Useful information from University of Exeter

There are lots of helpful websites available, covering Higher Education courses & open days, gap years, Student Finance and Oxbridge applications. Here is a selection of some of the best sites:

 

What do to next?

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/home This website offers information about what you need to do to get the career you want. Very useful if you have a career in mind and don’t know how to get there.

https://www.brightknowledge.org/ This website aims to inspire, guide and support individuals to make informed choices. Here you’ll find lots of information about deciding whether to go to university or not.

 

Which Course? Where?

https://www.ucas.com/ – This is the best place to start. The UCAS website includes a course search engine, handy tips for students & parents, links to institution websites and Apply 2015 itself.

 

https://www.hotcourses.com/ Career change? New hobby? Going to uni? With over a million courses, Hot Courses can help you find whatever you’re looking for. this website also has a funding search for grants from charities and trusts.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/education/universityguide  – The Guardian’s own dedicated Higher Education microsite. It consists of a course search engine, league tables, advice for students and links to relevant news articles & blogs on The Guardian’s site.

 

http://www.oxbridgeapplications.com/– This is an invaluable resource for students thinking of applying to Oxford or Cambridge. There is a wide range of free resources available through the website, recent news and course information – on top of that, you can register to receive emails with advice and extra resources.

 

https://unistats.ac.uk/ – Unistats is the UK’s official site for comparing Higher Education course data. As well as the normal search by course or institution, you can search by student satisfaction, continuation and the percentage of graduates now in a professional or managerial post. Or even if any of the course is available in Welsh!

 

https://university.which.co.uk/ – This is another search engine style website. In addition to course and university information, it also has a section called ‘Get Advice’ – this covers everything from personal statements and crime rates in university cities, to UCAS points and student bills. Current students and graduates have also provided information that could be helpful, such as everyday student expenses and the lowdown on facilities & accommodation at particular institutions.

 

https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/ – This website covers both applying for university and what to do afterwards. There are sections providing help for parents, advice on student house-hunting and the latest league tables – amongst other things.

 

Open Days

https://www.opendays.com/ – As the name suggests, OpenDays.com is the best place to find out the latest open days for a range of universities. You can search by date or by university, and even sign up to ‘My Open Days’ to making booking a place on an open day much easier.

 

https://www.unitasterdays.com/ – Use this website to find out about the latest university events (not just open days) that you could attend. It is aimed towards students, teachers and careers advisors, so not everything will be relevant to you – however it is a good start, and you can always register for email alerts (for particular subject areas and in a certain area of the country).

 

Student Finance

https://www.gov.uk/student-finance – Here you will find the basics about Student Finance, under six separate headings (Overview, Loans and Grants, Extra Help, Eligibility, Repayments and Further Information). There are also links from here to the login portal, Student Finance Calculator and how to apply.

 

https://www.slc.co.uk/– The Student Loans Company website provides further information about Student Finance, in particular repayments and official statistics.

 

Gap Year?

https://www.prospects.ac.uk/jobs-and-work-experience/gap-year – If you are thinking of taking a gap year, this website will help you work out your options (travelling, working, volunteering). It also weighs up the pros & cons of taking a gap year.

 

https://www.gapyear.com/ – This website is useful if you have decided that you are definitely having a gap year, but not yet certain on what to do. It has a gap year search engine, top offers and related news.

Or if in doubt, just Google some key terms and go from there!