Our Progression and Employability team are here to provide students with advice and guidance on their next steps after college. Whether that is the world of work, an apprenticeship or university they will ensure students have a plan for their next steps. Students can visit our Progression and Employability Hub in the Tower Building foyer on our Hele Road site.

Supporting Students with Their Next Steps

Our team of experienced advisers can help support all students with planning their next steps after college; whether this is applying for university, gap years, apprenticeships, full time work or another college course.

If your son/daughter/young person needs help deciding what to do at the end of this year please ask them to come along to a drop in session. Starting after half term, these are based in our Progression Hub in the Ground Floor of the Tower Building from 12:30 – 14:30 on Monday to Friday so please encourage them to come along and see us.

We can also offer one to one appointments for careers advice. To find out about this service you can contact us on 01392 4000330 or progressionteam@exe-coll.ac.uk

Parents and students can also keep up to date with UCAS news, jobs and volunteering opportunities by following us on twitter @ExeCollPandE

Has your son/daughter/young person applied for university to start this autumn?

If so, they need to apply for Student Finance by 31st May 2017.

You can support your son/daughter/young person to complete their application for student finance. Students may need help with this and they need to apply now, even before they have had all their offers and made a decision about where they are studying. Sometimes the process can take a few months to collect and process your household income details. It is worth doing the application together and you will receive an email from Student Finance to complete your income information, so they can assess the application.

Please note – If the application is received after 31st May then your son/daughter/young person may not have the finance in place to be able start university in the autumn. Start the application process for student finance.

Need extra support at college? Apply for Disabled Students Allowance [DSA].

If your son/daughter/young person has had extra support with learning or exams or getting to or around college they could be entitled to extra help at university. However, they need to apply before they go to get this organised. Check eligibility and apply for Disabled Students Allowance.

Budgeting for University

It is also useful to have a conversation with your son/daughter/young person about budgeting and finance for university, before they accept their offers or organise accommodation to make sure that they can afford to go to their first choice university.

Martin Lewis of Money Saving Expert offers a lot of support to students and parents explaining student finance and budgeting for university. Read Martin's budgeting article here.

UCAS: What happens next?

Replying to Offers

Second year students who applied by 15th January 2017 should have received offers from their choices via UCAS Track. They need to select their preferred choices by 6th May 2017, using the UCAS Track system. Students opt for a CF (Conditional Firm) – their first choice institution – and a CI (Conditional Insurance) – a lower grade offer as a back-up if they don’t get the required grades for their CF choice.

If students do not reply to UCAS by 6th May 2017 all offers will be cancelled.

If students haven’t received any offers, or want to change their subject choice they can do this by using UCAS Extra in February.

Late Applications

Students can still make a late application to UCAS until 30th June 2017. Don’t forget, Exeter College also offers an exciting variety of university level options. Read more about our options.

Students who are yet to make an application but wish to defer do not need to apply until Spring 2018.

Applying for University in 2018?

How you can support your son/daughter/young person with making choices about courses and institutions >>>

Encourage your son/daughter/young person to sign up and book a free ticket for the UCAS Fair at WestPoint Arena in Exeter on 21st or 22nd March. Students are permitted to attend outside of timetabled lessons and parents are also invited. There will be over 150 universities at the event as well as companies offering degree apprenticeships and GAP year programmes. You will be able to attend seminars on subjects like; how to choose your course and how to write an effective personal statement. Students will need to make their own way to Westpoint using the Stagecoach 52A or 52B service which runs from Exeter bus station regularly and stops outside Westpoint. If you intend to travel to Westpoint by car there is plenty of free parking.

Make sure to book to attend some university open days or subject specific taster days. This is very important as these events get booked up quickly – most of these will be in June or July. Check out dates at www.opendays.com or check university websites.

Following exams in the summer the Progression and Employability team will arrange talks on personal statement writing and choosing courses in preparation for university. We will also hold a Parents Higher Education Information session which will explain more about the UCAS process in college and student finance – more information on dates to follow.

Registration for UCAS will happen at the beginning of September and the Progression and Employability team will support tutors and students with the application process.

Did you know that Exeter College also offers University Level courses in partnership with local universities? These can give you access to high quality teaching and resources and with lower fees too. Contact us on 01392 400909 to speak to our dedicated Higher Education adviser.