Starting university is an exciting time for any new student. At Hartpury University, we value the vital role parents, relatives and carers play at all stages of this process.
This page aims to answer any questions you may have about the various steps involved in your family member’s journey and the advantages that come from joining a university.
A degree is internationally recognised. In 2020, the national graduate employment rate was 86.4%, compared to 71.3% for non-graduates (GOV.UK, 2021).
Living away from home for the first time can help students develop key life skills including debating, decision making, organisation, research, time management, critical thinking, budgeting, and communication.
The median graduate salary of those living in England is an estimated £10,000 more than the median non-graduate salary (GOV.UK, 2021).
Choosing the right course is a decision which shouldn’t be taken lightly, and your family member might need additional help deciding which course and university is right for them.
When thinking about their next steps, your family member could consider:
When selecting a course, your family member may wonder what the difference between a BSc and a BA is, here is the answer:
BA is a Bachelor of Arts – English, humanities and social science are types of BA degree
BSc is a Bachelor of Science – Physics, engineering and computing are types of BSc degree
Both are undergraduate degree programmes and are used internationally.
Usually the main difference is the teaching and assessment style and of these degrees, BA’s often contain more coursework focused assessments. Whereas, BSc degrees often have more practical learning and assessments.
There are also foundation degrees and/or years, these prepare your family member before they start their undergraduate course. Have a look at all the different courses available through UCAS.
Some useful links to help choose the correct course and university for your family member:
Congratulations, your family member has decided to take that step and apply for university. Their first step is to apply via UCAS.
The Universities and College Admissions Service (UCAS) is the central organisation responsible for processing applications for full-time undergraduate study at UK universities.
First, the prospective student will need to register and complete the application using the UCAS online system. This can either be done at home, or with the help of their current school/college. Most careers services at school will help processing UCAS applications.
Prospective students will need to apply for their full-time undergraduate course through the UCAS Undergraduate: Apply and Track. Here, they can find all the details relating to entry requirements and completing the application. When students apply for university, they can apply for a maximum of 5 different courses at different universities. There is also an application fee. The application fee for 2023 is £22 for a single choice, and £26.50 for two or more choices.
Make sure you check the application deadline! This date is 25 January 2023.
When applying, prospective students will need to:
While institutions do ask for grades in certain subjects at A-level (or equivalent) as part of their course entry requirements, they may also request a particular amount of UCAS Tariff points. Use the table below to work out what grade your family member will need to achieve in order to meet the tariff point requirements.
A-level and Advanced grade |
Tariff points |
BTEC L3 qualification |
Tariff points |
A* |
56 |
D* (Distinction *) |
28 |
A |
48 |
D (Distinction) |
24 |
B |
40 |
M (Merit) |
16 |
C |
32 |
P (Pass) |
8 |
D |
24 |
|
|
E |
16 |
|
|
This means that if you get ABC at A-levels, you will have 120 UCAS points. If your family member has any other qualifications, use the UCAS Tariff Calculator to work out their points. Qualifications, such as the Extended Project Qualification, may also be included in your total and may be included in an offer.
Once the student has applied through UCAS, they can track their application through UCAS Track. Here, your family member will be able to find out if they received any offers for a place on a course or received an invite to an interview. They can respond to all these through UCAS Track.
It may take a few months to hear back from the universities about offering your family member a place, so don’t worry, this is normal. The university deadline is 14th July 2023.
There are four possible responses to an application:
Once all the UCAS offers are in, your family member will need to decide and respond by the deadline. They can:
Your family member will need to log onto UCAS after 8:00 to see if their first-choice university have accepted them. However, not all students get the grades required for their first choice. If this is the case, their second choice may still be an option. In some cases, the first or second choice university may offer your family member a place on a different course to the one they applied for, so they will need to either accept or decline this offer.
If neither the first of second choice were accepted by the universities, your family member will have to go through the Clearing process. The clearing process is explained by UCAS in the video below. Clearing opens on Tuesday 5th July 2022 and closes Friday 8th July 2022. Clearing is how universities and colleges fill any places they still have on their courses.
Your family member can use Clearing if:
Now that your family member has decided they want to attend university and completed their application through UCAS, they may need to apply for student finance to fund their studies.
Student finance differs slightly depending on where in the UK you live. Use the links below to see the student finance process in your country (this is where you live, not where the university is).
Contact the education authority if you live in the Channel Islands (Jersey and Guernsey) or Isle of Man.
Applying for student finance is easier than you think. There are various options available, including tuition fee loans, maintenance loans and non-repayable grants.
It is also always worth noting that there are bursaries and scholarships that students could be eligible to apply for. Bursaries are non-repayable amounts of money and are means tested against a criterion.
UCAS application – complete
Student finance – complete
Well done! These are the two big steps and you have completed those together.
Next, your family member will need to decide where they want to live while studying their course. Some students choose to move away to attend university, meaning they need to seek out some new accommodation. The main choice here is whether they want to live in student accommodation, a private house/house share or at home with family. Additionally, there is the choice between rural vs city living.
Student accommodation are available to students attending university, although priority is given to first years and international students. The benefit of students living in student accommodation are:
For these reasons, university accommodation are usually a popular choice of many first year students. However, it isn’t the only option. Your family member may decide to live in a private rental, or with you or other family.
Some students decide that they aren’t ready to move out of their family home, or they see the benefits of living at home while at university. Some reasons why students stay living at home include:
Most universities will have an accommodation office on campus. Your family member can go here to find local student letting agents who will find them a suitable private rental for them. Additionally, many students use ‘spare room’ which is a house/flat share service which finds rooms going for rent. For more guidance on how your family member can find a private rental, check out TheUniGuide.
Whether living in university accommodation, in a private rental or living with you and/or family, something your family member will always need to consider is transport. Students living at home may live further away from the university, meaning the cost of their transport to and from university may be higher than students living in university accommodation, which are usually within walking distance to the main campus.
Students are usually entitled to discounted travel including bus and train passes. The most popular of these are the 16-25 Railcard, which provides students with 30% off train ticket prices when a valid student card is shown. Local bus services such as Stagecoach also offer student bus passes, which can be found here. In London, there is the 18+ student oyster photocard which also awards students 30% off their travel costs.
Websites such as Student Beans, UNiDAYS and Save the Student will also help your family member find the best discounts for their travel needs.
At Hartpury you can choose to live on-campus surrounded by Gloucestershire’s beautiful countryside or off-campus in the heart of Gloucester City centre.
Whichever option you go for, you’ll get the best of both rural and urban worlds. We’re located just five miles from Gloucester City centre, with buses that come right on to campus.
We give priority booking to first-year undergraduate students who make us their firm choice by the May UCAS deadline, as well as international students.
Getting around at Hartpury is easy. You can hop on one of the public buses that stop regularly on campus. Alongside that, we offer on-campus parking for student cars and have great relationships with local taxi firms.
Your family member has been accepted onto a university course, their student finance and accommodation are all completed, so all that is left to do is pack them up and send them off. But, before you do that, take a look at our helpful checklist.
Choosing the right course is a decision which shouldn’t be taken lightly, and your family member might need additional help deciding which course and university is right for them.
When thinking about their next steps, your family member could consider:
When selecting a course, your family member may wonder what the difference between a BSc and a BA is, here is the answer:
BA is a Bachelor of Arts – English, humanities and social science are types of BA degree
BSc is a Bachelor of Science – Physics, engineering and computing are types of BSc degree
Both are undergraduate degree programmes and are used internationally.
Usually the main difference is the teaching and assessment style and of these degrees, BA’s often contain more coursework focused assessments. Whereas, BSc degrees often have more practical learning and assessments.
There are also foundation degrees and/or years, these prepare your family member before they start their undergraduate course. Have a look at all the different courses available through UCAS.
Some useful links to help choose the correct course and university for your family member:
Congratulations, your family member has decided to take that step and apply for university. Their first step is to apply via UCAS.
The Universities and College Admissions Service (UCAS) is the central organisation responsible for processing applications for full-time undergraduate study at UK universities.
First, the prospective student will need to register and complete the application using the UCAS online system. This can either be done at home, or with the help of their current school/college. Most careers services at school will help processing UCAS applications.
Prospective students will need to apply for their full-time undergraduate course through the UCAS Undergraduate: Apply and Track. Here, they can find all the details relating to entry requirements and completing the application. When students apply for university, they can apply for a maximum of 5 different courses at different universities. There is also an application fee. The application fee for 2023 is £22 for a single choice, and £26.50 for two or more choices.
Make sure you check the application deadline! This date is 25 January 2023.
When applying, prospective students will need to:
While institutions do ask for grades in certain subjects at A-level (or equivalent) as part of their course entry requirements, they may also request a particular amount of UCAS Tariff points. Use the table below to work out what grade your family member will need to achieve in order to meet the tariff point requirements.
A-level and Advanced grade |
Tariff points |
BTEC L3 qualification |
Tariff points |
A* |
56 |
D* (Distinction *) |
28 |
A |
48 |
D (Distinction) |
24 |
B |
40 |
M (Merit) |
16 |
C |
32 |
P (Pass) |
8 |
D |
24 |
|
|
E |
16 |
|
|
This means that if you get ABC at A-levels, you will have 120 UCAS points. If your family member has any other qualifications, use the UCAS Tariff Calculator to work out their points. Qualifications, such as the Extended Project Qualification, may also be included in your total and may be included in an offer.
Once the student has applied through UCAS, they can track their application through UCAS Track. Here, your family member will be able to find out if they received any offers for a place on a course or received an invite to an interview. They can respond to all these through UCAS Track.
It may take a few months to hear back from the universities about offering your family member a place, so don’t worry, this is normal. The university deadline is 14th July 2023.
There are four possible responses to an application:
Once all the UCAS offers are in, your family member will need to decide and respond by the deadline. They can:
Your family member will need to log onto UCAS after 8:00 to see if their first-choice university have accepted them. However, not all students get the grades required for their first choice. If this is the case, their second choice may still be an option. In some cases, the first or second choice university may offer your family member a place on a different course to the one they applied for, so they will need to either accept or decline this offer.
If neither the first of second choice were accepted by the universities, your family member will have to go through the Clearing process. The clearing process is explained by UCAS in the video below. Clearing opens on Tuesday 5th July 2022 and closes Friday 8th July 2022. Clearing is how universities and colleges fill any places they still have on their courses.
Your family member can use Clearing if:
Now that your family member has decided they want to attend university and completed their application through UCAS, they may need to apply for student finance to fund their studies.
Student finance differs slightly depending on where in the UK you live. Use the links below to see the student finance process in your country (this is where you live, not where the university is).
Contact the education authority if you live in the Channel Islands (Jersey and Guernsey) or Isle of Man.
Applying for student finance is easier than you think. There are various options available, including tuition fee loans, maintenance loans and non-repayable grants.
It is also always worth noting that there are bursaries and scholarships that students could be eligible to apply for. Bursaries are non-repayable amounts of money and are means tested against a criterion.
UCAS application – complete
Student finance – complete
Well done! These are the two big steps and you have completed those together.
Next, your family member will need to decide where they want to live while studying their course. Some students choose to move away to attend university, meaning they need to seek out some new accommodation. The main choice here is whether they want to live in student accommodation, a private house/house share or at home with family. Additionally, there is the choice between rural vs city living.
Student accommodation are available to students attending university, although priority is given to first years and international students. The benefit of students living in student accommodation are:
For these reasons, university accommodation are usually a popular choice of many first year students. However, it isn’t the only option. Your family member may decide to live in a private rental, or with you or other family.
Some students decide that they aren’t ready to move out of their family home, or they see the benefits of living at home while at university. Some reasons why students stay living at home include:
Most universities will have an accommodation office on campus. Your family member can go here to find local student letting agents who will find them a suitable private rental for them. Additionally, many students use ‘spare room’ which is a house/flat share service which finds rooms going for rent. For more guidance on how your family member can find a private rental, check out TheUniGuide.
Whether living in university accommodation, in a private rental or living with you and/or family, something your family member will always need to consider is transport. Students living at home may live further away from the university, meaning the cost of their transport to and from university may be higher than students living in university accommodation, which are usually within walking distance to the main campus.
Students are usually entitled to discounted travel including bus and train passes. The most popular of these are the 16-25 Railcard, which provides students with 30% off train ticket prices when a valid student card is shown. Local bus services such as Stagecoach also offer student bus passes, which can be found here. In London, there is the 18+ student oyster photocard which also awards students 30% off their travel costs.
Websites such as Student Beans, UNiDAYS and Save the Student will also help your family member find the best discounts for their travel needs.
At Hartpury you can choose to live on-campus surrounded by Gloucestershire’s beautiful countryside or off-campus in the heart of Gloucester City centre.
Whichever option you go for, you’ll get the best of both rural and urban worlds. We’re located just five miles from Gloucester City centre, with buses that come right on to campus.
We give priority booking to first-year undergraduate students who make us their firm choice by the May UCAS deadline, as well as international students.
Getting around at Hartpury is easy. You can hop on one of the public buses that stop regularly on campus. Alongside that, we offer on-campus parking for student cars and have great relationships with local taxi firms.
Your family member has been accepted onto a university course, their student finance and accommodation are all completed, so all that is left to do is pack them up and send them off. But, before you do that, take a look at our helpful checklist.
Hartpury University provides extra support to care experienced and estranged learners who are attending university with us.
At Hartpury, we have a dedicated Independent Learners Network which all students who are care experienced or estranged are entitled to become a part of. The group network is used to promote information that may be useful to Independent Learners, including funding opportunities. There are also the drop-in sessions at the Academic Success Centre, including wellbeing sessions.
Independent learners may need extra support while attending university. For students who have been in care or are estranged, Hartpury University have a special bursary available.
The Care-leavers and Independent Students bursary offers £1,500 to support study for the duration of the programme and is available to full-time students who have been in the care of a local authority for a period of 13 weeks or more or are able to provide evidence of estrangement/financial independence under the age of 25.
Hartpury University has also taken The Stand Alone Pledge, which supports estranged students.