Year 12 Progression Evening

Year 12 Progression Evening

Year 12 Progression Evening

Apprenticeships post -18: Polly Wiggins

Applying to University: University of South Wales: Oliver Stacey

The research and application timeline: Helen Buttery

Student Finance: Polly Wiggins

Life After Sixth FormHigher and Degree Apprenticeships

What are apprenticeships?• Work and gain nationally recognised qualifications

• Levels 2-7 (4 or above is a higher apprenticeship)

• Full-time (minimum 30 hours a week)

• Takes 1-5 years (usually)

• 80% work and 20% study

• Pay and entry requirements vary a lot - can be very competitive

• Each apprenticeship is unique

• Sometimes called school leaver schemes/sponsored degrees

• Can’t always go straight onto a higher level apprenticeship

Degree or Higher?

HNC/HND Level 4 Higher

Foundation Degree Level 5 Higher or Degree

Bachelor’s Degree Level 6 Higher or Degree

Master’s Degree Level 7 Higher or Degree

Why do an apprenticeship?• Work experience

• Contacts

• Get paid!

• Free qualifications

• Learn in a real-world setting

BUT…

• Not every subject/job

• More specialised/vocational

• Different lifestyle to university

What sort of industries?• Theoretically every industry, but NOT every job

• Most frequently see the following types of vacancy:

- Digital technology

- Management

- Accountancy & taxation

- Engineering & surveying

- Economics & financial services

- Health & science

(data courtesy of Alan Bullock Careers)

Apprenticeship hunting

• Quite different from UCAS

• Look broadly

• Be flexible

• Apply to as many as possible

• Put effort into your applications

• Prepare well for interviews

• You may need to be patient…

• You can apply to uni as well!

Job hunting procedure

1. Find a suitable opportunity

2. Apply online (CV, covering letter, application form)

3. Complete online tests

4. Phone or online interview

5. Face-to-face interviews, assessment activities, tests

6. Await results (anxiously)…

7. Repeat as necessary!

Employability skills

• ‘Attitude and Aptitude’

• Core set of skills valued across industry (transferable)

• Time management

• Self-motivation

• Organising and planning

• Communication and people skills

• Also consider job (or industry) specific skills

• Think about how you come across

Develop your employability skills

• Identify your weaknesses

• Target your needs

• Seek out opportunities

• Be creative in your thinking

• Fill in any experience gaps (do more!)

• Keep notes! Use a log to track your skills & evidence

– refer to specific examples when you’re applying

Find out more…

Unifrog

Find an apprenticeship

UCAS apprenticeship jobs

Rate my apprenticeship

pollywiggins.com/articles

polly.wiggins@gmail.com

APPRENTICESHIPS

EMPLOYMENT

UNIVERSITY• Variety of higher education qualifications• Work placement opportunities• Spend time studying abroad• Different methods of learning and

assessment

DEGREE APPRENTICESHIPS• Achieve a degree while gaining work experience• Paid employees while on the programme• Some time is spent at university• Fairly new, but vacancies are growing

• Some young people go straight into employment• Helps build confidence and develop CV• Provide professional and business networking

opportunities

• Paid employees who study while they areworking

• Involves on the job training combined with someclass-room based lessons

• Gain experience and learn skills they need for theindustry they have chosen

Future options

?

Graduates earn £10,000 more per

year than the average non-

graduate True or False?

What do you think is the Average Graduate

starting Salary?A) 16 – 18,000B) 19 – 22,000C) 25 – 28,000

Develop your skills and

knowledge

New experiences

and opportunities

Improved career prospects

Increasing demand from

employers, with an estimated 11% rise

in graduate vacancies

Pursue a passion

Why higher education?

Preparing to apply

Preparing to apply

Online research Experiential research

Preparing to apply

Extra-curricular

Part-time work

Voluntary work

Work experience

Applying through UCAS

• Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS)

• Responsible for managing applications to HE courses in the UK

• Provides unbiased advice, guidance and training to students, parents,

teachers and advisers

• Supports students to make informed decisions about their future

• Does not suggest courses or universities

• Does not make decisions on applications or make offers to HE courses

50,000 courses available at 300+ HE institutions

• 5 in Northern Ireland

• 20 in Wales

• 22 in Scotland

• 334 in England

• 5 in mainland Europe

Applying through UCAS

The UCAS Cycle

UCAS key facts

It costs £20 for one choice, and £25 for up to five choices

Applications are completed via the online UCAS Apply system (www.ucas.com/apply)

Maximum of 5 choices, no more than 4 choices in medicine, dentistry or veterinary & nomore than one course at either the University of Oxford or Cambridge

All choices are invisible, universities are not informed about a students’ other choices

?

Personal statement

47 lines and 4000

characters

One personal statement for

all choices

Interview selection and competitive

courses

Only section applicant has

total control over

No spelling or grammar check

Is an opportunity for the applicant to articulate why they want to study a particular course, or subject, and what

skills and experience they possess that show they passion for that chosen field.

Decisions

Universities will review the:

Personal statement

Qualifications

Reference

They may ask applicants to attend an:

Interview

Audition

Admissions test

Universities will then make one of the following decisions:

Unconditional

Conditional

Unsuccessful

Replying to offers

Firm

Insurance

Firm acceptance - the first choice

If it’s an unconditional offer the place the applicant has the place. If

it’s conditional and the applicant meets the conditions of this offer

they will be placed here

Insurance acceptance – the back-up choice

Applicants only only attend their insurance choice course if

they don't meet the conditions of their firm choice, but you

do meet the conditions of their insurance.

Other options

Placed with firm choice, and did better than conditional offer.

Register in Track, then find another university or college. The

new institution adjusts the record.

(up to five days in August)

Apply after 30 June, receive no offers, decline all offers,

or not met conditions. Find vacancies from 6 July, and

add one choice via Track.

(6 Jul – Oct)

Clearing

Adjustment

Results dayApplicants can log on to UCAS Track from 8:00am to see if they have been placed with their firm choice. They cannot view their A level results.

If an applicant meets the conditions of their firm choice the university must make their offer unconditional. They must then accept this on track once it is confirmed.

If an applicant is not accepted by their firm choice, but meet the conditions of their insurance choice, they will automatically become unconditional with their insurance choice

Applicants are still able to change their mind and can ask to be released into clearing

Prepare for plan B

Gap year or deferred offer

Change of course or university

Employment

Student Finance

Application deadline is mid

May

Applications are

completed online

Applications open in March Students can

apply without an offer to

study

Start researching

support available

For more information visit: www.gov.uk/student-finance

What percentage student living costs does the average student loan cover?A) 67%B) 76%C) 96%

Choosing where to live

Living at home

Living in private housing

Living in halls

• Many choose this option to save money or due to family

commitments

• Still eligible for a maintenance loan, but will receive less

money

• Commuting can sometimes be time consuming or costly

• University and private halls available

• Available on campus or close proximity to campuses

• Most common accommodation includes ensuite rooms with

shared kitchen

• Own room with shared kitchen, bathroom and lounge

• Most common option for second and third year students

What percentage of students live

at home?

Higher or Lower the average cost of University halls is

£120 per week

Preparing to go

To do list

• Encourage them to start budgeting suitably

• Develop their cooking skills

• Provide a laundry tutorial

• Open a student bank account

• Check whether bills are covered in the cost of

accommodation

• Confirm whether a TV license is required

• Join university fresher's Facebook groups

• Research mentoring or ‘buddy’ schemes at the university

What to take

• Look at the things the university halls will provide

• Try and contact flatmates before moving in

• Don’t pack an entire wardrobe• It’s not the end of the world if

something’s forgotten!

Starting university

Visit www.southwales

.ac.uk/parents for further advice

and guidance

Check the entry criteria for course choices

Keep a list of key deadlines, i.e. UCAS, finance, accommodation

Assist with course and university research

Be a positive sounding board

Next steps

Support with open day attendance

Proof read personal statement drafts

Apply for finance before the deadline, and research bursaries/scholarships

Encourage work/voluntary experience

Start talking about future options

Open days 2020

Search: university of south wales

Book your place: southwales.ac.uk/opendays

Saturday 28th March

Saturday 4th July

Thank you for listeningDo you have any questions?

What is happening in school?

Monday 9th March-Friday 13th March: Work shadowing week

Thursday April 23rd: Year 12 Parents Evening

Friday 24th April: UCAS Convention trip. Universities and apprenticeship employers will be at the national convention. Students will have the chance to speak to representatives, collect information and attend break out talks.

Monday 22nd June-Friday 26th June: Prediction exams

July 6th: Progression Day: Personal statements, CVs, apprenticeship registration, LNAT, UCAT/BMAT, Oxbridge, Arts & Architecture workshops

What is happening in school?

University applications:

15th July: Teaching staff subject references

UCAS applications open in early September

15th October: Application deadline for Oxford, Cambridge, Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry

10th December: Internal application deadline

15th January: Final UCAS deadline

What is happening in school?

Apprenticeship applications:

15th July: Teaching staff subject references

Early February 2021: Swindon JobFest

References completed by mentor or Head of Year on request

Applications are ongoing depending on the intended start date, some companies have a long recruitment process. February-May 2021 will be the busiest recruitment time

What if…….

• You change your mind?

• You don’t know what to apply for?

• You don’t get any offers?

• You want to defer your entry to university?

• You aren’t sure you want to go to university?

• You decide to apply to university and an apprenticeship?

Useful websiteshttps://www.opendays.com/ For information about when and where universities are holding open days

http://www.careerfinder.ucas.com/jobs/apprenticeship UCAS also has information about apprenticeships

http://www.gov.uk/apply-apprenticeship Alternatives to university

http://www.notgoingtouni.co.uk Alternatives to university

http://www.prospects.ac.uk/careers-advice/what-can-i-do-with-my-degree Graduate careers advice

http://www.which.co.uk/University General university advice

Unifrog• http://www.unifrog.org

• The school subscribes to the online careers platform unifrog which has a wide range of uses including CV and personal statement building tools, research tools for courses, degrees, careers and what if scenarios and each student has their own profile where they can shortlist, log activities and skills that will help to write an application.

• The mentor can see these pages when they are writing a reference, it is also where all subject references are completed.

Student Finance

Why do we have to pay?

• Graduate premium…

• Historically going to university makes you statistically more

likely to have a job and earn more money over your life

• Influenced by many factors: socio-economic background,

university attended, degree subject, gender, ethnicity,

school attended etc.

• But nobody knows what the future jobs market looks like…

so don’t just do it for the money!

How it works

• Tuition fee loan

• Maintenance loan

• Specific funding (Disabled Student Allowance etc.)

• Other income (work, bursaries, family support etc.)

Tuition Fee Loan

• Maximum annual tuition fee charges (current rate)…

• £9,250 for full-time UK courses at publicly funded unis

• £11,100 for accelerated courses

• The tuition fee loan covers the entire fees each year

• Also available for part-time or privately funded institutions

Maintenance Loan

• Help with the costs of living

• A portion is means-tested (based on household

income)

• Amount you get also depends on whether you are

living at home and whether your university is in

London or not

Maintenance Loan

Maintenance Loan Eligibility

• Dependent students are means tested on their parental

household residual income (the parent/s you live with

most)

• Household residual income = pre-tax income minus

pension contributions and allowances for other

dependent children

• Assessed on previous tax year

• Reapply each year

Other Income

• Special support grant (for students on benefits or with

dependents)

• Help with childcare costs

• Help for disabled students (DSA)

• Scholarships, bursaries and grants

• Part-time work

• Family support

• Student bank accounts & NUS

• Budgeting!

Scholarships and Bursaries

• Different universities have different offers

• Also available from different organisations

• May depend on individual circumstances (e.g. family

background, grades, subjects…)

• Fee waiver: reduction in fees charged

• Bursary/grant: cash or gift in kind (e.g. accommodation,

equipment…)

• Scholarship: cash or gift in kind often dependent on

grades or family background

Still with me?

Repayment

• No upfront fees! Repayment on the loan begins in the

April after you graduate IF you are over the repayment

threshold

• Current threshold: repay 9% of (pre-tax) earnings over

£25,725/year

• Debt wiped after 30 years (from starting repayment)

• The more you earn, the more you repay each month

(no-win, no-fee!)

Repayment examples

Interest Rates

• Based on RPI rate of inflation

• Whilst studying: RPI + 3%

• Under £25,725/year: RPI

• Earnings over £25,725/year up to £46, 305/year: rising

gradually from RPI to RPI + 3%

• Earnings over £46, 305/year: RPI + 3%

• Does NOT impact on the monthly repayment amount

Review

• The loan is repaid through the income tax system

• You only repay when you are over the income threshold

• The amount you repay increases with earnings

• Does not go on credit files

• Bigger borrowing does not increase monthly repayments

• Many people will repay for the full 30 years, but won’t

repay the full amount

Amount you owe

£ tuition fees +

£ maintenance

loan +

£ interest rates +

= £ Scary Amount!

Amount you pay

back each month

9% of everything

earned over

£25,725

The future?

• Augar review (2019)...

• Raise in repayments?

• Reduction in fees?

• Reintroduction of maintenance grants?

• Graduate contributions?

• Remains highly political!

Help?gov.uk/student-finance

moneysavingexpert.com/students

thestudentroom.co.uk

thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/university-tuition-fees/other-financial-support/university-bursaries-and-scholarships

thescholarshiphub.org.uk

APPLY EARLY!

Thinking about it as graduate contributions, rather than ‘debt’

Thank you for coming

Please feel free to stay and ask any questions