Ucas registering minus dates 2016 rev

Last of LVI For UCAS Training for all LVI

Today’s – Objectives  Register for UCAS 2016 – even if you may be PQA  Short list university courses

 Check skill sets required for course [ THIS example of skills needed from KCL shows how students can construct a match between university requirements and their personal Statement]  List and match own achievements  Attempt a GOOD draft of your personal statement [ access help HERE and HERE and from UCAS] and save it  Check out summer school and taster day opportunities [ by university]  Register for UCAS card if you haven’t already done so  Make sure you have an Open Day booked if you are not otherwise occupied during ‘Endeavour’

NB. Oxbridge and Medics/Vets/Dentists will need to realise there is greater urgency.

The next few slides just show you where to look for more information for today’s IT session

Use the web site to find all the resources you need

Remind yourself of the previous sessions as necessary and look at examples of personal statements

The Personal Statement Remember? – we took a look at this before AS

What to include?

• Academic interests – WHY this subject?

• Detail of reading/ work experience/ motivation – anything that is BEYOND the standard classroom subject • Specifics of achievement [or enjoyment!] within the classroom It’s MUCH harder to decide what to leave out!

What to highlight?

Sell yourself – be positive FOCUS ON: • Academic interest • Knowledge of the subject area • Evidence of research • Enthusiasm [for subject & for undergraduate study] • Experience – make your statement PERSONAL to you • The rounded person – leadership, contribution to school, community, teams, responsibilities…….. [make sure you show how extra-curricular activities have relevance to what you want to do – a simple list has no real impact]

This is just an example of the type of information that’s available.

CHECK that you are likely to meet the course requirements.

Direct your Personal Statement to show how you fit their ‘profile’

You have all received electronic ‘booklets’ about applying to higher Education institutions

UCAS APPLY The Electronic Process

USE THIS PRESENTATION TO HELP YOU APPLY TO UNIVERSITY It is intended for students who have ‘current pupil’ status

If you have left school and are taking the PQA route, you have the choice of making an independent application if you do not wish to be constrained by the school’s internal deadlines. This process is explained in the Post Examinations Booklet.

FIRST STEPS • Apply for your UCASCARD [if you haven’t already done so] • Register by going to www.ucas.com • Register on APPLY for the year you leave school • DO THIS EVEN IF you’ll be a PQA [this is your chance to ‘play at’ making an application, so use the opportunity – you are not committing yourself]

If at any point you get lost or need help, go to the school website to find this presentation and LOTS of other resources to help you

In addition, there are examples of personal statements to look at on our web site.

Find and use ‘search for courses’ if you haven’t got beyond that stage but you MUST get on with registering if it’s available.

You will need to construct a draft Personal Statement

This is where next year’s system will appear alongside the one that the UVI are currently using.

Make sure you select the right year. The transition period from June to September has to have both systems running in tandem.

Focus on UNDERGRADUATE study. You need to ‘start’ your application by registering with the UCAS organisation

There’s plenty of help available and you’ll have a Sixth Form tutor with you to advise you

REGISTER FIRST and just as soon as you can

Various video tutorials will appear throughout the UCAS website

This is the page you’ll need to get going

This presentation will be temporarily available to you [if you log-in] via the school website.

YOU CAN’T LOG-IN STRAIGHT AWAY Go to ‘REGISTER’ FIRST OF ALL

MOST SCREENS HAVE A ‘NEXT’ OPTION FOR NAVIGATION, BUT YOU CAN USE THE TOUR/ TV OPTION IF YOU GET MUDDLED

IF YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY REGISTERED FOR A UCASCARD, YOUR PERSONAL DETAILS SHOULD BE STORED IN THE SYSTEM. [Sometimes you have to re-enter them anyway!]

YOUR ANSWERS TO THE SECURITY QUESTIONS ARE UNIQUELY YOURS.

MAKE A SECURE NOTE!

IMPORTANT!

If you decide to delay your application until after you have left school you will have the choice of becoming an ‘independent’ applicant if that is what you wish. Today, just enter your group.

Place yourself in YOUR TUTOR GROUP. NB: We can’t ‘see’ the application unless you do this

SPUD20??

SPUD2012

ESSENTIAL! Use the year of the application cycle

THE ‘BUZZWORD’ IS CASE SENSITIVE & HAS NO SPACES At a later stage, You’ll need to find THE RIGHT King Edward VI school, and the exam centre number [58625] should appear

Not immediately obvious, but essential !

IF SOME FORM OF ACCEPTANCE SCREEN DOESN’T APPEAR – CHECK WITH YOUR SESSION LEADER or your TUTOR BEFORE GOING ANY FURTHER

WHETHER APPLYING FOR THIS YEAR, DEFERRED OR PQA, YOU NEED TO KEEP

TUTOR

YOUR INFORMED OF THE PROGRESS OF YOUR APPLICATION. He/she will need to organise a reference and that takes time.

YOU HAVE TO ‘SIGN’ THE ACCEPTANCE OF THE UCAS REGULATIONS

USE THE MENU ON THE LH SIDE TO NAVIGATE BETWEEN THE SIX SECTIONS YOU NEED TO COMPLETE.

DO NOT COMPLETE THE PAY/SEND SECTION UNTIL YOUO ARE READY TO DO SO – YOU LOSE CONTROL OF YOUR APPLICATION ONCE YOU’VE PAID

UNLESS YOU ARE NOT A UK CITIZEN, USE THE

LEA/ O2 CODE DEFAULT [££££ implications]

AS

Don’t forget to save!

Your changes need to be Saved after each session.

OPTIONAL INTRUSIVE Questions Parental education Do any of your parents, step-parents or guardians have any Higher Education qualifications, such as a degree, diploma or certificate of higher education?

Occupational background*

If you are under 21, give the occupation of your parent, step-parent or guardian who earns the most. If he or she is retired or unemployed, give their most recent occupation. If you are 21 or over, please give your own occupation

YOU CAN WRITE: ‘I PREFER NOT TO SAY’

Compulsory fields are marked with an asterisk (*).

Before leaving this section please click 'save' to avoid losing any information. When you have finished all the entries please click on 'section completed' and 'save'.

Ethnic origin* National identity* E-mail

Discretion • What is your e-mail address? • What does it convey to an admissions tutor?

NB: dippyditzyblonde@btinternet.com hotballs@yahoo.com Passwords Security questions Residency

PASSPORT DETAILS This section of the form may need to be completed at home if you are not an EU citizen You’ll need: Passport number Issue date Expiry date Place of issue

FIVE CHOICES UNLESS MEDIC /DENTIST/ VET/ NURSE, IN WHICH CASE JUST FOUR.

YOU DON’T HAVE TO COMPLETE ALL. EVENTUALLY JUST C F AND C I

YOUR PERSONAL STATEMENT WILL HAVE TO COVER ALL YOUR COURSE CHOICES - TRY TO BE CONSISTENT

THE HARDEST BIT. 47 LINES, APPROX 650 WORDS. DON’T PASTE/INSERT UNTIL IT’S BEEN CHECKED BY

YOU & BY YOUR

TUTOR

[NOT REALLY FAIR TO ASK ANYONE ELSE AT SCHOOL]

YOUR RESPONSIBILITY ULTIMATELY,

ERRORS OF WRITTEN ENGLISH MUST BE AVOIDED – YOU CAN ONLY WEAKEN YOUR CASE.

DO NOT USE BULLET POINTS IN YOUR PERSONAL STATEMENT. You need to write with conviction and as much ‘flair’ as you can muster – especially for subjects that will involve communication skills. Ask you TUTOR for help.

Plagiarism and UCAS Policy

A word of warning You can ‘buy’ personal statements, but as you have to sign to say that everything on the form is true and in your original words, you would be lying if you used such a system Please do not.

Universities have software that can detect plagiarism and we know of one candidate who was refused a place on the basis of his dishonesty

GCSE GRADES SHOULD BE RELATIVELY STRAIGHTFORWARD REMEMBER THAT A2 GRADES ARE PENDING BUT NEED TO BE INCLUDED

UNIT GRADES ARE NOT REQUIRED AS

MUSIC GRADES CARRY UCAS POINTS OTHER EXAMINATIONS CAN BE INCLUDED

AS and A2 • Eventually you will be able to enter those of your AS grades that you decide to ‘cash-in’ • RE-SITS are PENDING results for next summer = obvious to HE institutions. Think about the implications

• Your A level PREDICTED GRADES will be reviewed immediately AFTER your AS grades are published – you cannot enter these.

GCSEs & EXAMINATION BOARDS • Your HE session leader and/or your TUTOR has a list of all the examination boards that are relevant • There is also a complete list on the school website in the examinations documents section • These lists should also be on display in group base

Your TUTOR has access to this example sheet if you still feel unsure about how to enter your qualifications. It also exists within the Student resources section of the HE web pages

ONCE ALL SECTIONS ARE COMPLETE, YOU CAN REVIEW THE ENTIRE APPLICATION

Try out all sections – so any problems can be sorted before the summer vacation • MAY BE ‘BLIPS’ • ENSURE YOU’RE LOGGING ON TO the RIGHT YEAR of ENTRY • SYSTEM CAN OVERLOAD – TRY TO BE PATIENT • AVOID LOGGING-IN TWICE • ACCESS FROM HOME – BUT IT’S YOUR APPLICATION [Access issues]

Groups & Rooms for today……