1. Year 12 or Level 3 Year 1 ‘Getting Ahead’
This presentation is for students in Year 12 or who are studying on a BTEC Level 3, Year 1 course. This presentation can be used with students who are considering going to university but also to students who have not yet made up their minds about going to university. This presentation should take 50 minutes to 1 hour.

2. Aims and Objectives
Consider how you can strengthen your university application
Consider what you will do after you finish your studies
Consider the university application process
Signpost to other sources of information
This presentation aims to look at how students can strengthen their university applications by considering doing voluntary work or getting some work experience. It also looks at the UCAS application process and how students can begin to think about drafting a personal statement for their UCAS forms. The presentation includes websites and sources where students can find additional information.

3. It’s tough out there!
University places are highly sought after and getting one can be very competitive
Some courses are more sought after than others
It’s no longer good enough just to have a degree
Stress how competitive it is to get a university place. There are not enough student places for applicants. Highlight how important it is for students now to offer more to employers than ‘just a degree,’ i.e. important for them to have work experience/voluntary work/extra curricular activities/other interests.

4. Research! Research! Research!
Things to think about:-
Courses of interest: specialism, combined studies, entry requirements, work placement year, assessment methods, where will this degree take you, what you are actually being taught, contact time with tutors/lecturers
Institutions of interest: Home or away, campus, city,
college of H.E, good local transport network, local part time job opportunities, any bursaries/scholarships on offer?
Which qualification?: Foundation degree, HNC/HND, Honours (BA/BSc/BEng/BEd)
If you're not too sure what you want to study. Think me,me,me
-in which industry? indoors/outdoors? formal/casual?
- in a team/self-employed? office environment? job with further training
-apprenticeship school leaver scheme
These are some of the things that students need to think about when researching university courses and institutions. If students are not sure about what it is they want to study then highlight how important it is for them to be able to recognise their interests, strengths and how they can improve on their weaknesses. Students should think about the kind of environments they want to work in and what they want to get out of a job. Thinking about these things can help them formulate ideas about the kind of professions and industries they will be suited too.

5. Where to research? www.ucas.com (course entry profiles)
Publications: e.g. The Guardian, The Times
Career advisors/Connexions
Individual institutions-websites/open days/ prospectus
Individual company websites
A list of websites and other sources where students can find useful information.

6. Think Ahead: What do employers really want from Graduates?
Imagination and enthusiasm
Ability to use IT
Willingness to learn
Higher level problem solving activities
Creativity
Leadership
Communication Skills
Customer focus
‘Can do’ attitude
Ability to work in teams
Ability to adapt
Work Experience
What are employers looking for from graduates? If students think about the kind of qualities and skills that employers want from graduates then this may give them a better idea of the degree they want to do and explore what exactly they are being offered by the institution. With tuition fees as high as they are it is more important for students to know exactly what it is they are getting from their university and their degree-they can only find this out be detailed research and asking questions.

7. The importance of Work Experience
‘All work experience is good but relevance to your career choice and interests should be the fundamental factor behind arranging unpaid work experience’
Any work experience is beneficial but if it is unpaid then they should try and get some work experience in the sector which really interests them.

8. Benefits of Work Experience
Needed for particular Careers
e.g. Nursing, Medical Related, Teaching, Law
Helps identify possible Career options
Employers love it!
Helps build your skills
Excellent addition to your CV
Establish a network of contacts
Gain a supportive referee
What can students gain from doing work experience? Building up contacts is especially important and learning new skills is beneficial for the individual and for the prospective employer.

9. for finding Work Experience
Identifying an opportunity
Recognising a broad occupational area and what you want to achieve from the placement
Think about your interests
How much time do you have to spare?
Relevance to your degree subject?
Identify companies you are interested in
Write to HR manager to apply
Prepare for your interview
Show a positive can-do attitude
Treat it seriously
Sometimes even getting unpaid work experience can be like applying for a job. With many big firms and companies there may be a formal interview process just to get some unpaid work experience! Students need to take it seriously and think carefully about whether the work experience will be really beneficial to them and relevant. If students show a positive ‘can-do’ attitude it may be that individual that is remembered by the company.

10. Volunteering
Volunteering is another great opportunity to strengthen your skills profile and can help you decide what it is you want to do
Vinspired.com
If students do not want to get unpaid work experience (which may require a substantial amount of time) then alternatively students could choose to volunteer either over the summer holidays or regularly each month. Volunteering is a great way of identifying possible career opportunities. These websites have a lot of local opportunities in a range of sectors.

11. The University Application process
UCAS stands for the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service
If you want to go to University or a College of Higher Education full time then you can apply through UCAS
UCAS can help you find the right course and University for you and has lots of other useful information about H.E
When students return after the summer holidays they will begin their UCAS applications forms. Explain what UCAS is and how if they decide to study full time they will use the service to apply to university.

12. Application Process Registration Personal Details
Additional Information- Equal opps. etc
Choices: Courses/Institutes
Education
Employment
Personal Statement (4,000 characters/47 lines)
Reference
Declaration
Pay and Send (If you are at a school or college when you apply they will deal with the payment to UCAS)
The basic application process looks like this. The most important part is the personal statement.

13. Personal Statement ‘The hardest thing I have ever written in my life’
Your life in 47 lines
Who will read my personal statement?
Admission Tutors within each school/faculty will read your PS
They will have a criteria that they want you to cover and evidence before they make an offer or call you for interview
This checklist ensures the application process is fair
They have a very tough job and will be incredibly harsh!
Their personal statements will be used to decide whether or not that student is offered a place at the university or an interview for a place. Admission tutors have an incredibly hard job. They usually have over 1000 applications (for popular courses) and will have only places on a course. Students need to make sure their applications are accurate with perfect spelling, punctuation and grammar. A single spelling mistake is enough for their application to be rejected! (This isn’t meant to scare the students but just to make them realise how important it is for their applications to be right!)

14. Potential Criteria
Is the student suited to the course they are applying for?
Does the student have the necessary qualifications and qualities for the course?
Is the student conscientious, hardworking and unlikely to drop out?
Will the student do their best and cope with the demands of the course?
Can the student work under pressure?
Will the student be able to adjust to their new environment at university?
What are their communication skills like?
Are they dedicated to this course and have researched it well?
Do they have a genuine interest in the subject and a desire to learn more about it?
This is a list of some of the things admission tutors will be looking for in a personal statement. They will have a checklist which they will use to mark all personal statements.

15. Essential requirements
Reasons for choosing the course and evidence: Knowledge of course content
What you hope to gain from the course and university as a whole, career/personal development
Career aspirations
Relevant background to show how your current educational course has prepared you and information on work experience/other relevant studies
Any other interests that will help to describe you as a person e.g. hobbies-types of reading, sport, travel, music etc
2/3’s
These are the essential requirements for a personal statement.
-Whys do they want to do this subject?
-What are their ambitions?
-How has their current studies prepared them to study at the next level?
-Relevant work experience
-Career aspirations
The last part of the statement can include a few sentences about their relevant outside interests or the activities where they have developed transferable skills.
Last paragraph

16. What Happens Next? Your application is processed
You’ll receive a Welcome letter and a Personal ID number
Your application is accessed by the Universities and Colleges
Your application is considered against the Institutions
admissions criteria and decisions are sent back to UCAS
You can view decisions on the UCAS ‘Track’ application
After the student has paid for (they will usually pay the money to their college) and sent their application, UCAS processes them and the student will receive a welcome letter and their own personal ID number.
Their application will then be sent to the universities and decisions will be shown on their UCAS ‘track’ page.

17. University Offers
Unconditional Offers: no additional requirements attached
Conditional Offers: you may have to get certain grades in your exams
If you accept a Conditional Offer you may also accept a second offer (Insurance offer) in case you don’t make the grade for your first choice
Once you have decided which offer to accept and any insurance offer you must decline all other offers
If you do not want to accept any of the offers you have received you can decline them all and become eligible for ‘Extra’ or ‘Clearing’
University will make one of the following offers:-
-Unconditional-they have a place at the institution and there are no further requirements
-Conditional-they have a reserved place but they must get certain grades in their exams or attend and pass an interview or assessment day
-Decline-you have not been offered a place
-Withdraw-the student withdraws their application from that university
If students are offered a ‘conditional’ offer they can choose to accept it and then choose a second option (insurance) in case they do not meet the requirements for their first choice
Once the students have picked their first and second choice then they must decline all their other offers.
If students do not wish to accept any of their offers they can decline them and they will then become eligible for UCAS Extra (where they can apply for another university) or UCAS Clearing (where they can contact all universities which still have places available.)

18. What happens if I don’t get a uni place?
This is something you may need to consider and is the reason you should always choose institutions with a range of entry requirements
UCAS Extra, UCAS Clearing
You may have to consider a different course at short notice
‘For many employees academic discipline is irrelevant - personal qualities and transferable skills are more important’
You may have to consider a Gap Year or doing something else
This is something students need to consider in case they do not do as well as they were expecting in their final exams. Students may have to apply for a slightly different course through UCAS Clearing if there are no places left on the course they want to do. (Some courses may have different names but actually teach very similar things.) Students may also have to think about taking a gap year and reapplying to university the following year. If they choose to take a gap year you should stress the importance of them making it as constructive as possible, i.e. getting a job/work experience/volunteering. There are lots of gap year companies which can organise activities and placements in the UK and overseas.

19. What if I don’t want to go to uni or haven’t made up my mind yet?
If you are not sure if you want to go to university you could still apply and decide later
School Leaver Scheme
Apprenticeship
Work with training
Get self-aware!
Remember you can go to university at any time in your life!
If students do not know if they want to go to university they can always still apply. There is a deadline for applications but they can always choose to withdraw their applications at a later date or decline any offers they are made. Many companies now take on students straight from school. These schemes are called ‘school leaver’ schemes. It is worth checking out their websites to see if they take on school/college leavers. Students may also choose to do an apprenticeship or a job with some form of training (Level 3/4 NVQ.) Mature students are becoming more popular and just because they don’t go to university from college doesn’t mean they will never go.

20. What else do I need to consider?
Before University
Student Finance:
Further Work Experience/Volunteering
UCAS application
Draft Personal Statement
After Graduation
Further study
Travel/Gap Year
Graduate Scheme
A recap of things students need to consider before they make their university applications and over the summer holidays. They will apply for their student finance after they have applied for their universities.
Students should also try and plan ahead for what happens after university.

21. Student Finance
Universities can charge up to £9,000 tuition fees per year
Some universities charge different prices for different courses
You will also have the other costs involved in going to university
Student finance changed in Students can be charged up to £9,000 by institutions and may charge different amounts for different courses.

22. The cost of university and financial help available
There are 2 main costs of going to university
Tuition Fees
Maintenance Fees
Student Support available
Tuition Fee Loan
Maintenance Loan
Maintenance Grant
Extra Support if you have special circumstances
Students have 2 main costs at University. Tuition fees (set and charged by the university) and Maintenance fees (costs of living, course equipment etc) The basic student finance package looks as above. Everyone gets their tuition fees paid for and will be entitled to some part of the maintenance loan. Students from lower income backgrounds will be able to apply for a maintenance grant and there is extra support available if you have learning difficulties, a disability or dependants (children or your own or you are a carer.)

23. Tuition Fee Loan
To help with the cost of tuition fees to a maximum of £9,000
Available to all eligible students
Not based on household income
Paid by Student Finance England direct to university or college
Repayable when you finish your course
Anyone can apply for a tuition fee loan. It will be paid by Student Finance England directly to the university.

24. Maintenance Loan To help with living costs-entitlement depends on :
Household income
Where you live whilst you are studying
Year of course
Repayable when you finish or leave your course
The maintenance loan depends on the above 3 things. They will look at the household income of the students parents/guardians. They will look at where you choose to study (if you move away from home you get slightly more money than if you live at home, you get slightly more for studying in London.) They will also look at your year of course (you get slightly more money in your first and second years.)

25. Maintenance Grant
To assist students from lower and middle income backgrounds
Generous grant available if your household income is less than £25,000 per year. Part grant available if your household income is less than £42,000 per year
Non-repayable
For students from low or middle income backgrounds. If your household income is less than £25,000 you get the full amount of grant available. If your household income is less than £40,000 but more than £25,000 you will get a partial grant. Grants do not have to repaid.

26. Other financial support available
There may be university and college bursaries
Extra help for students in special circumstances
e.g. students with a disability or with dependents
Certain courses may attract their own funding for example NHS and Social Work courses
National Scholarship Programme
Part Time job
Universities may offer bursaries (non repayable amounts of money) to students. Students should check what their universities are offering if anything when they are making their decisions about where to study.
Some NHS courses offer bursaries to their students.
The National Scholarship Programme offers support to students from very low income backgrounds.
Many students supplements their income with a part time job.

27. University/NHS Bursaries and Scholarships
It is worth checking to see if the universities you are applying to offer any additional funds to do the course
Check out their websites or ring the admission tutors to find out if the department or university offers additional bursaries and what the eligibility criteria is
Some NHS courses (Nursing, Operating Department Practice, Midwifery, Social Work) currently offer bursaries to help fund these courses
Tutors just need to make sure that NHS bursaries are still available.

28. National Scholarship Programme
Available for bright potential students from lower income backgrounds at universities charging tuition fees of more than £6,000 per year
Institutions may offer one of the following
A fee waiver or discount
A free foundation year where leading to progression to a professional career (for courses with high entry requirements)
Discounted accommodation or other similar institutional service
A financial scholarship/bursary-capped at £1,000
Universities will decide the eligibility criteria
Information about the NSP will be found on the university website and UCAS
The criteria for the NSP. Institutions can offer one of the above or a combination of things. Each university will be different.

29. Loan Repayments
A small amount of interest is charged from when loans are taken out until they are repaid in full
Repayment begins the April after you finish or leave your course (as long as earnings are more than £21,000 a year)
Repaid through tax system
Any outstanding balance written off by government after 30 years
Interest is charged on student loans from the day they are taken out until they are paid in full but unlike bank loans they do not have a high interest rate.
The money automatically comes out of your wages when you start earning over £21,000. If you never earn over £21,000 then you never pay back the money (most graduates will go on to earn over £21,000.) If after 30 years the students still owe money then their debts will be cleared.

30. Repayment Examples: A comparison
Graduate Earnings (per year)
Repayments under Student Finance system
£21,000 £0
£24,000
£5 per week
£30,000
£16 per week
An example of the repayment system. The average starting salary in the North West of a graduate is between £16-18,000. Students will probably not start paying back their loans for a few years after they graduate.
As the average starting salary of graduates in England is between £16,000 to £19,000 this will mean a significant proportion of graduates won’t repay anything for the first few years

31. Part Time Students
Part Time study is becoming more popular as students can offset the costs of studying by working at the same time
From 2012 for the first time part time students will be able to apply for student loans (as long as they study for 25% of their time)
Part Time students will pay back their loans the same way full time students do-when they are earning over £21,000 per year
From 2012 part time students can apply for loans to help them cover the cost of university. Part time students usually work and study at the same time. Part time courses tend to last 1 or 2 years longer than the full time equivalent course.

32. Things to remember Benefits of a Degree!
Student Debt is ‘Good’ Debt (no bad credit ratings)
You pay your loans back a little bit at a time
Loans repayments are wiped after 30 years
If you lose your job or are out of work your repayments stop
You can take a break from paying your loan
Banks like to offer incentives to students to open student accounts with them
e.g. Natwest offers a free 1 year Railcard
Going to university is expensive so it is important to remember the benefits of having a degree.
-graduates tend to earn more in their lifetimes than non graduates (up to £120,000 more in a lifetime.) Graduates who have studied a STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, mathematics,) can earn considerably more (£350,000 in a lifetime)
-better prospects for promotion
-Graduate satisfaction rates are high-graduates enjoy what they are doing 3 years after graduating (remind students that they will be working up to 60 years of their lives!)
-Increasingly more jobs now require degrees (particularly medicine, teaching, engineering, law)
-the student experience can boost confidence and allow them to experience new things
Student debt is not ‘bad debt’ it is an investment in their future. Remind students to look out for any offers from the banks who like to offer students incentives to open bank accounts with them.

33. Further Information www.ucas.com www.prospects.ac.uk
Publications: The Independent (Clearing Lists)
Students can find further information here.

34. Time for Action Set out a list of goals What do you need to do now?
What is the timescale?
Plan, Prepare, Proceed, Reflect
What have you learnt?
Has this changed your goals?
What do students need to do now? Plan a timeline.