Event speakers:

Leon Harris, Regional Education Liaison Officer (East and West Midlands) at the University of Hertfordshire.

Melissa Grindon, Creative Projects Officer at Liverpool Hope University.

Ruth Boyce, School & College Development Officer at the University of Winchester.

Event Summary

This webinar is hosted by Jon Cheek, the Founder and Director of UniTasterDays who touches upon the guidance and help provided to students to help them make good choices when considering university. This is followed by three guest speakers who each talk about different aspects of university.

Session 1: How to choose a university
The first guest speaker is Leon Harris, the Regional Education Liaison Officer (East and West Midlands) at the University of Hertfordshire. There are over 50,000 courses to choose from on UCAS and Leon speaks about how to choose the right course and the right university. To do this you need to thoroughly research and Leon goes through the many ways you can do this ranging from reading university prospectuses to attending exhibitions and higher education fairs. He also explains what league tables are and speaks about a system online which determines how universities maintain their quality standard which will help you narrow your choices. It is essential to know what you want to get out of university before deciding whether to study at a campus or city university, suggests Leon. He touches on the different experiences you will gain at both types of universities before ending off on things to consider if you will be living away or commuting to university.

Session 2: Studying at a campus university
The second guest speaker is Melissa Grindon, the Creative Projects Officer at Liverpool Hope University. She explains what a campus university is and the type of facilities that are available. Life on a campus university is different to a city university with both having advantages and disadvantages. Melissa speaks about the pros and cons of studying at a campus university from travel to social life. She ends with mentioning important factors to consider when deciding if a campus university is for you.

Session 3: What happens on results day
The third guest speaker is Ruth Boyce, the School and College Development Officer at the University of Winchester. She speaks on what happens once you get your results and how you will be notified of your place at university. Once you have your results, any queries you have will need to be discussed with your sixth form and college, explains Ruth. She talks about when UCAS track will update on the day of your results and how to check your application status.. Ruth discusses the variety of options you can explore on UCAS ranging from changing your course to clearing. She ends by explaining how you can prepare for results day if things do not go to plan.

Session summary from Rubaya Zaman, a final year English Literature student at the University of Birmingham.