Priestley will help you make the successful transitions from high school to college and from college to university. For those of you planning to study a degree there are things to consider even before you start at Priestley.
Before Priestley
Even before you start studying at Priestley you should consider your options carefully to ensure the right opportunities are available to you after college. Use Informed Choices to help you understand which subjects open up different degrees, particularly at Russell Group universities > Informed Choices
Student Finance
For detailed information about the financial support available to students go to Student Finance
Going to university or college is one of the biggest investments you can make. Most students do not need to pay any tuition fees up-front, as they could be eligible for a Tuition Fee Loan.
There are also grants and loans to help with living costs, such as rent, food, books, transport and entertainment. It is likely that different institutions will charge different fees for similarly titled courses.
Therefore it is important that you are clear on how much you will be paying for the course prior to submitting an application. You can start by viewing these videos
For more information about Student Loans and to apply go to > Gov.UK
Save the Student provides free, impartial advice to students on how to make their money go further. The website originated in response to the growing costs of university in the UK. The site provides free, impartial advice to students on how to make their money go further.
You can find out more here > Save the Student
Preparing a Personal Statement
As part of the UCAS application process students are asked to complete a personal statement, explaining why they are a good candidate for their chosen course.
At Priestley we will help you with your personal statements to ensure you make the strongest application possible.
Many people find it difficult to write about themselves, particularly their own strengths, so if you want to get a head start you can take a look at this useful guide to help make a great personal statement
Staffordshire University have also provided the following guidance.
Supporting UCAS applications from former students
As a college we make every effort to support our former students with any university application made in the years immediately after completing your studies. This support can take one of two forms;
- Individual advice and guidance from one of our qualified and experienced Careers Advisers covering issues such as choosing courses, writing your ‘Personal Statement’ and filling in your UCAS form.
- Providing a reference to support your UCAS application.
Because of the pressures of time and the demands of our current students, we ask any former students who want individual advice and guidance regarding their UCAS application to contact the Careers Team before November 30th.
If you are clear about the decisions you have to make and confident about filling in your UCAS form, so simply require a reference to support your UCAS application. Please contact the Careers Team before December 7th.
Please do not contact your former personal tutor directly, as all reference requests are dealt with by the Careers Team and doing so may delay your application reaching UCAS.
Parents' Guide to university
The Parents’ Guide to University has been produced by UniTasterDays.com in collaboration with HELOA – to help you, as a parent or guardian, to support your young person with their higher education decisions.
Editorial has been provided by over 40 colleagues at universities and schools and colleges throughout the UK. On topics including student finance, university applications, university events, student wellbeing and more.