A Level results for most students, will be released on Thursday 17th August. Many people will wonder why there is so much press around this at the moment, and what the big deal is but for those students (and their families) who are waiting for these results, it is a hugely important day as it will confirm if they are going to the university of their dreams or if they are going to have to come up with a plan B. Things move fast on results day, so what is the best way to make sure you are ready to receive your results?

Preparing for results day

1. Be clear about how you are going to receive your results from the school. They will have shared information with you about this. If you are not sure of the procedure, please contact your careers counsellor at school to make sure you have all the relevant information.

2. The results will be released at 8.00 am UK time and you should be access them from this time onwards. Receiving your results is not the same thing as having your university place confirmed.

3. To find out if you have been accepted into your first choice or insurance university you will need to log into UCAS hub which will update at around 8.15am UK time. This will show if you have been accepted or declined for your Firm or Insurance place.

4. Make sure you have good wifi and phone access on the day in case you need to follow up with the school, your university choices or be able to enter into Clearing.

What are the potential outcomes?

1. Ideally you will have met the conditions of your offer for your first choice university and therefore you will automatically be accepted onto the course. You do not need to do anything further. If you are an international student the university will now be able to issue you with a CAS number so you can start the visa process.

2. You may have missed your grades for you firm choice but met the conditions for your insurance offer. In which case, you will have automatically been offered a place on your chosen course there. Again, if you are happy to accept this place, you do not need to do anything as the place will be automatically confirmed and secured for you.

3. If you do not meet either of your offers, you will automatically be entered into the Clearing system. You will only be able to upload a Clearing choice from 1pm UK time on 17th August.

How to Plan for “Plan B”

1. If you have narrowly missed your grades, it is worth calling your first choice university and seeing if they will still accept you. Have your personal statement nearby and good reasons why this is your first choice and why you want to study there. Similarly if you have just missed your insurance offer, you call them and see if they would still consider you.

2. If you have missed your predicted grades by a point or two, you can speak to your school about the possibility of getting your papers re-marked. They will be able to advise you if this is a sensible course of action and make the necessary arrangements. In this scenario, you need to contact your first choice university and tell them you are going for a remark and that you will update them as soon as possible. They are obliged to keep your place open for you, normally for up to 3 weeks when the new results should be in but confirm with the university the deadline they have set.

3. If neither of these options plays out then you will be directly entered into Clearing. Clearing is an online system where universities which still have unfilled places can advertise them to potential students. You can search the platform by University or course.

To learn more about Clearing, please click here.

If you need any guidance or support, our leading University Education Consultants are here to help. Please click here to contact Carfax Education today.

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