You’ve gone through Clearing and got the place on the degree that you want. You’ve done it; you’re off to university!
But what happens after Clearing? How do you confirm your offer? Will your student finance be affected if you're now going to a different university, and how can you find somewhere to live with just weeks to go before term starts?
Read on to find the answer to these and other practical steps you need to take now.
Contents:
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Attend our Clearing Open Day
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Confirm your Clearing offer
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Update your student finance
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Check scholarships and bursaries
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Find accommodation after Clearing
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Apply for your Student visa
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Register with your university
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Make travel arrangements
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Start packing!
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Download the Umii app
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Get ready for Freshers' Week
1. Attend our Clearing Open Day
Following Results Day, if you're made an offer through Clearing you'll be invited to an on-campus open day.
At Newcastle, our Clearing Open Day is an opportunity for you to meet and engage with colleagues from our academic and student services communities.
You'll be able to take a tour of campus and find out more about your chosen course.
2. Confirm your Clearing offer
After you’ve received a verbal offer from a university you should also receive an email confirmation setting out how long you have to accept your offer.
If you’re happy with the offer and want to accept it, sign into your UCAS Hub, click on 'Add Clearing choice' and fill in the course details before the offer expires.
This counts as you accepting the offer, and once it’s confirmed, it'll show as an acceptance on your 'Choices' page in your application.
3. Update your student finance
After accepting a place through Clearing you'll need to let your student finance provider know of any changes to your course and university. You can do this quite easily via your online account.
Your application will be reassessed, but you should find out very quickly if there’ll be any changes to the amount of student finance you’ll get.
If you get a place through Clearing and haven’t applied for student finance yet, you’ll need to do this now.
Applications can take six weeks to process, so if you don’t get your funding in time for the start of your course, get in touch with your university to let them know.
For more advice, read our blog on applying for student finance late.
4. Check scholarships and bursaries
As well as updating your student finance, you’ll need to make new arrangements if you’d previously secured a scholarship or bursary to study at a different university.
At Newcastle, we offer a range of funding schemes for UK and international students, from scholarships to donor and University-funded schemes.
Our Student Finance Advisers can help you research your options and any funding you may be eligible for.
5. Find accommodation after Clearing
Your new university should give you all the details you need about your accommodation options, and how you can apply.
Check out what’s available through their website, take an online tour of halls if that facility is available, and even ask about visiting in person.
Finding the right place to live is a huge part of settling into your new university life, so do your research.
At Newcastle, we have a great range of accommodation to choose from, with the option of taking a virtual tour of each of our sites.
6. Apply for your Student visa
If you’re an international student, you’ll need a visa to study full-time in the UK. Now that the UK has left the European Union, you’ll also need to apply for a Student visa if you are an EU, EEA or Swiss national and don’t have Settled or Pre-Settled status.
To apply, you’ll need a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS). You’ll be able to request this from your new university after you have accepted your offer and your details have been updated in your application.
Once you’ve received your CAS, make sure you check it carefully and if there are any mistakes, let the university know straightaway.
Some integrated undergraduate courses also require an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate before you can study in the UK. These programmes are predominantly in the science, engineering and medical subject areas. Find more information on how to apply for an ATAS certificate here.
At Newcastle, you can get lots of helpful advice about applying for your visa from our Visa Support Team.
7. Register with your university
Once your offer has been confirmed, you should receive email instructions on how to register with your university – registration gives you official status as a student of the university.
To register, you’ll access your university email account where you should see an email containing further instructions. Follow these instructions to check and confirm your student data, your programme of study and financial details.
You may need to pay, or make arrangements to pay, your tuition fees so you can complete your registration.
You'll also be guided to apply for your university smartcard. You'll need this to access university buildings, libraries, borrow books, use printing and photocopying services and much more.
8. Make travel arrangements
It's time to start planning how you're going to get to university - whether that's by plane, train or car.
At Newcastle, we offer a bookable Airport Meet and Greet service. If you're an international student flying into Newcastle International Airport, we can be there to meet you when you arrive and provide transport to your accommodation.
If you're travelling by road or rail, direct links to the rest of the UK also make it quick, easy and affordable to get to Newcastle.
9. Start packing!
Once you’re officially registered with your university, it’s time to start thinking about what you need to pack – from clothes to bedding, towels, kitchenware and personal touches to brighten up your room and remind you of home.
However, don’t be tempted to pack everything you own, you can always buy some items once you’re settled in.
10. Download the Umii app
Umii takes your interests, year of study, course, and social preferences into account and suggests like-minded students to you - every day.
Newcastle University has adopted Umii to support our students in establishing their friendship networks at any point during their academic journey.
You can even set up the app and start connecting with other students before you arrive.
The process is simple:
- select your uni
- add your course, interests and societies
- verify your student account
- get new matches every day and build meaningful friendships!
11. Get ready for Freshers' Week
Freshers' Week is a chance to make friends, have fun and really get to know your new city, campus, course and flatmates.
Your university will organise a programme of activities, events, workshops and taster sessions, giving you a chance to try out new things and meet new people.
At Newcastle, you can find out everything you need to know about this year's Freshers' Week on our Students' Union website.
