There are thousands of courses available, so research is the key to making an informed decision about what to study and where. Brian Heap writes in his book University Degree Course Offers that deciding your degree on the basis of your current studies is a 'reasonably safe option since you are already familiar with the subjects themselves and what they involve' and that for many occupations 'the degree subject is often not as important as the degree itself'. He also adds that a large number of graduate jobs are open to graduates of any degree discipline and specialist training for many careers starts once you have your degree.

The school subscribes to the online version of Heap’s Degree Course Offers. This resource is intended as a starting point for research into university degree courses available to you, depending on your predicted (or actual) UCAS Tariff points. For log-on details see Mrs Higgott in the Careers Library.

You can choose up to five university courses. There is no preference order and your universities will not see where else you have applied until after you reply to any offers you receive. However, you can only choose a maximum of four courses in any one of medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine or veterinary science. Also, you can only apply to one course at either the University of Oxford or the University of Cambridge. After you have sent off your application you can see how it's progressing by logging in to the UCAS system called Track.

Consider the following to help narrow down your degree course choices:

You could decide to:

1. Continue with one of your present subjects.
2. Combine two or more of your current subjects.
3. Combine a subject that you are studying now with a new one.
4. Take a completely new subject or subjects.
5. Take a general vocational course linked to a broad occupational area. Examples include art & design, business/finance, computing/IT, construction, education, engineering, health and social care, media, hospitality, public services (e.g. links to police, fire, armed forces), retail, science, sport, and travel and tourism.
6. Choose a course related to a specific job. Examples of degrees linked to particular jobs include accountancy, acting, primary teaching, social work, speech & language therapy, audiology, medicine, veterinary science, pharmacy, optometry, nursing, midwifery, dentistry, radiography, optometry, physiotherapy, sport therapy, quantity surveying, journalism, architecture, archaeology, design (e.g. furniture, graphic, textiles) and agriculture.

You then need to research your chosen degree course ideas and which universities offer them. Use the UCAS website, check out university prospectuses, go to open days/conventions, contact admissions tutors and use the books/resources available in the Careers Library and the useful websites in this section. In particular, research the following:

• The specific university course entry requirements to make sure you have the right subjects and the right UCAS Tariff points needed/grades.
• Type of qualification on offer: For example, is it academic, vocational, single honours, joint honours, combined honours, modular or sandwich (sandwich means it usually includes a year working)?
• Reputation: What is the quality of teaching and research? What do recent students say about it?
• Student satisfaction.
• Academic facilities.
• Course teaching methods: What is the balance between lectures, seminars, tutorials, practical or work-related activities?
• Course assessment: Is it all examination-based or partly based on coursework?
• Tuition fee costs.
• Graduate destinations: How many find employment? What kind of careers do they go into?
• Location and distance from home: Do you want to live in a big city or somewhere quieter?
• Costs: some places are cheaper to live in than others!
• Accommodation: Are all first year students offered accommodation?
• Is study or employment abroad part of the course?
• Part-time and holiday work: Does the university help and encourage this and do they have a student employment service?
• Social activities: What clubs, societies and sporting facilities are there? 

University league tables can be used to compare universities. There are a number of different league tables available to use, although it is worth knowing that they calculate their tables using different criteria and weighting. However, all should include student satisfaction scores, student to staff ratio, graduate prospects and entry grades. Although they are a useful source of information, they do have their limitations! For example, not all indicators are updated yearly and student feedback may not be objective.

The Which? University website adds the following points:

• Just because a university is at the top of a league table does not necessarily mean it is the right one for you.
• League tables are often closely bunched together at the top, middle and bottom, so do not read too much into universities placed five to ten places apart. A university in twentieth place can be separated by the one in thirtieth place by only a few percentage points. It adds that this is also why some universities and courses fluctuate from year to year: small differences in the score can mean big differences in the ranking order.
• League tables do not always tell you the full story as certain university courses may be well-regarded by employers in specific career areas, even though the universities may not feature in the upper reaches of the tables.

Here are two sources of league tables to check out:

• The Guardian.
• The Complete University Guide.

Remember though, you need to choose the right course and university for you, based on factors that are important to you! You therefore need to decide your priorities – create your own list of key factors and do your research.

If you wish to study art at university you may need to study an art foundation course first, so you must check the specific entry requirements for your chosen universities.

You need to use the UCAS website to apply for most undergraduate courses. The UCAS website provides detailed information to help you with your UCAS application. It also provides lots of useful videos, such as a step-by-step guide to applying. You make your application via the UCAS online system,  Apply. You do not need to do it all at once as you can save your progress and sign back in at any time.

You apply for performing arts courses at conservatoires through UCAS Conservatoires.

The usual UCAS deadlines are 15 October for the universities of Oxford, Cambridge or any professional course in medicine, veterinary medicine/science and dentistry, and 15 January for the majority of courses.

UCAS Conservatoires: the usual application deadline for music courses starting the next year is early October. For most undergraduate dance, drama or screen production courses the deadline is 15 January. However, there are exceptions, so please check with individual conservatoires for full details as dates do vary.

More information about deadlines is available at on the UCAS website. If you miss a deadline your application will be classed as late. Most universities will still look at your application if they have vacancies left on the course you apply for, but there are no guarantees! Late applications can be made up to 30 June. Contact universities directly to see if they would consider a late application (though this is less likely for competitive courses).

The UCAS Tariff is a means of allocating points to compare post-16 qualifications used for entry to higher education. However, it’s worth noting that only one-third of universities make tariff offers; meaning two-thirds of offers request specific grades. For example, the tariff points for A Levels are:

• A* = 56 points
• A = 48
• B = 40
• C = 32
• D = 24
• E = 16.

For more information about the Tariff go to the UCAS website.

It is possible that you may need to take an admissions test. This will depend on what course you have applied for (e.g. law, medicine) and where you have applied (e.g. Cambridge and Oxford). Most admissions tests take place early in the school year, so if you do need to take one you will need to register for it early, possibly before you have sent your application off.

UCAS add that many of the courses that use admissions tests are also the courses that have the 15 October application deadline, so it is worth checking these details in advance. More information is available on the UCAS website.

Course tutors use personal statements (plus estimated grades and references) to compare applicants, so make sure you sell yourself so that your application stands out from the rest! UCAS advise you not to mention universities by name as you need to use the same personal statement for all the courses you apply for.

The UCAS website gives useful tips for writing your personal statement.

It is possible that you may have to attend an interview, especially if you have applied for a competitive course or to certain universities. To prepare for an interview use the UCAS website.

A conditional offer usually means you are required to get certain grades or points in your A Levels (or equivalent). This will mean waiting for results day in summer to see if your exam results meet the conditions.

An unconditional offer means you have already met the entry requirements, so the place is yours if you want it! By accepting an unconditional offer you are committing to go to that university, so you can't make an insurance choice or be entered into Clearing.  Please note, universities are making an increasing number of unconditional offers to students that have not yet taken their exams. You should only accept such as offer if it is the right course/university for you!

If you have an unconditional offer you can select it to confirm your place. If your offers are conditional on exam results or other requirements, you can pick two; your first choice (CF) and a backup insurance choice (CI).

Firm acceptance (CF) is your first choice. If it is an unconditional offer the place is yours! If it is conditional the place is yours if you meet the entry requirements. Your back-up choice is your insurance acceptance (CI). You will only attend your insurance choice if you do not meet the conditions of your firm choice but you do meet the conditions of your insurance offer. So, make sure your insurance offer is somewhere you would be happy going to.

You also have the option to decline offers. If you decline all offers, or are not made any offers, you can use UCAS Extra and/or Clearing.

More information about offers is available on the UCAS website.

It is also possible to study abroad and an increasing number of students are considering this option due to the cost of UK university tuition fees. Use the following websites to carefully research your options and the financial implications:

• A Star Future: Use to search for courses taught in English abroad.
• The Student World: This gives guidance about where to study, why, the process and financial implications.
• Eunicas: Enables UK and Irish students to apply to degree programmes, taught through English, in universities across Europe.
• Fulbright Commission: Use to explore studying in the USA.
• Study in the USA: Use to explore studying in the USA.
• Study options: Use to explore studying in Australia and New Zealand.
• Study portals: Provides a database of courses around the world.
• StudyLink: Information and guidance about studying abroad.
• Study Overseas: A guide to studying in the Middle East.
• Medical Doorway: Free advice to students aiming to study medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine in Europe.

What and where to study; applications; and years out:

• UCAS: the main website. Search and apply for courses. Lots of other useful and helpful information e.g. choosing what to study, the applications process and student finance.
• UCAS Conservatoires: application process if you are applying for performing arts courses at conservatoires.
• Heap’s Degree Course Offers: this resource is intended as a starting point for research into university degree courses available to you, depending on your predicted (or actual) UCAS Tariff points. See Mrs Higgott in the Careers Library for log-on details.
• Unifrog : includes, university and apprenticeship information. If you are not registered, please see Mrs Higgott in the Careers Library.
• Which? University: has an easy to use search facility, which can be filtered by predicted grades and other criteria. Profiles of almost 300 different UK universities and colleges and brings together a wealth of information that exists about full-time undergraduate courses, including the Guardian and Times league tables, official employment and satisfaction statistics and UCAS course information. It now also includes an A level explorer tool to help you discover the full range of degrees different A level subjects can lead to.
• UK CourseFinder: includes a questionnaire and course search. You need to register to use the questionnaire.
• UNISTATS: includes official data on each university and satisfaction scores in the National Student Survey, jobs and salaries after study and other key information for prospective students.
• PUSH: a 'Guide to UK universities, student life, gap years, open days, student finance and all things studentish'.
• Apply to Uni: has a range of advice and information e.g. applying, finance, personal statements and course finder.
• Bestcourse4me: you can select A levels and then see what degree and careers they could lead to.
• Pure Potential: has lots of useful information relating to higher education and includes a very useful section called “Events and Opportunities”, which includes details of opportunities that may interest you, such as masterclasses and conferences.
• Prospects: a guide to taking a gap year.
• The Guardian: see league table link.
• The Complete University Guide: see league table link.
• My Student Events: this portal has details about open days, study days and tasters.

Studying abroad:

• A Star Future: use to search for courses taught in English abroad. 

• The Student World: This gives guidance about where to study, why go abroad, the process and financial implications.

• Eunicas: enables British and Irish students to apply to degree programmes, taught through English, in universities across Europe.

• Fulbright Commission: use to explore studying in the USA.

• Study in the USA: use to explore studying in the USA.

• Study options: use to explore studying in Australia and New Zealand.

• Study portals: provides a database of courses around the world.

• StudyLink: information and guidance about studying abroad.

• Study Overseas: a guide to studying in the Middle East.

• Medical Doorway: free advice to students aiming to study medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine in Europe.

Graduate careers:

• Prospects: a graduate careers website e.g. go to 'Careers advice' and then 'What can I do with my degree'.

Alternative options to university:

• Not going to uni: advice on and support in alternative options.

Higher education books:

• A range of books are available in the Careers Library.

Extra is a way of making a further course choice. If you've used five choices and weren't accepted or you decided to decline any offers you received, you can use UCAS Extra to apply for more courses (one at a time). It is open between 25 February and early July.

More information about Extra is available on the UCAS website.

Clearing helps universities fill any places they have left on their courses and is available July to September each year. You can use it if you have no offers or didn’t meet your conditional offers. UCAS said that in 2016 more people get a place via clearing than via insurance offers.

More information about Clearing is available on the UCAS website.

Each year some applicants pass their exams with better results than expected. So if you have met and exceeded the conditions of your firm choice, Adjustment gives you the chance to potentially swap your course for another one. It is available from A Level results day to 31 August. If you try Adjustment but you do not find anything, you'll still keep the course you gained on results day.

More information about Adjustment is available on the UCAS website.