Higher Education – What are your options?
Whilst all of the various websites and resources below will be useful in supporting you to make decision about your future Higher Education plans, you should not rely on any one source alone. It is always best to use a range of different resources to make this decision. In addition to the websites below, why don’t you organise to speak to EPC’s independent Careers Adviser or Careers Leader, your form tutor or other members of the teaching staff. In addition, we highly recommend that you visit the university/college that you are interested in attending to see the facilities, meet the staff and to ask some relevant questions about the course and the future progression it offers.
The UCAS website: http://www.ucas.com contains key information on all UK university courses, with links to individual institutions websites – so that you can continue your research. It is also the website that students use to make their university applications at the start of Year 13.
Unistats: http://www.unistats.com is the website used for displaying the government’s Key Information Sets (KIS). It has up-to-date statistical information on each individual course at all the UK’s universities. There is information displayed on the following categories: student satisfaction, average salary after graduation, progression, accommodation costs, time spent in lectures & seminars, how it is assessed and student satisfaction with the university’s student union. You should also find a link to Unistats from individual university websites.
The school has recently purchased Unifrog: https://www.unifrog.org, which is a very useful website that brings together the information from a wide range of other resources that help students to search for suitable university degrees. Students can register and then use Unifrog to search for degrees taking into account location, quality of research, student satisfaction, contact hours, costs, assessment methods etc. It also has a section on apprenticeships/school leaver programmes.
UK Course Finder: http://www.ukcoursefinder.com is a website where you can search for universities based on course title, location and entry grades. If you are unsure of your plans but know that you want to progress onto Higher Education you can register (free of charge) and complete a short questionnaire that will ‘suggest’ degree courses that might interest you. This process is not an exact science but it can help you to start a search or to confirm your plans.
Which University: http://university.which.co.uk is another website that provides key information on individual degree courses, including the average UCAS points achieved by students actually starting the course, employment prospects and drop-out rates etc. For students unsure of their plans, they can also use the A level explorer tool: http://university.which.co.uk/a-level-explorer that suggests degree courses – based on the subjects that a student is studying or plans to study at A-level.
Apply to Uni: http://www.applytouni.com has information on applying to university, including a series of university guides and information on finance and open days.
Push: http://www.push.co.uk describes itself as being a “ruthlessly independent” guide to UK universities and comes from, at times, a very different perspective from other resources.