My UCAS Booklet

Name: / Form:
Enrichment Teacher: / Tutor:
UCAS Checklist / Date Completed
Initial selection of courses listed
UCAS account set up
GCSE results entered on UCAS
Personal statement activities, including skills audit, completed
Draft personal statement sent to tutor
AS results entered on UCAS
Final five courses entered on UCAS
UCAS applications ‘sent’ to tutor and £23 fee paid
Application sent to UCAS
Employment/Gap Year Plans / Date Completed
Initial Careers’ Interview
Research
Interview/Employment Training
Interview 1
Interview 2
Interview 3
Key Dates and Deadlines
Mid June 2015 / opens for 2015 Apply.
22 June 2015 / UCAS convention at University of Bedfordshire
7 September 2015 / My UCAS Booklet to Form Tutor
Early Sept 2015 / UCAS applications may be submitted
Mid Sept 2015 / Tutors receive predicted grades
14 September 2015 / Draft Personal Statement to Form Tutor
21 September 2015 / Completed Med/Vet/Dent/Oxbridge applications to be sent to tutor
15 October 2015 / Med/Vet/Dent/Oxbridge UCAS deadline
6 November 2015 / Barclay deadline for all other applications
15 January 2016 / Final UCAS deadline

UCAS PREPARATION LESSONS

Lesson 1: Introduction and Feedback from UCAS Convention

Lesson 2: The UCAS Form and Making Choices

Lesson 3:The UCAS Form

Lesson 4/5:The Personal Statement

Location can be an important factor when choosing a university, but how is your geography? Mark the following institutions on the map:

  1. University of Hull
  2. University of Leeds
  3. BournemouthUniversity
  4. University of Aberdeen
  5. Queen’s University, Belfast
  6. WarwickUniversity
  7. University of Loughborough
  8. ExeterUniversity
  9. Sheffield university
  10. EdinburghUniversity
  11. OxfordBrookesUniversity
  12. University of East Anglia
  13. NewcastleUniversity
  14. SussexUniversity
  15. University of Central Lancaster (Preston)
  16. ManchesterUniversity
  17. BirminghamUniversity
  18. LiverpoolUniversity
  19. University of Durham


Selecting a University and a Course

The purpose of these cascading questions is to help you make an informed choice about which university and course is right for you as an individual. You have to have five courses on your UCAS application, and ultimately you will need to choose to accept two: one as your first choice; the second as an ‘insurance’ offer in case you do not gain the grades required for your first choice. Work your way through the following questions by ticking the appropriate boxes, so that by the end you have a more focussed set of priorities to use when searching for a course. You might also want to discuss these questions with subject teachers, your form tutor and/or a parent.

Section 1 – Subject

What subject/subjects do I think I want to study?
1st choice
2nd choice
3rd choice

Section 2 – Type of Course

What type of course do I want? / Yes / No
Single degree subject
Joint degree subject
Sandwich course with a year out in industry or a year abroad
4 year Masters degree course
3 year Bachelor degree course
Foundation Degrees.
HND course

Section 3 - Assessment Structure

What type of assessment suits me? / Yes / No
Assessment over all course
End of year exams
Mixture of 2 systems

PRACTICAL SUGGESTION

Now refer to and find the universities that offer the subject and type of course you are interested in studying. If the number is relatively small (12 or fewer) add the names of the universities and courses to the table over the page

Section 4 – Location

Where do I want to live? / Yes / No
At home
Away from home

If living away from home:

How often do I want to go home? / Yes / No
Each weekend
Once a month
During term time reading weeks
At end of terms only
At end of year only
How close to home do I want to be? / Yes / No
Want to be within easy reach - 1 hour travelling distance from home
Want to be within 2-3 hours travelling distance from home
Want to be OUT of easy reach of home.

PRACTICAL SUGGESTION

Now refer to where you will find a university location map, and find those institutions that suit your location needs.

Section 5 – Institution

Does the ranking of the university/course matter to me? / Yes / No
Top Ranking university (e.g. Russell Group)
Course ranked highly in league tables
Does the cost matter to me? / Yes / No
Tuition fees less than £900/annum
Bursaries available to reduce tuition/maintenance costs
Low cost of living – geographic location with cheaper accommodation/transport
Commutable distance to avoid accommodation costs
How large an institution would suit me? / Yes / No
Large institution, perhaps on a number of different campuses (think about how you are going to get to different areas)
Smaller institution with one central campus
What campus type? / Yes / No
City (shops, facilities, night life etc)
Town (smaller, pubs, societies etc)
Country – self contained within its own grounds, possibly outside nearest population centre (entertainment is student/union based on campus)
What student accommodation do I want? / Yes / No
1st year in halls
Student accommodation in 2nd year
Student accommodation for final year
Food provided in cost of accommodation
Self-catering units to use
Don’t want student accommodation (think about price and location if no student accommodation available)
What transport will I use at university? / Yes / No
Walk/cycle
Reliable bus/train service
Own car (think about cost and availability of parking)
What sort of fellow student do I want to study with? / Yes / No
Male orientated (Aston has a 6/1 male/ female ratio)
Female orientated
Mixed 50/50
Large intake of international students
Large intake of mature student
Large number of different courses studied

Further questions to think about:

What facilities are there on campus: shops, banks, medical centre, sports, etc?

Do you have a hobby that you would like to continue at university?

Are there opportunities to get a job to help with finances?

PRACTICAL SUGGESTION

Now refer again to the university location map; and check out the websites of the universities you have already identified and narrow your choice/.

Section 6 – Entry Qualifications

Use and the websites/prospectuses for individual university courses to find out the subjects and grades required. For each course answer the following questions:

Can I achieve the entrance qualification for this course? / Yes / No
Am I studying the right A2/AS subjects for this course?
Am I capable of achieving the required grades?
Did I achieve the minimum GCSE grades (courses often have a minimum Eng/Maths/Science requirement)
Will the course accept my General Studies grade?
Do I need to submit a portfolio of work?
Do I need to sit an entrance exam?
Do I need to take an initial Foundation course? (Art courses)
Do I need to attend an interview?
Do I need relevant work experience before application?

Section 7 – Employment

Use the websites of individual universities and research their destination data. Try to find out what percentage of graduates from the course which interests you found employment, and what form did this employment take? If you struggle to find this information, telephone or email the university – by law they must publish this data.

Will this course give me a good chance of finding employment? / Yes / No
Are most graduates from this course in permanent employment?
Do the jobs undertaken by graduates interest me?
Do graduates go on to study for higher degrees (Masters, PHDs)

Getting Information

There is a lot of help out there to enable you to make the right choice. Make sure you use the following sources:

  • Prospectuses – online and hard copies in the Sixth Form
  • Student forums
  • Speaking to the current year 13 about their applications
  • Asking subject teachers for advice/information
  • Using any specialist guides available for particular subjects
  • ‘Which University’ a Student Guide
  • League tables – use with caution and always refer to more than one!
  • Attending open days – a full list of these can be found on
  • Attending the Higher Education Convention at the Alexandra Palace. Plan for this event in detail so that you can ask university staff about specific issues.

Now that you have begun to identify your priorities, use your research to make a list of a maximum of 12 courses in which you are interested and which meet your requirements, and add them to the table which follows.

Remember to try to include a range of entrance requirements including some which are below your predicted grades so that you have some suitable insurance choices later on.

Use the table below to list the courses and universities that interest you.

University / Course Name / Course Code / Grades/Points / Fees / Notes

Writing a Good Personal Statement

What is a Personal Statement?

The personal statement is the one part of the UCAS form that you have total control over. You have 47 lines to sell yourself and demonstrate what an excellent candidate you are for your chosen course(s). Your statement must be a maximum of 4000 characters including spaces and no more than 47 lines. This is your chance to outline your abilities, motivation and achievements, but, more importantly, show why they'll make you a fantastic undergraduate on your course. UCAS use sophisticated anti-plagiarism software so do not be tempted to cut and past any material which you have not written yourself!

Keep in mind who is going to read your prose. Imagine an admissions tutor with hundreds of UCAS forms. You are competing against other people for the same place. What are you going to do to make your form stand out? For a start avoid the following:

  • Waffle
  • Bluff
  • Repetition
  • Clichés ("I've always wanted to study...")
  • Immaturity
  • Starting sentences with 'Also', 'I read that...' or 'I did this...'.

Make it sharp, crisp, interesting, to the point and clear. Do the admissions tutor a favour and don't bore them! Remember, they have to want to teach you.

A possible structure would be:

Section 1: explain why you are passionate about your subject and why you are such a good candidate for the course (60%)

Section 2: demonstrate what skills you have already developed from your A level studies and wider experience (30%)

Section 3: demonstrate what personal qualities you have, and how much of a contribution you can make to university life (10%)

Section 1 – Academic Interests

This should be the largest section of your statement and it is key that you:

  • Show real passion and enthusiasm for your subject
  • Show that you have academic curiosity

These things are best achieved by including examples of your wider reading and/or talks you have attended/watched via podcasts and/or activities you have taken part in beyond your A Level studies. It is important not simply to list what you have done but to also show your understanding and how your interest has been widened by what you have discovered.

Examples:

It was this initial interest that led me to read ‘Eve was Framed’ by Kennedy. I was shocked by the extent of discrimination against women within the legal system but also strongly convinced by her argument that the current judicial system is not as just as it appears to be. The section on miscarriages of justice inspired me to entitle my Extended Project ‘Miscarriages of Justice: the true victims of the Criminal Justice System’. Naughton’s book on the topic helped me to develop my view that, though ideal, it is not realistically feasible to prevent miscarriages of justice from occurring altogether since the judicial system is run by humans. Wakeman, H (Law 2012)

Biology and chemistry AS have prompted me to develop a strong interest in evolutionary theory and genetics. As a result, I have attended several lectures at the Royal Society, including a two day series on the origins of life and the RNA world. The evolutionary approach to disease spawns many interesting theories; for example, Mervyn Singer’s proposal that allowing the body’s natural response to trauma to take precedence over intensive care may increase survival rates, or Gavin Barlow’s data suggesting that pyrexia should not be suppressed in patients fighting a disease as it is beneficial. McLaughlin, C (Medicine 2012)

Section 2 – skills

The key points for this section are to:

  • Show the skills you have already mastered from your A Level studies and/or wider experience
  • Show your ability to reflect on your learning/experiences

This is best achieved by including examples of pieces of work you have produced and/or difficult problems you have solved and/or complex concepts you have understood and can apply. If you have completed relevant work experience/shadowing you should use a few examples of things you have done and/or seen and what insights you have gained about your chosen area of study/career.

Examples:

To gain insight into the Japanese mind, I began karate, where I reached 1st Kyu. It enlightened me to Japanese ideals of respect and loyalty, and through my teaching as a sempai, I realised the attractiveness of Bushido in stabilising a nation. Evans, L (Japanese Studies 2012)

With my desire to discover more about the film making process, I was able to organise a work experience placement at Leavesden Studios, working in the art department on ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II’. The experience gave me an exposure to the creative process behind the making of a film, and allowed me to get involved and speak to a number of influential people who inspired me further. From working amongst the crew at the very height of the industry, I learned how rewarding it was to be part of such an enthusiastic, creative and hard working team. Consequently I learned to understand how important it was to work as a team, and respect the ideas of others in order to achieve the highest standard possible. Hunt, S (Film Studies 2012)

Section 4 – Extracurricular Interests

The key points for this section are to:

  • Show what personal qualities you have
  • Demonstrate that you have ‘spare capacity’ and get good grades as well as having a balanced life
  • Show what contribution you may make to your chosen university

This is best achieved by including achievements of which you are most proud but try not to simply list your achievements but use them as examples to show what qualities you have.

Examples:

I am a senior member of Harpenden Expedition Club and a young leader at a Cub Scout troop. In both roles I use my leadership, teamwork and organisational skills to help run meetings. I successfully lead a team of Scouts over a weekend of orienteering and wild camping to come 6th out of 70 teams in the ‘Peak Assault’ challenge. Wilcox, S (Geography 2011)

I enjoy working with people of all ages and do this through volunteering at my church, helping out at fundraising events and Sunday school. I work with the children on their activities and enjoy discussing their learning with them which has given me experience in communicating with young children and also helped me gauge their understanding thus helping me understand the Psychology. I also work at my local Mothercare store as part of a team and have direct communication with the public; an excellent opportunity to interpret behaviours. Hardman, F (Psychology 2011)

Opening and Closing the Statement

Try to make your opening sentence interesting (but avoid that quotation you found by googling your subject!) so that it stands out from the crowd. Don’t be clichéd – simply tell the truth!

Examples

Development and trade form a key part of civilisation as it currently exists, keeping society’s wealthiest rich whilst endeavouring to keep the poorest alive. Whether selling oil for hefty profits or exchanging corn to keep a family alive, both geography and economics affect every individual. Harding, J (Economics and Geography 2012)

In March 2007, I entered a competition to visit Kibera, the second largest slum in the world. Instead of simply writing a letter as an entry to the competition, I decided to produce a homemade documentary… Geraghty, A (Film and Media Production 2011)

Language is a feature that every community shares, yet the variety and diversity of natural language has fascinated us for millennia. Maniski-Luke, J (Linguistics 2011)

Finish by reinforcing how enthusiastic you are about your subject and why you know you will be successful

Example:

Ultimately, I want to explore economic and environmental principles because together they are constantly producing new challenges to face, new problems to resolve and new questions to answer. Zhao, T (Land Economics 2012)

FINAL TIPS

It's important that the last two sections relate back your passion for your subject – you have all the skills and qualities they are looking for just make them clear.

Make your statement stand out from the others – through the depth of academic curiosity you display

If you are likely to be interviewed do not include anything that you would not be confident speaking about – you don’t want to look a fool if the admissions’ tutor spots a glaring fabrication.

The more input you can get the better. Show your PS to as many people as you can: friends, parents, subject teachers, tutors, Head of Year, Head of Sixth form – in that order!!

You will not get there in one draft. Many excellent Personal Statements are the result of countless drafts. And don’t worry too much about character count in the early drafts – the statement can be edited for waffle at the end.

Personal Statement Activity 1 – Getting Started

Why have you chosen your courses?
Give examples of articles/books/activities/experiences that have sparked your interest?
What have you enjoyed learning about in your AS subjects?
Of which pieces of academic work are you most proud?
What are your hobbies/interests beyond school?
What voluntary/paid work have you done?

Personal Statement Activities – Extracurricular Interests

This is often the easiest section of the PS to write. List your extracurricular interests and achievements in the table below and decide which of your personal qualities each one best illustrates

Example

Activity/interest / Personal qualities
Part-time work as a waiter / Interpersonal skills – greeting customers etc
Ability to work under pressure
Team work
Organisational skills
Activity/interest / Personal qualities

Personal Statement Activities 3 – Academic Skills