There is Life Beyond School

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JHGS
Ucas Evening
21st April 2009
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What are the choices?

• Employment
• Gap Year
• Further Education
• The main purpose of this evening

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Gap Years

• Universities like students who have seen
  something other than school.
• Either work or travel or mix the two
• Make a positive choice
• Choose something that will give you valuable
  experience
• Voluntary work
• Earn some money in a working environment
• See something of the world
• Consider applying to University and deferring
  your place.
• BUT- Check that the university you want does not
  object to Gap Years (Oxbridge, medicine)

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Higher Education

• Why?
• Typical graduates will
• Earn 400,000 more than non graduates
• Be more likely to find and keep their jobs
• 3 vs 7 nationally
• Have more access to higher level employment
• Higher education is an investment
• By age 30 graduates earn 30 more than non -
  graduates
• Be more satisfied with their work.

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Subject Choices

• Choosing a subject
• There are some broad areas to consider
• Sciences
• Engineering
• Arts
• Humanities
• Social sciences
• Business and Managerial
• Professional

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Course Choices

• Choose the course before the university
• Have you considered abroad?
• Do your research well
• Open days
• Taster Courses
• Online prospectuses - UCAS
• Careers service
• Good University Guide
• Think ahead
• Talk to as many people as you can
• You should have begun already

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Course Choices

• What sort of Course?
• Full time academic degree
• Gateway qualification, 3-4 years, some include a
  year abroad
• Full time vocational degree
• Includes work experience and partial job specific
  training. Can last longer than usual. Eg
  medicine, architecture, engineering. Sometimes
  followed by more training. Chartered engineers
  will need to have done a masters degree for
  example.
• Sandwich degree
• Includes up to 12 months industrial experience,
  usually 4 years eg Engineering, Bus Std,
  Computing.
• Foundation degree
• New vocational with work experience and links
  with employers. Lasts year (art) or 2. Can be
  followed by further years to convert to full
  degrees. Many subjects available
• H.N.D.
• Two years full time vocational employer links
  and work experience. The qualification is
  recognised by industry in its own right but can
  be converted to full degree by extra years

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Course Choices

• More on courses
• There are more than 50,000 to choose from
• The main decision is between vocational
• Leading to a single career like medicine or
  dentistry
• Or a career area such as business studies
• Useful if you know what you want to go into
• Or non vocational, gateway courses
• May appear to be vague and leading nowhere but
• You can take a subject you enjoy and are good at
• Provide valuable skills
• Keeps your options open for many careers
• Can be single or combined subjects

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Course Choices

• Course - questions to ask yourself
• Do I like the subject and want to study it in
  depth?
• Have I considered all the alternatives?
• Do I have some experience in the subject area?
• Does the course build on my strengths?
• What percentage of graduates get work
• What quality and type of jobs do graduates go
  into? Will they match my career plans?
• How flexible is the course?
• What learning approaches are used?
• What sort of support will I get?
• Does it meet my requirements?
• What reputation does the course have?

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Course Choices

• Courses
• Dont just choose something youve done at A
  Level.
• There are 384 different history courses ..
• Consider combining subjects Maths and Philosophy
  for example!
• There are about 1,500 business related degrees
• Business information management, Human resources,
  marketing, Business accounting etc
• Lots of subjects new at degree level
• Pharmacology, Aeronautical engineering, Marine
  biology, Criminology, Theology, Linguistics,
  Anglo Saxon, Anthropology, Astrophysics, Zoology,
  Chinese, Environmental management, War studies,
  Science and Football, Brewing and Distilling

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University Choice

• Universities Things to Consider
• Status
• Rankings
• Entry Requirements
• Distance from home
• Size
• Cost of Living
• College or Campus

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University Choice

• Status
• Oxford and Cambridge
• The Russell Group of old universities
• Top 18 in the country
• Concentrating on research, postgraduate and
  undergraduate teaching.
• The new universities, once polytechnics
• The colleges of higher education

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University Choice

• Status does it matter?
• It is no guarantee of the best courses in a
  subject
• Oxbridge still carries high status in general
• Depends what you want to do
• Some blue chip companies, professions, government
  jobs and financial institutions recruit from
  their own preferred universities.

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University Choice

• Rankings
• Produced by a number of organisations and done in
  different ways
• Based on teaching assessment, research
  assessment, entry standards, staffing ratio,
  expenditure per student, achievement levels,
  graduate destinations and employment, efficiency,
  facilities, value added etc etc.
• Times Good University Guide
• Guardian education unlimited
• Quality assessment reports (www.qaa.ac.uk)

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University Choice

• Rankings Meaningful or not?
• Employers are well aware which courses are best
  for your subject
• Universities with high rankings are not
  necessarily as good in all subjects
• The different tables will give different results

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University Choice

• Entry Requirements
• Universities will set entry requirements
  according to how good or how popular their
  courses are.
• Some will ask for specific grades in specific
  subjects others will not
• Some ask for points, some for grades
• At A2 A 140/ A 120 / B 100 / C 80 / D
  60 / E 40
• At A/S A 60 / B 50 / C 40 / D 30 / E
  20
• Some other qualifications carry points for
  example music grades, young enterprise exams

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University Choice

• Realism in your choices
• Oxbridge / top universities
• Look for intellectual curiosity, an interest in
  problems, high motivation, lateral thinkers,
  independence, resourcefulness, determination.
• A and A grades at GCSE in the majority of your
  subjects
• Sensible A level choices
• Leadership ability
• All-rounders sporting, academic, charity,

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University Choice

• Realism in your choices
• Look in the prospectus and check entry
  requirements.
• What grades are you getting now?
• Give yourself something to aim for but hedge your
  bets with a fallback place.
• Once you have made a choice go all out for the
  best grades you can get.

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Improving your Chances

• Start now!
• Really concentrate on your exams you will only
  have A/S and GCSE results to put on the
  application form so they must be as good as
  possible.
• If you want to go to the top universities have a
  game plan
• Start researching straight away. Begin with the
  UCAS site www.ucas.co.uk . Find out what grades
  you need and begin working towards them.
• Visit some universities, research taster courses,
  look at the careers library, look on the internet
  some universities have virtual tours

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Improving your Chances

• What else
• Think about what you can do to maximise your
  chances
• Get some relevant work experience.
• Personal Development programme.
• Remember your tutor will be writing your
  references
• Think about how you can add to your personal
  statement.
• Extra curricular
• Voluntary work
• Active involvement in the community

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Information

• Where can I go for help or advice?
• Connexions
• The Internet
• Mr Weekes
• Your teachers
• Your form tutor
• Head of Sixth Form

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Information

• Where to Find Information - the Internet
• www.ucas.co.uk
• www.educationunlimited.co.uk
• www.prospects.ac.uk
• www.foundationdegree.org.uk
• www.juiced.co.uk
• www.bbc.co.uk
• www.connexions.gov.uk
• www.student.co.uk
• www.student.co.uk
• www.opendays.com
• www.uni4me.com
• www.direct.gov.uk
• www.qaa.ac.uk

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The Process

• This term
• UCAS day (Friday 12th June)
• Research
• Visits
• Discuss
• Consult
• Personal statement
• Think!

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The Process

• Application is all done over the internet
• Everyone is trained on the UCAS day
• (parents welcome)
• You can fill the form in from any computer that
  is online at home or at school, you will be given
  access to the schools secure site on the UCAS
  website.
• Discuss your application with your parents!
• The school monitors your application and the
  academic reference is added by your tutor and
  checked by the Head of Sixth Form before being
  submitted online.
• You pay the fee
• You track the application online via the UCAS
  website.

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Deadlines

• Students
• 12th June Year 12 UCAS day first draft personal
  statement
• (Personal development programme)
• 12th June achievement data to tutors
• July 3rd personal statement to tutors
• First 2 weeks of September term finalise choices
  of course and university
• 21st September Oxbridge forms and applications
  for medicine, dentistry, pharmacology, veterinary
  science
• 19th October Final Deadline for all UCAS forms

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What next?

• University admissions tutor considers
• Predicted grades
• Personal statement
• Academic reference
• Law and Medicine may have to sit an exam
  (university dependant)
• You will
• Receive an offer OR
• Be asked for interview
• You must choose TWO offers
• One preferred
• One insurance

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Finance

• Fees
• There are tuition fees for full time study
• The maximum you can be asked for will be 3,070
• Look at the government website for all further
  information on this www.direct.gov.uk

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Finance

• Grants
• Grants of up to 2,906 a year are available, to
  help with living expenses.
• Dependant on income
• Apply to the local authority.
• Grants do not have to be paid back.

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Finance

• Loans
• You will be entitled to apply for a student loan
  to pay for living expenses such as accommodation,
  food and course materials.
• How much you get depends on where you are
  studying, and your household income.
• The interest rate on student loans is linked
  directly to inflation.
• Until you earn more than 15,000, you will not
  make any repayments at all.

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Finance

• Other sources of help
• Career development loans
• Help for social workers, teachers, doctors,
  dentists and some other health related
  professions.
• Scholarships, sponsorships and awards
• Access to learning funds
• University hardship funds
• Credit card
• Overdrafts

BE CAREFUL!!
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How much?

• On the aim higher website there is a budget
  planner to help you work out your living costs
• I did this taking their average and it came out
  at 6741 per annum
• I suggest you do this yourselves!

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After Application

• WORK !
• Offers arrive ....... Slowly
• Keep track on the UCAS website
• Accept 2, reject 3.
• WORK !

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Results Day

• Dont be on holiday!!
• If results meet either offer you must accept it,
  or withdraw from UCAS
• If you just miss, phone...ENTHUSIASTICALLY
• You may be offered an alternative choice think
  before accepting.
• If you dont get in you will go through clearing.
  
• Nationally some 74,000 students were accepted
  onto a course through clearing last year.