Applying to university is daunting. Whether you are filling in a UCAS application, trekking around the UK for open days, or toiling over a personal statement, it often feels like there is a lot to keep on top of. 

University applications don’t have to be stressful, however, for teenagers or parents. Our essential guide to UCAS aims to give you a full overview of the process, including a breakdown of key dates and requirements. 

Choosing where to apply 

Choosing where to spend the next three or four years is a big decision for anybody. When it comes to narrowing down university choices, it is important to be both ambitious and realistic.

Students are allowed five choices so think carefully and do your research. Lots of universities host open days in the summer —they typically kick off in June –and this is an ideal time for parents and teenagers to explore what’s on offer. The UCAS website is a handy tool to find out when different open days are taking place.

On open days you will get a tour of accommodation and catering facilities, as well as of lecture halls and libraries. You also get a chance to explore the city or campus and university staff will give you an insight into the different courses on offer. 

Tours are usually conducted by current students so you can fire off all the questions you are burning to ask, and you are likely to get an honest response. 

If you can’t attend an open day, there is always the option to send off for a prospectus in the post. 

Once you’ve found some universities you and your child are keen on, and a course has been decided upon, check what A Level grades those universities typically expect for the subject your child would like to study. 

Bear in mind that within the same university, offers vary dramatically between different courses.

In brief:

• Hit the open days! Nothing beats seeing universities in real life. 
• Send off for a prospectus. 
• Find out what grades different universities expect (it varies according to course). 

Campus or city? 

As you probably know, UK universities are situated either on campuses or within cities. At campus universities, accommodation and lecture halls are all within easy reach on one site, whereas at city universities everything is more spread out. 

When you are talking to your child about where they would like to study, think about which sort of lifestyle they would naturally be drawn to. Cities are bustling and fun but friends could live on the other side of town and life could become lonely. On the other hand, campuses feel very safe and sociable, but they can feel claustrophobic once you have settled in. 

In brief:

• Think about what sort of lifestyle would suit your child best. 

The UCAS form

First things first. UCAS stands for Universities and Colleges Admissions Service and it is the body that handles all university applications. 

UCAS looks complicated at first glance, but once you know what is required it starts to get a lot easier. 

To send off a university application, a student first has to fill in a UCAS form. The form asks for mountains of information, including: personal details, student finance information, university choices, education and grades, employment history, references and a personal statement. 

Applicants also have to pay a small fee. For 2020 entry it is £20 for one choice, or £25 for multiple choices.

Once offers start to come in, students are allowed to accept a maximum of two: a firm choice and an insurance choice. For an insurance choice, it is sensible to pick a university that asks for lower grades. As well as being practical, on a psychological level this can often ease stress as teenagers feel like they have a safety net.

This might mean compromising on course slightly. For example, if your child is applying for Law at Russell Group universities, they are likely to demand very high grades. Law and Criminology could be a good insurance insurance option. 

Pretty much everything is done online through the UCAS portal nowadays (your child’s school will provide them with login details). Students submit their application form online, and their offers will come through the portal as well (with the exception of Oxbridge offers, which often come through the post first). 

In brief: 

• Fill in the UCAS form.
• Pay the fee. 
• Pick one firm option and one insurance option – be tactical!

Deadlines

Nobody wants to be cutting things fine. Make sure to put these dates in the diary if your child plans to start university in Autumn 2019.

• For Oxbridge/Medicine/Dentistry/Veterinary medicine applicants: 18:00 15th October 2019. Your application has to be submitted by this date and time or it won’t be accepted. 

• Main university admissions deadline: 18:00 15th January 2020. Your application has to be submitted by this date and time or it won’t be accepted.

Be sure to leave some extra time in case of technical difficulties! 

Personal statement 

It’s very easy to overthink personal statements. The most important thing is to be truthful and enthusiastic. 

The word limit for the personal statement is around 500 words (47 lines of text, or 4000 characters) and statements should include why the writer is drawn to their chosen subject and how they have displayed your interest in it. Why would they be an asset on the course?

It is also a good idea to write about your skills and your ambitions. If your child does any extra-curricular activities —or has taken part in schemes like the Duke of Edinburgh award or CCF –encourage them to include that too. 

This page on the UCAS site is a great starting point () but if you feel like your child would benefit from some extra support, our tutors can also provide tailored help. 

In brief: 

• Be honest and enthusiastic. 
• Write about skills, ambitions, extra-curricular activities and why you have picked the course. 
• Word count: around 500 words. 
• Don’t overthink it.

Applying to Oxbridge 

Applying to Oxford and Cambridge makes lots of students –and parents –feel nervous. It is important to realise that applying to Oxbridge is different to applying to other universities. Most importantly, you have to apply earlier, in mid-October rather than mid-January (see above). 

This is because students go through several more application stages. First, they have to sit a test. For example, Law students have to take the Law Aptitude Test (LNAT) and English Literature students have to sit the English Literature Admissions test (ELAT). 

These tests occur on specific dates and can be sat at school or in external exam centres. They usually take place in October or November, after UCAS applications have gone in.

For arts subjects, teenagers may also be asked to submit some school essays. Don’t worry,  they can usually submit coursework or normal class essays –it does not require hours of extra work! 

For Cambridge applications, the list just goes on. Students also have to submit an additional statement called the Supplementary Application Questionnaire (SAQ). Here students give yet another breakdown of their personal details and grades, and write another mini personal statement. Again, if you feel you feel like your child would benefit from some extra help with this, our tutors can guide you through the process. 

Depending on whether their application is successful, your child may be called to interview. In Cambridge students will have to attend at least two interviews but these will take place on the same day. In Oxford, however, the interview process can last two or three days and your child may have to stay overnight. 

On the day of the interview your child could be asked to take some more tests. An English student, for example, may have to write a timed essay. 

Don’t panic. This all seems very overwhelming but the process is designed to be as smooth and stress-free as possible. Do some preparation, grit your teeth and just try your best!

In brief: 

• Applications have to be in by mid-October.
• Students have to sit additional tests. 
• An additional questionnaire is sometimes required. 
• Interviews take place in December.

Applying for Medicine/ Dentistry/Veterinary science/Law 

Like with Oxbridge, if your child is hoping to study any of these subjects they will have to apply early, so don’t be caught out. Teenagers also have to sit aptitude tests —the LNAT for Law, the BMAT and/or the UKCAT for medicine–and medics have to attend interviews which test their academic and practical abilities.

It is important to remember that for medicine, dentistry and veterinary science work experience is crucial, so don’t just focus on grades.

In brief:

• Remember to apply early. 
• Be sure to do some interview prep. 
• Be ready to sit some additional tests. 

Student finance

When your child is thinking about applying to university, bear in mind they will be taking on a large student loan. Currently they will be liable to pay this back for much of their adult life, depending on their earnings. 

Also remember that the cost of living varies a lot between universities. If someone wants to study in London, for example, their overheads will be much higher than elsewhere. 

If you need help with any stage of the application process, you can seek guidance from our school tutors and our university personal statement tutors here.

The post Applying to UK Universities: An Essential Guide to UCAS appeared first on Hampstead and Frognal Tutors.

For more advice, check out our Top Ten Revision Tips and if you are looking for a Physics and Maths tutor click here.

1) Exam board websites

The official websites of exam boards are the most reliable sources of past papers and mark schemes. With archives spanning several years, the likes of AQA, OCR, Edexcel and IGCSE have lots of free past papers.  Our physics and maths tutors recommend seeking out the exam board websites for exam papers and other useful resources such as revision, and specimen exam papers.

Subject specifications and examiners’ reports are also available on these sites. Our Physics and Maths Tutors particularly advise you to read a couple of examiners’ reports, as they highlight mistakes candidates have made in the past, and could prevent your child making similar errors.

2) Physics and Maths Tutor 

Physics and Maths Tutor is a treasure trove. Well-designed and easy to navigate, the website is packed with papers for GCSE, IGCSE, A Level and International A Level students.

Although the site focuses primarily on Maths and Physics, it covers a broad range of subjects, including humanities. It also offers free STEP papers (STEP is used by Cambridge University and Warwick University to assess Maths university applicants), Oxford Physics Aptitude Tests (PAT), Natural Sciences Admissions Assessments (NSAA) and Engineering Admissions Assessments (ENGAA). To top things off, you can also find revision notes, summary sheets and other worksheets on the site.  Physics and Maths tutor should certainly be the first exam paper website to check out.

3) OnMaths 

On Maths is solely devoted to GCSE Mathematics. Catering to students taking higher and foundation papers, the website compiles mini mocks and demon questions, as well as containing a host of standard past papers.

Another great feature is the site’s “predicted” section. This section contains mock question papers which anticipate what will come up in the real assessment. It’s obviously all above board — the creators of the website have no insider knowledge! — and a great way to help your child prepare for exam season. This site is not a one-stop shop like Physics and maths tutor but get a thumbs up from our maths tutors for the maths exam papers.

4) Khan Academy

Khan Academy is an American Maths website so does not specifically align with the English exam system. It still has a lot to offer, however. With educational resources for 5 year-olds as well as for pre-university students, Khan Academy is a great place to find practice tests.

If your child is stuck on a particular area of Maths, the website also has excellent revision videos, topic-based quizzes, and interactive lessons.

5) Cyberphysics

Cyberphysics is a very retro website but don’t be put off! It contains a huge number of physics exam papers from Key Stage 3 all the way up to pre-university. It also has crosswords, powerpoint presentations, reading lists and useful links.

The site is run by an experienced teacher who has worked in selective English schools for almost a quarter of a century, so all the resources are reliable and of the highest quality.

6) Maths Made Easy

Although this website has got “maths” in its title, it also covers Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Designed to support children throughout their school careers, it has example SAT tests, GCSE exam papers and A Level mocks.

For older students, the website subdivides papers by exam board, so teenagers can look at different styles of question and stretch themselves to the full.

7) Save My Exams

Created by official examiners and expert Physics and Maths tutors, Save My Exams specialises in Maths, Physics, Biology and Chemistry, and is aimed at GCSE and A Level students. The website is thoughtfully arranged, with questions organised according to topic and difficulty.

Past papers and mark schemes are free to non-members, but you can buy a subscription to the site at a cost of £35 a year, and gain access to more worksheets and model answers.

8) MyMaths

MyMaths is different to the other websites on this list as schools sign up to it, rather than parents or students. However, if your child’s school is a member, this is a fantastic maths resource.

MyMaths is a fully interactive online learning site aimed at students of all ages and abilities right up to A-Level. Written by practising maths teachers, it is a great source of practice questions and of detailed explanations.

9) Revision Science 

Although this is not the most attractive of websites, it does its job very well. Revision Science — which is for GSCE and A Level students — has an extensive archive of past papers and mark schemes for Maths, Physics, Chemistry and Biology and covers all the main exam boards.

10) Maths Genie

On the surface, Maths Genie is much the same as Revision Science, with its long list of Maths exam papers and mark schemes. But this is a gem of a site as it also has worked-through, model solutions. These can be invaluable when a student is stuck on a question during exam leave and doesn’t have a teacher or a Maths and Physics tutor there to help them.

If you have found the exam papers website useful and are still looking for additional help you can find a Physics and Maths Tutor or other subject tutors here.

The post Top 10 Websites | Physics and Maths Exam Papers appeared first on Hampstead and Frognal Tutors.