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   UCAS unveils radical admission plans
by Laura Johnson
University applications could be radically altered under new proposals submitted by UCAS, the organisation which deals with university admissions. The proposals would see students applying for university after their A-level results have been published. At present, students apply for university months before results day, basing their application on expected grades and personal statements. Universities then make students a 'conditional' offer – based on the achievement of expected grades. If students don’t achieve these grades, they have to go through 'clearing' to try to gain a degree place, which may not resemble the course they originally applied for. UCAS say the current system is unfair, complex, difficult to understand and stressful for students, and today published a review of the admissions process. The review includes proposals designed to “enhance the applicant experience” in the short- and long-term. Professor David Eastwood, Chair of the UCAS Board and Vice-Chancellor, University of Birmingham said: “Changing applicant expectations, together with new modes of funding and delivering higher education, mean this review is particularly timely. “[We are] not committed to any one solution, but to continuing to provide an outstanding admissions service that is transparent, fair, and meets the needs of applicants and our member institutions.” The proposals have, however, faced criticism from students who say that reducing the time alloted to applications could result in applicants not having enough time to make the right decision on their preferred university. Salford graduate Melissa Kabluczenko said, “Looking back at my time when applying through UCAS it’s quite a long process and it can take quite a long time to decide which university you want to go to and which course you want to do. “If you didn’t start that process until after you got your results there would be so much less time to get organised and move to university, which is stressful for a lot of people. “You usually get your results at the end of August and go to university at the end of September, so I’m not sure a month would really be enough time to make those decisions.” Laura Johnson is the editor of Salford University newspaper Student Direct, and is a volunteer reporter for SalfordOnline.com Due to problems with spam only SalfordOnline members can now leave comments. Becoming a member of SalfordOnline only takes a minute, just hit the red Join Us button at the top right hand side of the page to create your Personal account. Got a news story? Need help with publicity for an event in Salford? Send it to newsdesk@salfordonline.com or call the SalfordOnline newsdesk on 0161 789 5377. |
