A-level results day is a crucial moment for students. If you didn’t get the grades you were hoping for, it doesn’t necessarily mean an immediate change of plans is required. It’s essential to take a step back and consider what your results mean for you. 

Are you aiming for a specific career that requires certain qualifications or are you looking forward to campus life and the opportunity to live away from home and explore a new city? Having these conversations beforehand can help you make informed decisions if things don’t go as planned.

I started looking at universities in Year 12 and I was so excited; both my parents went so I knew what to expect and I also wanted to branch out and leave my hometown. I worked hard and overachieved at GCSE level and put myself through the entry process for dentistry including aptitude tests and interviews. 

A level results day is this week – and up and down the country, many of you will be receiving your exam results and making decisions about the next stage of your lives. 

And a large proportion will be planning on enrolling at a university or other higher education institution after the summer.

For some students, the process is easy – results received, you have met the conditions of your offer from a university and so you accept that offer and begin the celebrations.

For others, the process isn’t quite as clear-cut. 

A-Level Results Day is both an exciting and stressful day for students. For many, it’s a moment of triumph, while for others, it might be a mix of relief and uncertainty. 

Thousands of students each year will have to decide whether to utilise the clearing process. Often misunderstood and stigmatised, many view clearing as a last resort, a backup plan for those who didn’t secure their first-choice university. 

With A-level results day fast approaching in the UK (results are out on 15 August), students will be eager to find out whether they have achieved their first (or second) choice of university.

If you’re receiving your A-level results this year, you may have heard of clearing. This is the process students can go through if they don’t receive the grades they were expecting and miss out on their first and insurance places.  

Our guide to Ucas clearing explains what it is, how to apply and when, so you can use clearing to your advantage.

Sponsored content: created in partnership with the European School of Economics.

Ucas, the central application platform for applying to university in the UK, has removed the personal statement from its application process.

The personal statement is currently one of the components making up the application form for applying to universities in the UK. This is in the form of a 4,000-character essay written by students – an opportunity to explain their motivations for studying their chosen course and the university they are applying to. 

With some of the top universities in the world, Canada and the US are two of the top destinations for international students. Although they share a border, there are some differences in how university life takes place in each country. Canada has a simpler application process, but the US has more universities to choose from.

We have compiled all the information together to explain the application process, the education system, grading, accommodation, tuition fees and student life in each country.