websites are listed

QUESTIONS????