How to choose a course through Clearing

How to find a course in Clearing

Plan ahead for the possibility of Clearing using these five simple steps. They will help you to choose potential courses and give you peace of mind, whatever happens on A-level results day.

Consider what you’re really interested in

Go through your A-level, BTEC or other course notes and write down topics you were really enthusiastic or curious about. You may well find a degree course that focuses just on that area of study.

Think about what interests you more generally – forget about what you’re studying for a moment. What interests you when you hear the news or watch a documentary? What current affairs capture your attention, or what scientific advancements have made you think ‘wow’? Your interests are a good guide to what to apply to study.

Look beyond the title of courses in Clearing

Don’t rule out an entire subject because you didn’t particularly enjoy it at school. And don’t assume you’ll enjoy a course just because you like the equivalent A-level course.

Courses with the same title at different universities can be completely different. You need to check what they cover and what options they may offer.

You don’t need to contact the universities offering courses - most will explain their courses on their website. Clearing courses for 2023 entry will start to be advertised from July 2023.

University courses are made up of course units, and depending on the subject, these can be compulsory or optional.

When considering courses, look at the detail of the course content and see what you’ll actually learn about, and how much choice you’ll have.

Some courses have a wide variety of units to choose from, so you can tailor them to your personal interests, while others – particularly professionally-focused programmes – have more set programmes of study.

Think about how you like to learn

How courses are taught varies hugely.

It depends on whether you’ll be learning practical or analytical skills, or whether you need to learn how to use specialist equipment or gain professional experience.

Some are more guided, and others require you to take more initiative and manage your own time.

Some courses consist of a combination of large lectures and smaller discussion groups or seminars, with the majority of your time spent reading and studying on your own. 

Others consist of busy timetables with most of your days filled with lab work, practical sessions or placements.

Some courses also have options of taking a year-long industry placement and some offer study abroad. All study abroad opportunities are subject to any international travel restrictions and/or availability.

Picture yourself 10 years from now. Think career

Forget Clearing 2023. Take a moment to think about where you’d like to be in 5-10 years.

Do you know what sort of career you’d like to have? If so, check whether employers require or prefer certain degree subjects, and then see if the entry requirements are a good match for you. If the entry requirements aren’t right for you, do a bit of research into related professions to see if the criteria are more flexible.

You might not know what you want to do in the future – and that’s OK! Look at a range of non-vocational courses – the transferrable skills you’ll gain will set you up for a huge range of possible paths when you graduate.

Where do you want to live?

The course is the most important thing to consider, but it comes as part of a package – along with the whole university experience.

Make sure you do your research into the city or campus where you’ll study, socialise, and for many of you, live.

Do you get excited by the idea of a big bustling city, or would you prefer to be part of a smaller academic community?

Do you want to be near home or far from home? Can you see yourself visiting cultural institutions or taking part in city-wide festivals or big sports events. Or are you more focused on student-led clubs and societies?

Read more about living and studying in Manchester on our Campus life pages.