|
ANYONE WHO APPLIED to university or
college from school will remember being
nagged to fill out a special form. That
document with your proposed course choices and
projected grades was then sent to an organisation
in charge of processing those applications. For many
people this will be the main encounter with UCAS, and
the helpful folks who ensure thousands of students
are successfully placed in higher education. We were
fortunate enough to catch one of them to tell us a little
on what UCAS is all about…
ES – Eleanor Stevens, senior communications
executive at UCAS
Eleanor is senior communications executive at
UCAS. She manages a team of four marketing and
communications professionals and works alongside
a wider group of people responsible for web
development and design. She has worked at UCAS for
two years.
WD: To begin, what key roles does UCAS play within
higher education in helping students of all ages
and backgrounds find the training they need?
ES: UCAS is the central organisation that processes
applications to full-time, undergraduate higher
education courses in the UK. We process applications
for over 500,000 people per year for applicants from
the UK and outside. UCAS also processes applications
for graduate teacher training, conservatoires and
postgraduate courses through our GTTR, CUKAS and
UKPASS systems respectively.
All of the information relating to a person’s
application to a higher education course can be found
at www.ucas.com. 99.9 per cent of all applications are
now made online using our Apply service, and these
applications can then be tracked throughout the year.
WD: UCAS is often perceived to be the only
doorway into higher education for those pursuing
university – particularly when it comes to applying.
Is this true and what advice could you give to those
who aren’t necessarily straight from school?
ES: Essentially it is true, yes. We currently have about
320 institutions in the UCAS scheme, all of whom are
based in the UK and are used to applicants applying to
them through UCAS.
There is plenty of information available on www.
ucas.com for applicants, whether they are coming
from school or are applying on their own having been
out of the school system for some years. We know
it can be a daunting prospect so we try to make the
information as easy and clear to use and understand
as possible. We also have a customer service helpline
that people can telephone if they get really stuck. It’s
0871 468 0468.
There is also an online community network run
by UCAS called yougofurther.co.uk, which is where
applicants can talk to other people in the same
situation, and perhaps meet people before they
actually start their course. There is plenty of help there
for people, whether they have the support of their
school or not.
WD: For school and college leavers looking to
make the best choices for their next academic
route, how early should they be looking for the
right courses and thinking about submitting
UCAS applications?
ES: The main deadline for applications is 15 January of
the same year that they’re hoping to start the course
(usually in September or October). However, there is an
earlier deadline of 15 October (the previous year) for
those hoping to study medicine, dentistry or veterinary
science and applications to Oxford and Cambridge.
Therefore, applicants should start to research possible
courses in plenty of time before the deadline that
is most relevant to them. All of this information is
available at www.ucas.com/students/importantdates
WD: Obviously without going into specifics,
has UCAS noticed an influx in the amount of
applications relating to digital design and new
media courses over recent years?
ES: It’s difficult to tell – to do a detailed analysis of
subjects would take some time. However, you can get
an approximate idea of applications from our statistics
section of the website: http://tinyurl.com/ucas-stats
WD: With courses and places within the top
universities as competitive as ever, what kind
of emphasis would UCAS place on gaining
professional experience and compiling an
impressive portfolio of work when it comes to
making university applications?
ES: UCAS supports applications from people regardless
of whether they have had a break or are applying
straight from school. We would advise going to open
days and talking to admissions tutors to find out what
they think about gaining professional experience.
|
