Parents and guardians information

It’s a daunting task. So many universities. So many decisions to make. Where do you start? There’s the internet of course and many students conduct their research on the web - many more choose to attend UCAS fairs which are often organised as school/college visits. Attending university open days are an invaluable way to get a feel for what universities have to offer. 

All applications are submitted via UCAS. Applications open in early September each year and the deadline for most courses is the second week of January, although Medicine and Veterinary Medicine close earlier in the second week of October. Most schools and colleges help students by insisting on a set of deadlines to support the application process and may encourage early applications.

Every university works to its own timescales for making offers. Don’t assume that if a university is fast they must be keen to accept an offer. Equally, don’t assume that a university which takes a little longer doesn’t care. There will be a delay in the processing of applications that arrive just before the Christmas period because most universities have a two week shut down period where their support staff take holiday. Other factors will influence the speed of the application response time, like arranging interviews. Once decisions have been made, it’s time to accept and decline offers on the UCAS website.

For those who have applied to Keele and received an offer, they will be invited to an offer holder day. There will usually be several opportunities to attend an offer holder day. They are not compulsory but can be a great way to experience what life is like on campus and to find answers to questions and make final decisions.

Students can make their “firm” choice and “insurance” choices. This means if they do not meet the requirements for their firm choice (eg they do not achieve the required grades requested by the university) they will, dependent on meeting that university’s requirements, be offered a place from their “insurance” choice. Students are able to track the progress of their applications using UCAS track. If a student meets the requirements of their firm choice they are guaranteed a place at that university. The UCAS deadline for replying to an offer that has been made before the end of March is early May. This gives students time to consider the correct choice for them.

In England, for students applying to study at UK universities, everyone is eligible for a student loan. Students must apply for their loan by the end of May to guarantee payment at the start of term. It’s a good idea to get this done as soon as possible. There may be scholarships and bursaries available at Keele depending on circumstances.

As a campus university, Keele has over 2,700 bedrooms on site, with a range of accommodation available and all within a short walk of the centre of campus. We offer guaranteed accommodation on campus for undergraduate applicants who make Keele their firm choice, and who apply for accommodation by the deadline date.

If students meet the conditions of their offer, they will have their place confirmed via UCAS.  If the university needs any additional information (for example transcripts) we will be in contact directly, if not, the status of the application will be amended from conditional to unconditional and pre-arrival information will follow by email and post within a few days.

If they haven’t quite achieved the grades they were hoping for but have met the conditions of their insurance choice, their application will change to their insurance institution and be amended to unconditional and again, pre-arrival information will follow.

If their grades fall lower than both their firm and insurance choices, they will enter UCAS Clearing and you can find out more information about this process at ucas.com.

Find out more about clearing on our website and our clearing pages.

When a place is confirmed, we’ll send information about everything that needs to be done before students arrive with us. They will be able to start planning for Welcome Week and get answers to the questions they may have. If a student has applied to Keele through clearing, they will need to await a Keele student number before applying for university accommodation.