Results Day and What to Expect - Part 2

Results day is stressful, and hopefully you all receive the grades you want. Even if you don’t, remember it is not the end of the world! There are so many options you have going forward if you want to continue into further education. 

What happens if I don’t get the grades I need for university?

In some cases, even if you don’t meet your conditional offer, the university may still offer you a place, so make sure you check with UCAS or the university themselves. You may also be offered a ‘changed course offer’ which is a place on a similar course, so make sure you consider this carefully too. If you are going to appeal or review one of your grades, make sure you do it quickly and that you keep your university of choice up to speed with the progress. You can also apply through clearing, which is a great tool I will explain in more detail below. Finally, there is always the option of taking a gap year or an apprenticeship and resitting your exams the next year. You have the option to resit them in the Autumn term, or you can simply take the A-levels the next year. The government has just announced the option to use your mock grades instead of the grades given to you, and in the case of A-levels, have guaranteed that your calculated grade will not be lower than your mock grade.

What happens if I don’t get the grades I need for college/sixth form?

On results day, there is the option to call various colleges and sixth forms and apply then if you did not meet your required grades for your first choice of college or sixth form. You can also appeal or review grades for a small fee, but they will simply look at how your grade was decided and whether it is accurate, not whether your work deserves a higher grade. There is also the option to resit exams in October and for some of the more popular subjects in January also, although bear in mind this may be too late if you need to apply to college. Like A-levels, the government has announced the option to use your mock grades instead of your calculated grades if your mock grade is better. As this is an ongoing topic that is changing rapidly, I will make sure to update the blog with any further advancements. 

How does clearing work?

I have written a previous blog post about this that goes into more detail, but let’s briefly discuss the basics of clearing. It is a system that means students can apply for the remaining spaces on a course from the 6th of July to the 20th of October. You can apply for clearing through the UCAS track, and although some of the more competitive universities may not have places available, there are so many amazing courses and universities out there! UCAS have added a new feature for 2020 called Clearing Plus, which essentially looks at the types of courses and universities you initially applied to along with your grades and matches you with universities looking for students like you. 

Finally, congratulations! Whether you’ve just completed your A-levels or your GCSEs, this is a time to celebrate and relax, and look forward to the next stage in your life. Make sure to take some time out this summer to make sure that you hit the ground running next year whatever it is you may be doing.