Filling in your UCAS Undergraduate application

What do admission tutors look for in your application?

• qualifications
• content of written personal statement displaying passion for the subject area, while demonstrating motivation, enthusiasm, and the skills and experiences that'll enable you to succeed at university
• content of reference
• knowledge of, and commitment to, the subject discipline
• good attitude to learning and personal development
• ability to articulate yourself fluently and accurately in writing – it's a sign of what's to come for tutors

Sign up for the UCAS Hub

Register in the UCAS Hub and complete the registration questions – confirming the year you want to start your studies and that you're interested in ‘undergraduate’ level of study.

You’ll then be taken to your UCAS Hub dashboard, where you’ll see a tile called ‘your application’. Simply click ‘Start’ to begin.

See below for a step-by-step guide on each section.

Do I need a buzzword?

Once you have registered, completed the onboarding steps and created your Hub account, you can then add your buzzword once you start your application to link your self to your school or centre.

Where do I enter my buzzword?

1. Personal details

2. Nationality details

Here you can fill in your where you were born and your nationality. You can submit up to two nationalities in case you have dual citizenship. 

(Remember your nationality and ethnicity aren’t the same. You can add your ethnicity to the “more about you” section)

If you weren’t born in the UK, you’ll be asked when you first entered the country. If you’re nationality isn’t a British citizen, you’ll be asked about your status, such as:

• Whether you have settled, or pre-settled status  
• If you need a student visa  
• Whether you’ve previously had a visa before  
• Your immigration status  
• When your course starts (and ends)

Can’t remember the exact dates? Download the HMRC app to get your employment history. 

3. Where you live

4. Contact details

Here you can input your phone number, email address, and postal address.  

You’ll also be able to ‘nominate’ access, allowing someone else (a family member or teacher for example) to talk to us and manage your application on your behalf. 

Note: While a nominated person can contact us to discuss your application. If you're applying independently, it'll be your responsibility to send your own application upon completion.  

5. Supporting information

This is where you can add additional information about whether you, or a parent or spouse, has lived and worked in the EU, EEA, or Switzerland.  

6. Finance and funding

Use this section to tell us about how you expect to pay for your studies.  

Most applicants from the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, and those eligible EU students under the EU Settlement Scheme will be in the category UK, ChI, loM, or EU student finance.

You’ll also be asked to say which local authority will assess your tuition fees. (This would is who you/your parents pay council tax to).

Find more information on student finance

7. Diversity and inclusion

Here we ask about some personal details about:  

• Ethnicity  
• Religious beliefs  
• Sexual orientation  
• Care support information
• Parental information, such as their education level and occupation

Please note, you do not need to answer these questions to submit your application. 

8. More about you

You'll only see this section if you have a UK home address.

This section is for you to let us know about any extra supporting information you’d like to include on your application. (Nothing in this section is used to decide if you will be placed at your university it is purely to make everyone aware of any additional support you may need)

Some of the things to include are:

• Mental health conditions or long-term illnesses
• Estranged from parents  
• Caring responsibilities  
• Parenting responsibilities
• Refugee status
• Parent or carer who serves in the armed forces
• Whether you’ve served in the armed forces
• If you’re in receipt of free school meals  

9. Education

Please fill in your current educational qualifications. This includes GCSEs, A Levels and BTECs for UK applicants, or their equivalents in other countries from high school or college onwards.

You must enter all your qualifications from secondary education onwards, which includes any previous and current academic study, qualifications you have completed, qualifications with an unsuccessful grade, or qualifications where you're still awaiting results. 

This helps universities and colleges to understand if you meet their entry requirements. Sometimes a university or college will make you an offer even if you don’t meet the exact grades they're asking for. 

If you have any questions about entry requirements, speak to the university/college before you apply. 

It's important that the qualifications you enter are the same as on your certificates, or the same course name as what you're completing now (if applicable).

When filling this section in, you can select ‘all qualifications’ and search for your specific qualification. (when searching for your courses remember less is more!  Searching for “BTEC Extended Diploma” will find your qualification easier than searching for “BTEC LEVEL 3 Extended Diploma in sport”)

International students

This is where you can add your English Language Test (ELT) numbers. 

If you have a statement of comparability for an international qualification to a UK equivalent, it would be the name of your international qualification that you add to this section.  

10. Employment

Simply add any of your previous employment details here. You’ll need the company name, address, and dates of employment.  

Note: This section is just for "paid" work experiences, and not voluntary work.

11. Extra activities

You can boost your application by adding any additional courses, summer schools, taste courses etc. 

12. Personal statement

13. References

Adding choices

On your application overview you can add up to five choices – these can be the same or different courses from the same or different university or college.  

You’ll need:  

• The university or college name  
• The course and/or course code (Course code for reference, please do not try to search for your course code search using the course title)
• The campus location  
• When you’re planning to start your course
• If you’re planning to start at a different entry point (e.g. from second year)  
• If you plan to live at home while studying or not 

Extra information

There are some key points to note:

1. You must complete all mandatory questions and you can’t skip any sections. These must all be complete before your application can be sent. But you don’t have to do it all at once – sign in and save your progress at any time.  
2. Make sure your email address is always up-to-date – so you don’t miss important updates on your application. You can change your email address at any time, but only your primary email address will receive email communications from UCAS and your chosen universities and colleges.
3. We’ll ask for your residency status – if you’re from outside the UK and need clarification on this, visit the UKCISA website for detailed information.
4. There are questions specifically for UK students – these are about your ethnic origin and occupational background. These are mandatory questions used for monitoring purposes. This information will only be shared with universities and colleges after you have secured a place and will not influence any decision regarding your application.
5. We ask for information about personal circumstances – such as your parental education, if you’ve been in care, or involved in widening participation activities, so universities and colleges can form a more complete understanding of you as an individual. While this information is optional, it can help universities and colleges better understand your background, and provide support.
6. If you’re applying with the support of a school and you didn’t enter your buzzword during registration – you can do this at any time from your application. This will link your application to your school or college, so they can track your progress and provide support, including adding your reference.
7. We ask how you plan to fund your studies – but we do not manage student finance applications. Find out more about funding and finance.
8. You can give a parent, guardian, or adviser nominated access – if you'd like them to be able to speak to us on your behalf. We'll be able to discuss your application with them, but for security reasons, we can't share your login details (for example, if you need to change your password).