JotCast | RfE Year 12 - Webchat 2 - University Worries

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RfE Year 12 - Webchat 2 - University Worries

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Molly

4:17

Although RfE doesn't directly provide a contextual offer, it does allow you to transfer directly onto Access to Leeds, which would drop your standard grade requirement for a course at Leeds down by 2 grades - so AAB would become BBB with A2L. Students also talk about RfE in their personal statements, and there is a section of the UCAS form where you can include it as well.

Guest

4:16

What happens if you do not get a place in any of your 5 university choices?

James Leslie

4:17

unlikely but we have UCAS Extra & then Clearing - we go through these when you get to Year 13 in detail but if your coming to Get Set For Uni Part 2 we will be talking you through this then :)

camille

4:17

how do student loans work, for example how would I receive them?

James Leslie

4:18

they are paid into your bank account in 3 instalments across the academic year (to make sure you don't spend it all at once) students receive them in September/October and then January and then April/May

Aamina

4:17

If my predicted grades do not meet the requirements of my course, would I not be considered as an applicant?

Molly

4:20

It massively depends on the course, how many people have applied in the same year as you, and how far off your predictions are. Some courses would look at a single grade drop, or even two, but things like medicine, dentistry, law, business, all the competitive ones, would not consider you if your grades didn't meet the requirements. Don't forget though that you would be looking at a 2 grade reduction on any offer at Leeds, because you'll be able to transfer onto Access to Leeds in Y13.

Guest

4:19

Does leeds offer a data science course

James Leslie

4:19

currently we don't but we do offer Computer Science - you can check out the combinations at https://courses.leeds.ac.uk/

Simran Bahia

4:20

If you do not move out for university, are you still entitled to any loans?

James Leslie

4:20

yes, just not as much as somebody who does move away from home

Shaiza Mehmood

4:20

What happens if your predicted grades don't meet the course requirements but then when you do your actual a levels you reach the requirements?

James Leslie

4:21

You could try UCAS adjustment on results day - again, we will talk you through this when the time comes in Year 13 but if you google adjustment you can find out about it

Malaika Sadiq

4:21

What would you say is the hardest thing to deal with in university?

Molly

4:22

Good question! I answered this one further up so just going to copy and paste. I think for me it was being disciplined - I had a lot of independent study time so it was very easy for me in first year especially to not work as hard as I should have been, because I wasn't always in class and so was expected to do a lot of work and reading in my own time. It's a big change from anything you've done before, so I think people will all react to it differently. I had access to quite a lot of support from the uni through things like my personal tutor, the library, and the student advice centre, so although there are challenges there are also lots of people to help you deal with them!

Simran Bahia

4:22

Would RfE assist us in writing our personal statements?

Molly

4:23

Yes, we run 1-1 personal statement workshops in Y13 where we review your drafts and help you make changes :)

Robert

4:23

Are the new student finance regulations something to be worried about?

James Leslie

4:25

We know the Media can worry people (and watching anything on the news) whilst we are still waiting for more information to be able to go through it with you all before you apply. Most aspects of the student loan are staying the same, including the amount you can borrow for your maintenance loan, your tuition loan and the repayment threshold. The only thing that is changing is the amount of interest you’ll earn on your overall loan amount. While the changes aren’t insignificant, they’re unlikely to make a material difference to the average borrower. Reducing the interest rate and capping it so it is in line with private products will mean the amount you owe overall increases by less, but it will still increase year-on-year until your balance is cleared. However, when you consider the fact that the government expects just 25% of those currently in undergraduate studies to pay their student loans off in full, these changes are unlikely to have a noticeable effect on many students.

4:26

The vast majority of borrowers will only make a dent in the initial loan amount, let alone any added interest.

umayyah

4:23

what if you don't get the entry requirements required for a healthcare course due to a severe medical condition?

Molly

4:25

In this case you'd need to apply for mitigating circumstances on your exams, and then this would be sent to UCAS and universities would be able to consider this when making their decisions. School/college will be best placed to help so would recommend discussing with them if this is something you're concerned about

Robert

4:25

Does doing a Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate and two A levels put you at a disadvantage compared to someone who does three A levels?

Molly

4:28

It really depends on the course and the university to be honest - in most cases as long as it's still a level 3 course and therefore equivalent to A Level you'd be fine, but there are a small minority of courses and universities who may consider it differently

Guest

4:27

Does University of Leeds require you to attend interviews for all courses or only specific ones

James Leslie

4:27

specific ones - varies every year

Shaiza Mehmood

4:28

Do EPQ make your application stand out

James Leslie

4:28

Although UK students are not required to take the Extended Project Qualification, we appreciate it provides the opportunity for you to develop important research and academic skills. We encourage you to provide further information on your project in your personal statement and, if invited, at interview as it is often taken into account if you narrowly miss the grades outlined in our offer to you.
In some cases, admissions tutors may make an alternative offer to applicants that involves successful completion of the EPQ

Simran Bahia

4:29

What are the best ways to meet new people in university?

Molly

4:29

Clubs & societies for sure!

Shaiza Mehmood

4:30

Do universities follow school timings of 8am-4pm or are they open for longer?

Molly

4:33

It's more spread out than that usually - core opening hours would be 8am-6pm but you wouldn't have contact time (like lesson time) throughout that, and your timetable would look different every day. By the time I was in final year I was only in uni 5 hours a week, but I was a humanities student so for STEM and healthcare it would typically be a lot more time in class

Simran

4:33

Is work experience important for our personal statements?

Molly

4:35

Importance varies depending on the course - for competitive or vocational courses then yes definitely, but for something like History or English they will probably look more at subject interest/wider reading

Shaiza Mehmood

4:34

How long does a personal statement have to be?

James Leslie

4:35

4,000 characters in length :) we will be showing you examples at Get Set For Uni Part 2

Shaiza Mehmood

4:35

Can volunteering count as work experience?

Molly

4:35

Yes!

Guest

4:35

What sort of things do universities look for on applications that would make us stand out besides doing EPQ

Molly

4:36

Wider reading, commercial awareness, volunteering, extracurriculars, positions of responsibility in school, all things that can help!

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