Opportunities!

Anisa

Hi all!

You know when it’s Clearing, when everyone starts talking about UCAS out of the blue right?! I think people get confused with the meaning of Clearing. :/. They get it mistaken as a last ‘resort’ for those who didn’t achieve the best grades. The answer to that is a “NO!!!!!” (Emphasis on the exclamation marks). Clearing is just a stage of the UCAS cycle which is seen as an opportunity to correspond with different Universities about different courses that may be of interest to you. I think the brilliant thing about Clearing is that it is an advantage for those who may have not have considered about going to University but have now changed their mind. It doesn’t just have to be those that just finished their A Levels, it is open to everyone! I guess we’re never too late to apply for University eh?

If you do eventually come across Clearing, here are some of the main points that I would recommend that you have:

• MAKE SURE you have a UCAS application ready and submitted before you enquire with the Universities about the courses that they have available, as the Personal ID (the 10 digit number) is crucial in order to review your application.
• If you already had a UCAS application, make sure the status of your application is in ‘Clearing’ and not ‘referred’ or ‘placed’ or this will slow the process of your application as you will have to request to be ‘released’ from the institutions that hold the offer.
• The criteria for the courses available during Clearing are subject to change, so they can go either higher or lower... So get yourself out there!
• All the UNDERGRADUATE programmes which are to be studied in FULL TIME mode, are applied through UCAS. But, PART TIME, POSTGRADUATE and some FOUNDATION DEGREES, should be made through our online application form which can be found in: www.gre.ac.uk/olaf

As I work for the Clearing Team, I’ve dealt with many different scenarios. The enquirers, well majority of the time, tend to be quite nervous or agitated. To be honest, you shouldn’t feel like that. With Clearing at the University of Greenwich, if one programme doesn’t seem to be right, we will try our hardest to give you an alternative. It’s a crazy time during Clearing, and I understand that it can weigh you down. But as long as you got the above requirements, that will be the first step to enter the process of Clearing. Maybe you didn’t think of University couple months back, but now you feel as if it is right for you then process a UCAS application as soon as possible!!! And for those with the UCAS application and are in Clearing - get searching!!! With so many courses on offer, it’s up to you to find what course is right for you.

Before I leave, I shall leave you with the contact details of the Clearing Team for the University of Greenwich:

Number: 020 8331 9000

E-mail: courseinfo@gre.ac.uk

Don’t pass up on an opportunity like this; instead make the most out of it. You know what they say: “The Early Bird catches the Worm”. J

Best of Luck!