When to applyWhat happens next How To Apply For Higher Education Applications should be received by UCAS between 1 September and 15 January in the academic year prior to entry. Late applications ( not recommended) can be accepted up until 30 June. UCAS applications which include Oxford or Cambridge universities need to be made by 15 October, as do applications for degree courses in medicine, veterinary science/ medicine and dentistry. There are also different application deadlines for some art and design courses - see page 16. UCAS Extraoperates from 25 February to the end of June. It can provide an additional choice for applicants who have used all five choices already, and find themselves without an offer, for whatever reason. It is possible to apply during Clearing, which operates from mid- August until late September, but your choice of courses will be extremely limited. Deferred entry If you wish to defer entry in order to take a gap year, you should check with the individual institutions first, to ensure they are willing to accept deferred entry. Alternatively, you can defer making your application for a year. This can be useful if you need to use your gap year to clarify your career plans, but many students prefer the security of knowing that a higher education place is waiting for them on their return. Interviews Whether or not you are called to an interview depends largely on the courses you apply to. Teaching and nursing courses almost always require an interview; other healthcare courses, performing arts, and art and design often do. Offers for other subject areas are mostly made on the basis of your application and examination results only. If you are invited to an interview, prepare thoroughly. Make sure you know what form the interview is likely to take, where you need to go and how to get there. Practise answering likely questions, and have some questions ready to ask in return - write them down if it helps. Remind yourself of what you said in your personal statement, and have examples of your work and your record of achievement to hand. Expect to be nervous, but remember that every other candidate will be too. Use the interview as a great opportunity to sell yourself, and to find out everything you want to know about the course, the institution and the locality. When you have completed your application, check it carefully and send it ( online) to the person who will be your referee ( e. g. your tutor/ head of 6). Your referee will add a statement and forward it to UCAS. You can obtain a copy of all the personal data about you held by UCAS, including the referee's statement, on payment of £ 10. You will also need to pay the UCAS application fee - if applying via your school/ college, they will tell you how to pay. For applications made by 15 January, universities and colleges should make their decisions by the end of March. When you have heard from UCAS about decisions on all your applications, you can accept a maximum of two offers ( one firm and one insurance). Confirmation of the offer will be given after the publication of examination results in August. Don't arrange your holiday during this period. If you do not get the grades you need to meet your conditional offers, you will automatically be sent information about entering Clearing - enabling you to apply to courses which still have vacancies. Additional testing You will need to arrange to take additional tests if you apply for some subjects. Additional tests are commonly required for subjects such as veterinary science, medicine, law and dentistry. Some universities require tests for other subjects. You can find out more information about these tests at www. ucas. com/ students/ beforeyouapply/ admissisions, but you should also check the entry details for your chosen course( s) by looking at the prospectus, on the university website or on the Entry Profiles of UCAS Course Search. UCAS Track The UCAS track system allows you to check the progress of your application, and find out which universities and colleges have made decisions about your application. Track is a secure system - you are provided with a password to allow you to access your information. 15

16 How To Apply For Higher Education Applications through UCAS involve choosing up to five art and design courses in no order of preference, regardless of the application deadline date. Institutions allocate either a 15 January or 24 March deadline for art and design courses; you can find out the deadline for each course on UCAS Course Search. Students will be notified of their interview dates through UCAS Track. You should alert yourself to all the detailed course entry requirements ( including interview and portfolio advice) by making use of Entry Profiles - also available through UCAS Course Search ( see page 13). It can be difficult to enter a degree, foundation degree or HND course in art and design straight from school. Most successful applicants have completed a college- based preparatory course, such as an art foundation diploma course, a BTEC National qualification or a double award A level in applied art and design. A good portfolio of work is important. You can also progress to a degree course from a foundation degree or HND. A popular route for degree courses is to take one or more A levels ( or equivalent) followed by an art foundation diploma course. This will be offered at your local art college, college of further education or HE institution. Competition for places is tough, so apply early. Closing dates will vary, but it is strongly recommended that you obtain course details, check your financial situation and prepare your application and portfolio in the autumn term of the second year of your advanced level course. Music Students wishing to study for a practice- based music course at one or more of the seven major music conservatoires should use the online application system, CUKAS. ' On- time' applications received between 1 July and 1 October should have a decision by 5 January: decisions about later applications will be after this date dependant upon when the application is made. CUKAS applicants can also use Extra, Clearing and Track systems. See www. cukas. ac. uk Art and design applications