UCAS - You don't need to add five choices

You don't need to add five choices

You don't have to add five choices to your UCAS application.

It's worth remembering that you don't have to add five choices to your UCAS application. There is space for five courses, but if you know what you want to study and where, there is no need to add any more than that.

It's important to only apply to courses you are happy about, so avoid applying to ones you are unsure about. Just remember that if you have only one choice and you don't get in, you won't have a back-up.

You can add more choices later, providing you do so by the relevant deadline - 15 January for the majority of courses. And you can do this after you have sent off your application, so there is no need to wait until the last minute to click send for the others you already know you want to apply to.

When you put down a choice, you must also check whether there are any admissions tests, and register by the deadline. If you fail to do this, you may not be considered by the university and you may have wasted one of your five choices.

The admissions test section on the UCAS website lists some of the main ones. Details of all these tests can be found in the Entry Profiles section of Course Search. You should also check with a university's own website.

Bear in mind that if you choose to add a course later, your original Personal Statement will be sent to the university. So if you've applied to four history courses and suddenly want to do astrophysics, your Personal Statement is unlikely to match up. However, it is possible to contact the university and ask if they will accept a revised statement.

Before adding any additional courses, make sure you have checked the entry requirements in the Entry Profile section of Course Search.

Entry Profiles provide key data you need to decide which courses to study, including the qualifications you need to have. In addition to A-level grades, the requirements for pupils doing Scottish Highers, the Irish Leaving Certificate, the International Baccalaureate and a number of other qualifications are listed. This section will also tell you which subjects are required for a particular course.

You should already have used this when you made your original choices, but it is important not to overlook this when you add one later. Indeed, it's essential that if you do make fewer than five choices and haven't heard back from them before the 15 January application deadline, don't panic and add more that you are unsure about.

Take all the same steps, such as checking Entry Profiles, visiting the institution and talking to advisers and parents, as you would have done with your first set of choices.

2011-12-07

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