It probably seemed like a great idea at the time: a dash across the world to explore a jungle or help carry out charity work in a developing country in your spare months between finishing A-levels and starting uni.
But now you’ve trekked through the jungle to find Wi-Fi, or logged into Ucas from the only computer in the village, and found out exams didn’t quite go according to plan. How do you do Clearing when you’re far from home?
The first piece of advice is to keep calm. Hopefully you’ve prepared ahead of time with the key phone numbers and documents. So, first things first: call the admissions tutor at your first choice university.
If there are places available and you only just missed your grades (or have special circumstances, like ill health confirmed by a doctor), they might still let you in.
If not, it’s time to look at Clearing – go online to find course options and then hit the phones.
“Staff will be super jealous that you’re on the other side of the world having the time of your life, but make sure they know exactly where you’re located, so any technical glitches or signal dropouts can be preempted beforehand,” says Jeremy Rowe, head of admissions at London South Bank University.
“Have mum or dad on call back home in case you need additional information or documents to be sent to the university, and take screenshots of your chosen courses on your phone in case your internet cuts out and you need to get information about your course.”
Don’t forget about different time zones: make sure your alarm is set for the right time. “And if you’re travelling through a remote area where you have intermittent access to the internet, buy an internet dongle so you’re always connected,” Rowe adds.
Julian Lovelock of the University of Buckingham warns students not to accept the first thing they’re offered in desperation. “Clearing is rather like an end-of-season sale. Some of the courses on offer are excellent – perhaps even better than the one that turned you down. But when others are piled high, you need to ask why.”
“In the Clearing sale the prices, usually £9,000 a year, usually stay the same,” Lovelock adds. “So you need to be quite sure you don’t waste your money on a course that offers little in the way of quality or prospects just so you can go to university. Do your research and don’t accept any second-rate options. There are other paths to success.”
-
Lucy Tobin is the author of A Guide to Uni Life (Trotman, £7.99)
Keep up with the latest on Guardian Students: follow us on Twitter at @GdnStudents – and become a member to receive exclusive benefits and our weekly newsletter.
