The 2 Things you need to get into your chosen Uni

The earlier your teenager understands this the better

I want to start this newsletter off with a potentially obvious caveat:

Please do your own research!

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Now that we have got that out of the way,

I want to give you the honest truth.

At least my honest truth based off my experience and research running ILS (

https://www.independentlearningstrategies.co.uk/

).

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Universities are desperate for more income.

They want your money.

And in order to get your money,

Especially at a time when grades have been falling in many parts of the country – somewhat due to Covid-19,

And less international students are attending UK universities due to Brexit,

They need to make it easier for your teenager to get into their chosen university.

Now this newsletter is not about whether or not a particular university will accept a lower offer on results day,

They may do,

They may not,

I strongly suggest you assume they will not,

This email is about what you need to do to get your chosen offer.

So let’s dispel some myths …

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Do universities care about your GCSES?

In my experience,

Not really.

You absolutely need certain GCSEs to do certain A levels/B-tecs,

And you will invariably need to pass maths and English – and for some, but not many university courses, you may require a 6.

But in the majority of circumstances your GCSEs will not define whether or not you receive an offer.

Do universities care about your DofE or music theory qualifications?

The unsurprising answer is,

No.

Can you apply to multiple courses at the same university?

Yes,

And I actually encourage it, as long as the courses are similar enough for your personal statement to apply to both.

More on this another time.

May a university give you an offer if you don’t have the predicted grades?

Usually not.

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So what actually matters?

Number 1:

You need to get the necessary predications to show the university that you are likely to get the grades outlined by the entry requirements.

This makes the end of Year 12 exams (the UCAS exams) particularly important.

However,

As long as a student gets somewhat close (within a grade or sometimes two grades) to the predicted grades they are after, in my experience teachers almost always predict students what they need.

Even if a student has completely missed the grade, the teachers will usually provide them with another opportunity to up their predicted grade at the start of Year 13.

So a student should absolutely work hard for their year 12 exams,

But between me and you,

There isn’t the need for quite so much stress and anxiety.

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Number 2:

Your Personal Statement.

To be honest,

I could have just left this list with one item – predicted grades.

But producing an adequate personal statement is also important.

There are certain conventions, styles and examples that the universities are looking for and your school should really guide you in producing a personal statement that is in line with this.

However, I am unfortunately aware that some schools will not do a very good job at this.

Therefore, I am happy to write a newsletter with some personal statement tips,

Bearing in mind I am not a specific personal statement expert.

However,

I am aware that the majority of my readership has a teenager in year 11 or below so I want to see if enough people are actually interested in reading a newsletter solely on personal statements.

So, if you would like to read a personal statements newsletter in the future, please tick yes below.

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I hope you all have a great week ahead,

Best wishes,

Joel