Most students start thinking about their higher education application when they are in year 12 (or year 1 of college). However, it's never too early to start thinking about higher education!
Why go to higher education?
How to Apply
Open Days
Filling in your UCAS application form
Personal Statement
Why go to higher education?
- To study a subject you enjoy in more depth.
- To get more 'life experience'.
- To gain a sense of personal achievement.
- To increase your confidence - personally and professionally.
- Gain some independence.
And in the future:
- Much better job prospects.
- Some jobs actually require a Degree qualification - such as a Doctor or a Vet. Also, many jobs require you to have a higher education qualification but not necessarily in a specific subject.
- Graduates can earn, on average, 59% more than people who went straight to work from school (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development 2004)
Who goes into higher education?
- The Government is aiming for 50% of the workforce in the UK with a Degree by 2010.
- The entrance requirements vary for all courses and institutions, therefore courses are accessible for people from different educational backgrounds. You could be a mature student with an access course, or a young person with BTEC qualifications or A-levels - there will be an institution to suit you all.
- The vast range of subjects make HE appealing to many different people - no matter your education background, finances, race, gender, age.
- There is financial support e.g. student loans, bursaries, grants. for people with financial difficulties. See our page on Student Finance. [link back to finance section]
Higher Education - it's not all studying and work!
Whether you choose to live at home and commute to a local institution, or travel away from home, you will make a whole load of new friends- many of which will be friends for life!
- You have the chance to behave like and adult and be treated like one.
- There are loads of opportunities to join sports teams, social clubs, volunteering etc.
- Between lectures you can go to the students union, catch up with friends, surf the net etc.
- And more importantly, as a student you can benefit from cheap travel and other student discounts!
How to Apply
To apply for a full-time course in higher education you have to use a UCAS application form. UCAS stands for the University and Colleges Admissions Service. They handle all applications and are a good resource for researching your higher education choices. Visit their website by using the link below:
Choosing your course
Did you know there are more than 50,000 courses in higher education? That's a lot of choices that you have to make!
When choosing a course in higher education, it is very important you do a course YOU want to do, not what your parents and friends want you to do. You will have to be the one paying the tuition fees and making the effort to study for three or more years, so you have to enjoy the subject you are studying. Many careers ask for Graduates for varying subjects - not necessarily in specific subjects (depending on what career you want to go into).
Did you know you could study ...
You can study many, many different subjects in higher education.
Some subjects you may have never heard of ...
| Floristry & Floral Design | University of Wolverhampton |
| Football Studies | Luton University |
| International Hotel Management | Thames Valley University |
| Leather Studies | The University of Northampton |
| Organic Agriculture | University of Wales |
| Physics & Australian Studies | University of Exeter |
| Professional Gardening & Plant Knowledge | Myerscough College, Preston |
| Stage Management | Rose Bruford College, Kent |
| Surf Science & Technology | University of Plymouth |
| Theatrical Make-up & Costume | University of Worcester |
| Wine Production | University of Brighton |
To do a comprehensive search of every university and every course in the UK, look on the UCAS website www.ucas.com where you can search by course, by area of the country or by institution.
Open Days
An Open Day is when an HEI opens its doors for prospective students to visit the campuses and attend subject talks. It is very important that whilst you are researching a course and institution of higher education, that you attend a couple of Open Days to get a feel for the place you are thinking of spending the next three years. Visiting a few HEI's will also help show you how different your choices really are from each other.
Every single HEI will have several Open Days throughout the year. Open Days can take place on any day of the week - this will vary from place to place. It is very useful to go and visit an HEI as you have the opportunity to see the environment you will be studying and/or living in. It is also a good opportunity of seeing how far it is from home. Finally, you get to speak to tutors and students first hand, so can find out what it is REALLY like to study at university, and to study on that particular course.
If you can't attend an Open Day, it is useful to know that many HEI's will offer you a guided tour and possibly a chat with a subject tutor at another time - contact the Recruitment team and have a chat to them about how you can do this. And don't be worried about taking a friend or family - most people tend to take someone along with them for a second opinion!
For further tips on what to ask on an Open Day and to find out when Open Days are running, look on the opendays website. This is really useful and has some really handy tips.
Filling in your UCAS application form
From 2006, students are being encourage to fill out their application forms online, on the web based system 'APPLY'. If you are at school or college your Head of Sixth Form or careers co-ordinator will be able to advise you on filling this in, and will be able to give you a 'User Name' and 'Password'.
The on-line application form makes it very easy to fill in your form, you can save it and return to it anytime and you can also track your application as it goes through the UCAS system, and sent to HEI's.
As any other application form, you have to fill in various sections of information about yourself, your education and your work experience. These areas are:
- Courses
- Education
- Employment
- About You
- Personal Statement
To find out more about the application process, and using APPLY see the UCAS website.
Personal Statement
The Personal Statement is probably the most important part of your UCAS application form.
In it you must:
- Sell yourself - make yourself stand out from other candidates
- Be honest - you may need to back up your statement in an interview at a later date
- Be concise - do not repeat information from elsewhere in the application form
What information should you put into your Personal Statement?
1. Why you?
What sets you apart from the other candidates? Why should you get a place on the course? Why do you want to enter higher education? Why you have chosen the course - what interests you about the subject?
2. Education
Don't waste time writing which courses you are taking - they can see that on your form anyway. Do explain why you chose those subjects, what you've got out of them, why you've chosen to study a certain subject in higher education and what you enjoy most about it.
3. Career aspirations
What do you want to do after University? Will your degree have a direct impact on this? If your degree is not vocational what career areas do you think it will lead to? Admissions Tutors want to see you aim to put your degree to good use!
4. Work experience
Make a note of any work experience or part time jobs you have had (paid or un-paid). Have they inspired you to choose this degree? How? What skills have you developed from this work experience? E.g. communication skills, team player, working under pressure, independent responsibilities etc. Make sure you focus on the positive aspects of this work.
5. Personal achievements
Make a list of all the things you have achieved incl. any prizes or awards you may have received and/or are proud of. E.g the Duke of Edinburgh award, music qualifications, sports achievements or personal achievements and/or goals.
6. Interests and Hobbies
What do you enjoy doing out of school/college? It is important to come across as a well-rounded individual. Make sure that your statement is not too focused on schoolwork or socialising - you need to show that you can balance your responsibilities. Discuss anything you have done that makes you stand out - running a marathon, going scuba diving, volunteer work, charity work...
7. Gap year
If taking a year out, why and what will you be doing?
Now all you have to do is put it all together!
Presentation of your Personal Statement:
- Remember this is a formal, written piece of work. Put paragraphs in your statement to separate the different areas you are discussing.
- Always ask someone to check your spelling and grammar - these are taken into account, especially when there is a lot of competition to get onto the course.
- Show personality, but do not use slang words. Consider the course you are applying for when writing your personal statement.
- Use a thesaurus to help you write your statement.
- Always print out your form to double check everything before it is sent on to a tutor.
Finally, consider the language you use. Try using a thesaurus and put in some 'buzzwords', but make sure it reads well and that there are no spelling mistakes.
Good words to think about:
| Accomplished | Achieved | Communicated |
| Contributed | Co-ordinate | Demonstrated |
| Enthusiasm | Flexibility | Motivated |
| Organised | Opportunity | Participated |
| Team | Versatile | Independent |
Remember: Be positive and concise in your Personal Statement. Stress why you want to be on the course - your academic strengths, your enthusiasm for the course and also any hobbies or interests you may have in your free time. Your personal statement should try and reflect you as a person as well as your achievements.
