How to... fill in your UCAS application

Learning Centre
How to...
fill in your UCAS
application
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© Coleg Gwent Learning Advisors 2012
You can find this document at:
http://moodle.coleggwent.ac.uk … Learning Centre Online
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Apply
Apply is the UCAS application system. It allows you to apply online
for full time undergraduate courses at UK universities and colleges.
Before you apply
You need to know what you want to study and where you want to
study. You also need to have details of qualifications you have
already gained, plus your work history, if applicable.
Overview
You are asked to complete the following sections on Apply:
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Registration
Personal details
Choices
Education
Employment
Statement
You must mark every section as complete before sending your
application to UCAS.
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Introduction
You need to register with UCAS to use Apply. In this section you
give personal details such as your name, address and date of birth.
You must read and accept the terms and conditions for using Apply.
If any of your personal details change whilst completing the
application, you are able to amend them.
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You decide on your own password which is used to log in to
Apply.
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You need to note four responses to security questions.
You will need these if you forget your log in details or if you
phone the Customer Service Unit.
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The registration process generates your username.
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You need the college buzzword so that your application is
linked to the college.
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At the final stage of registration you are given a personal ID
number.
Registration takes about 15 minutes.
How to access the UCAS website
You can access the UCAS website from any computer that is
connected to the Internet. Connect to the Internet, go to:
http://www.ucas.ac.uk
and the UCAS home page is displayed.
Select Apply on the left hand side of the page.
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This takes you to Apply.
Click on
Register/Log in to use Apply 2012
This takes you to the Log in page.
If you have already registered, go to page 11 of this guide and log in
now.
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How to register
If you have not
registered yet,
select
The Register: Welcome note appears. Read the information on this page,
then click
at the bottom of the note.
Read the Terms & Conditions for the use of Apply. Tick the box at
the bottom of the page to accept them.
Then click
The Register: Initial details registration page appears.
Fill in your details
and select
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The Register: Previous contact with UCAS page appears.
Select the option that applies
to you, then click on
The screen Register: Postal address loads.
Select the correct option
and click on
The next screen is Register: Your postcode.
Enter your house
number and postcode.
Click
once and
select the correct address.
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This screen then appears:
Enter your telephone number, mobile number and your email
address. Make sure you can access this email address in college.
The mailings section is for marketing purposes. You do not have to
tick a box; all information will come by post. Click
The next screen is Register: Security
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Password – you choose the password yourself and you must
remember it. The password must be between 6 and 14 characters
long. It must contain at least 1 number and 1 letter.
Security questions and responses – you must choose four
unique security questions and your own correct answers. UCAS will
use one or more of these questions chosen at random to identify
you if you lose or forget your password.
Note: Do not use passwords or answers which might cause offence.
It is important for you to be able to remember your password and
answers to questions.
When this page is completed click
This takes you to the Register: Success page.
You are given your username now. WRITE IT DOWN.
Note: It is important for you to write down your username at this
point as it will not be displayed later.
When you have written down your username, select
at the bottom of the page. This displays the
Initial UCAS questions: How are you applying? screen:
Select Through my school/college and click
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This then takes you to the
Initial UCAS questions: How are you applying? buzzword screen:
The buzzword is supplied by college/your tutor and is case
sensitive. Take care to type in the buzzword exactly as supplied.
Click
Coleg Gwent, Newport Centre is displayed. Click Yes to confirm and
then select
Select the name of your Tutor/application group from the drop down
menu and then click
When the Welcome screen and personal ID number page appears,
write down your personal ID number.
Click on the link to verify your email address.
You are now registered.
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Logging in
Connect to the Internet and go to the UCAS homepage at:
http://www.ucas.ac.uk
Select Apply on the left hand side of the page.
This takes you to Apply:
Click on
Register/Log in to use Apply 2012
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This takes you to the Log in page. Fill in Username and Password and
click
The welcome screen appears after logging in to Apply.
The main sections of the application are listed along the left hand
side of the page.
Logging out
Ensure that you log out by clicking on the
tab at the top of
the page when you have finished inputting data. If you do not log
out properly, information can be lost.
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Completing the application
You are asked to complete the following sections on Apply:
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Registration
Personal details
Choices
Education
Employment
Statement
Note: You are able to amend any information on the form up to the
point when you pay UCAS. Do not pay until your tutor tells you to.
You can fill in the sections in any order. You do not have to
complete one section before moving onto another.
Compulsory fields are marked with an asterisk (*). Before leaving
any section, click ‘save’ to ensure that all of your information is
saved. Once you have completed all compulsory fields, click ‘section
completed’ and then ‘save’.
As you finish each section, a red tick appears in the box alongside
that section. If a section is part finished, three green dots are
displayed in the box. The box remains empty if you have not started
the section. You have to mark every section as complete before
sending your application to UCAS.
A help screen is available for each page
you view.
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Personal details
Some of this section is automatically filled in during registration.
You must check that all of your personal details are correct. You
also have to complete further information required by universities
and colleges, such as nationality, residential status and an outline of
any disabilities. You are required to verify your email address.
Choices
In this section you enter course codes and institution codes for the
universities and colleges to which you are applying. Click on ‘see
list’ next to the institution/course/campus code to generate a list of
all codes. The choices can be entered in any order; there is no
preference order as Apply stores the choices in random order. For
each choice you have to state whether you are going to be living at
home or in student accommodation and if you are applying for
deferred entry. It is very important that you check the entry very
carefully before marking this section as complete.
Education
UCAS needs to know where you have studied and which
qualifications you are taking or have already taken. First enter the
schools’ and colleges’ details (up to ten schools/colleges), then list
your qualifications. Make sure that all your relevant qualifications
are included; those you have already completed and those you are
currently studying. Dates must be entered accurately for each
institution otherwise you are unable to proceed. Coleg Gwent, City
of Newport Campus centre number is 68365.
Employment
Fill in details of your work history and employers. If you have not
had any jobs, you can leave this section blank, but it still needs to
be marked as complete in order to continue with your application.
You can add details of up to five employers.
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Statement
You are asked to complete a personal statement, which tells the
universities and colleges why you are applying for a course and why
they should select you as a student.
For more information on writing a personal statement, it is essential
to follow the advice provided by UCAS on their Personal statement
page.
You can also pick up a free copy of the Learning Centre guide, ‘How
to…. write your UCAS personal statement’ from the Learning Centre.
You can also download it at home or in college from Learning Centre
Online on Moodle.
Click here for the ‘How to…’ guides.
Produce the statement in MS Word as Apply does not have a spell
check facility and will time out after 35 minutes of inactivity.
Once you have written your personal statement, ask your tutor to
check it for both content and accuracy. Don’t forget that you can
book an appointment with a Learning Advisor to check the spelling
and grammar in your final draft.
Note: Do not exceed 4000 characters, including spaces. Do not
exceed 47 lines of text.
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To load your personal statement into Apply:
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open your completed, proofread personal statement in Word
highlight the document – use ‘Control A’
click on the ‘Copy’ icon
minimise Word
log into Apply
click on ‘Statement’
click in the Personal statement box
click the right mouse button
click on ‘Paste’
your personal statement appears in the box
click on ‘Save’ before doing any final editing
click on ‘Preview’ and check the number of lines and characters
to make final changes use ‘Edit’
make sure you save all changes
produce a printout of the statement for your tutor to approve
when you are sure that the statement is approved and
complete, tick the ‘section completed’ box.
Declaration
Once each section has been marked as complete and only when
your form has been approved by your tutor, you are asked to
agree to the declaration. Ensure that you read the declaration
carefully and, once you have agreed to its terms, move on to the
payment section.
Pay and send
Note: Do not do this until instructed to do so by your tutor.
You are able to amend any information on the form up to the point
when the payment is made.
The Pay/Send link is available as soon as the application is
complete.
This screen does not appear if you are applying through a
school or college that has an alternative payment
arrangement with UCAS. Otherwise, pay the application fee
online using a credit or debit card. After this section is complete,
the application is sent to your referee.
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Reference
The application requires a reference from a tutor or other
professional who knows you well enough to write about your
suitability for the course. The completed form is viewed by the
referee who inserts the reference. When the form has been checked
and approved by the Head of Learner Services it is sent to UCAS.
View all details
You are able to produce printouts throughout the application
process so that you and/or your tutor can check the application.
Click on ‘View all details’ to display everything completed so far.
Options/Opsiynau
This gives you the opportunity to change your password and
security questions/answers. You may also alter the default language
(English/Welsh) that is presented when you enter the site.
Note: Please see your tutor if you have any questions or problems.
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You can find this document at:
http://moodle.coleggwent.ac.uk … Learning Centre Online
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© Coleg Gwent Learning Advisors 2012
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