UCL student Joseph Hurley shares their advice making your undergraduate firm and insurance on UCAS.

Hey, welcome to the world of university applications! I’m Joe, and if you’re like me, then you’re probably in that awkward stage of choosing between uni offers.

You may have already started to think about what factors to consider when making choices for your firm and insurance university. As someone who has applied to universities via UCAS in the 2021-2022 cycle, I can say that choosing both your firm and insurance on UCAS is a difficult decision- so this blog will hopefully give you advice about the things I considered to choose my first and second-choice universities.

Unlike myself, since the pandemic has (more or less) blown over, visiting universities during open days has become possible for prospective students, and is easily one of the best ways to choose between offers. This can give you a sense of the vibe at a university or the city it’s located in, as well as giving you the opportunity to meet current students/staff. Whether you’re interested in learning more about your course content or concerned about accommodation, an open day will be able to iron out any doubts a prospective student may have. Even when I “went” to virtual open days for my chosen unis last year, I found it really helpful to learn about things like the style of teaching and the specific pros of going to one university over another.

The other most important factor to consider is the difference between the grade requirements of your firm and insurance university. I think this varies a lot depending on how confident you feel about the predicted grades you submitted in your application in comparison to the strictness of the offer you receive. As a general rule of thumb, I’d make sure that whichever university you choose as your insurance, you choose one that has requirements that are just one or two grades lower than your firm university’s requirements- unless you prefer a university with lower requirements. This should give you enough room for error on results day (in the unlikely case that exams don’t go as planned) if you miss the requirements for your firm offer.

I applied to universities including UCL, Exeter, Bath and Surrey to study Philosophy and Spanish during my A-Levels. I firmed UCL after visiting it in person because the busy atmosphere on campus and the architecture appealed a lot to me, then I chose Exeter as my insurance because its requirements were slightly lower (I needed grades AAA for UCL and AAB for Exeter). This isn’t to say I didn’t like Exeter though, it also appealed to me a lot as a social and student-friendly city where plenty of students were out enjoying the nightlife.

I hope this helps reduce any stress about choosing between universities! If you’re still in doubt, you can always ask your friends/family/teachers as well as doing your own research.

Best of luck!