University admissions and offers
Of course, when it comes to UCAS applications and getting into university, there’s no such thing as an offer you can’t refuse. But there are in fact several different types of university and college offer, and it’s a good idea to know what they all are in advance. So here’s a guide to the different types of response to your UCAS application that you might get.
Conditional offers
By far the most common form of offer is conditional on you getting certain grades in examinations. This is because the majority of higher education applicants are still finishing school and so will soon be taking A-levels or something analogous to them. Conditional offers vary in complexity – sometimes universities will just ask for certain grades, and sometimes they’ll specific what subjects those grades need to be in. You might be offered a place on the condition that you get at least a B in Physics and at least a C in Chemistry, for example. Sometimes your offer may even require you to get certain marks in particular units.
If you’re doing GCE or VCE A-levels, or AS exams, or Key Skills or a Scottish qualification, you’ll quite likely find that your offers are expressed in terms of a certain number of points under the UCAS tariff system. Generally speaking, you can expect the offer to be adapted to whatever form of qualification you are (or will be) taking – all of this information will be well known to the universities since it should all have been included in your UCAS application form and/or UCAS statement.
These are the most common way for a university or college to actually offer a place to a school-leaving applicant, and a lot of prospective students think that this is the only kind of offer that exists. But actually there are several other types. See part 2 of this article for details of unconditional offers, unsuccessful and withdrawn applications, and interviews.
Unconditional offers
School students who have let to take their final qualification exams rarely get these kinds of offers, but the offers are quite common for applicants who are in a different situation – for example, mature students who have already passed their examinations. Obviously in these situations the universities and colleges already have access to all the information they need and can make a direct offer straight away (or possibly they’ll wait until they see real proof of the qualifications). However if you get one of these offers, be aware that the ‘unconditional’ part only really refers to academic qualifications – there might still be other basic financial or medical requirements and if you can’t meet those, it doesn’t matter that your academic qualifications are up to scratch.
Unsuccessful application
Unfortunately, although there’s no such thing as an offer you can’t refuse, there is such a thing as a rejection. ‘Unsuccessful application’ simply means that the university or college has decided not to offer you a place on the course.
Withdrawn application
This is the notification you’ll get if you’ve withdrawn your own application – which you could do voluntarily, or by failing to respond to communications with the university or college in question, or by failing to show up for an interview or other agreed meeting.
Interviews
This is (in effect) a condition of an offer, although it might not be expressed as a condition in the same way that grades and marks are. Some universities and colleges will want you to go in for an interview, and this is more common for some subjects than for others. It’s a good idea to give advanced notice of dates on which you won’t be available (because of examinations and so forth), but in the end it’s up to the university or college to arrange a date for your interview. If you really can’t make it to the interview on that day, let the institutions know immediately.
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