It’s that time of year again when the paths and futures of so many lives are decided – Clearing.
Students who don't make the Higher grades they need for a place at university are being advised not to panic as places are still available on a wide range of courses at the University of Aberdeen.
It can be a heart-breaking time for teenagers if their dreams of a university place are dashed because they didn't perform as well as they had hoped and Clearing can be a time of confusion and stress.
Students want to find a degree programme that's right for them but they have to do things quickly. Advice coming from the University of Aberdeen is – 'don't despair, our Clearing Team are on hand to help'.
If students don't quite match the grades for their conditional offer, they can still get a place at university or college through the Clearing system. Clearing isn't a mad scramble for a handful of places, nor is it a 'last-ditch' option – more than 40,000 people nationwide find a place through the system every year.
Lori Manders, Director of External Affairs, explains that Clearing can be a time of confusion and stress for many students and their parents. "Clearing is the last opportunity that prospective students will have of obtaining a place at university this year, so it is very important that they go about it in the right way," she said.
"It may be that the student will not have gained the necessary qualifications for the course in which they were originally interested, but may have done better in subjects that they had not really expected to. This may allow them to think about studying a totally different subject. That is what we are here to advise them on and the message that we want to get across is that our Clearing Team at the University of Aberdeen are ready to take their calls.
"In addition, during the week of the exam results, we will be manning a bespoke Clearing Information Centre on campus, for those that would like to pop in and speak individually to one of our academic selectors, support staff or our current students."
It isn't necessary to come in person to the University because the Clearing Team will be on hand seven days a week to answer calls from prospective students looking for a place in higher education. The Clearing hotline is open from 8.00am to 8.00pm, Monday to Friday and 9.00am to 5.00pm on Saturdays and Sundays. In many cases University staff will be able to provide an on the spot answer.
A special web site: www.abdn.ac.uk/clearing/ is available with up-to-the-minute advice and information on course vacancies at the University. The telephone number to call to find out more about what the University of Aberdeen has to offer is: (01224) 273504, or email: