How to spend quarantine if you're in y13

Right now you should be receiving your offers from universities but then a little thing called a global pandemic happened and everything's been put on hold until everyone can work out just what to do.

At the minute the government has asked all universities to stop making unconditional offers or amending existing offers until at least April 20th. This is so you don't feel pressured to accept these already.

They've also extended the May offer deadline for undergraduate applicants and if you've sent in your UCAS application they should contact you via email with the new decision deadline date.

I know it's a little bit worrying with exams being cancelled and not a concrete answer on how the grades will be decided (It sounds like a mix of predicted grades, homework and other factors that will be discussed with your teachers) but remember that your applications aren't decided on your grades alone.

Along with your grades your university application is judged on your personal statement, reference, interview, portfolio, audition etc... depending on the course you're applying for. So not all is lost.

In regards to your application, you don't have to do anything different right now. Your application will still pass through the admissions process as usual as if you'd sat the exams. UCAS is still going to get your grades from the awarding bodies and pass these on to your chosen unis. It's just the ways that these grades are going to be calculated now is going to be different to usual. This means the universities or colleges you have applied to will treat your application fairly and consistently, in accordance to how they have been done in the past.

The UCAS site has a list for what offers you may have received already, or what you will receive, once the grades are passed on;

• If you’re holding a conditional offer – your offer will still become unconditional if you meet the offer conditions (usually related to your grades).
• If you’ve already accepted an unconditional offer – this does not affect your offer.
• If your application is unsuccessful – you can still use Extra and Clearing as thousands of other students before you have.
• If you’re applying as a private candidate – you need to get in touch directly with the universities or colleges you have applied to. Be assured they will consider your circumstances when they review your application.

Make sure you're keeping up to date with all the latest Covid-19 information in regards to your applications on the official UCAS page here.

If you want more advice and tips on living in the Covid age have a look at our daily minute motivations here that are uploaded to our Instagram account and subscribe to our youtube channel advice videos, and our monthly newsletter.

Author

ARON TENNANT is  the Talks and Editorial manager for Push. He is originally from South Yorkshire and has a BA in English Language and Literature from the University of Sheffield. He also has an MA in Creative Play and Screenwriting from City, University of London and came runner up in Nickelodeon's international screenwriting competition in 2018. Alongside Push he does screenplay work for independent production companies and is working on his own independent film projects