UCAS and Destinations

UCAS - The University and College Admission System is the only way to apply to a university in the UK.

Students complete the UCAS form on line. It contains five vital pieces of information:

Personal details (DOB, address, GCSE results, etc)
Five choices of universities and courses
Four choices for medicine
A personal statement
An academic school reference

Some students will be invited for interview depending on the courses they apply for.

From the offers made, students accept a firm offer and an insurance offer. When results come out in August universities will decide if students have met the offer or not.

The official deadline is in January. However, universities process forms as soon as they arrive. There is a distinct advantage to applying early.

Each student is assigned a referee, this is normally their Form Tutor, but may this may not always be the case. Referees consult subject staff and write a reference. We also include relevant information about extracurricular activities which would strengthen the student’s chances of acceptance on their chosen courses. The reference is then checked by the Sixth Form Team.

We offer a comprehensive programme, beginning in Year 12 of information, advice and guidance to prepare students for applying to University: this includes advice for parents too on how they can support their child in the process, and our Alumni assist us in our support of applicants by sharing their personal experiences of University study with our current students. We work with organisations such as the Sutton Trust and the Social Mobility Foundation to support and promote our students’ progression to University.

The programme includes:

Year 12 Form Tutor Parents Evening (which includes information on Next Steps)
Dedicated Unifrog accounts
Visits to HE conventions
Assemblies with a Next Steps Focus
Tutorial activities in form time related to next steps
A range of external speakers in school to support students in making their choices
Access to a range of open days, seminars and lectures which are advertised throughout the year via the Weekly Opportunities Bulletin and via the Opportunities Google Classroom.

Tutors and students have access to a comprehensive range of resources and materials for use during form times and coaching sessions. At key points in the year there are special tutor sessions on selecting courses and preparing applications.

In the summer term of Year 12 we hold dedicated UCAS sign up sessions to talk students through setting up their applications. This is then followed by a Next Steps/Higher Education day, inviting speakers from a number of institutions to discuss the application process. In 2025 we were joined by contributors from over 40 different universities and organisations with keynote speakers, seminars and many stalls. This is supplemented by a UCAS assembly which explains the web based application system

Almost all sixth form students are successful in their applications to higher education and employment. Students routinely gain places at Oxford, Cambridge and Russell Group universities.

OFSTED 2015