How to make a Clearing call

It’s results day, emotions are high and picking up the phone is probably the last thing you want to do. We’re here to reassure you that it’s not as scary as it seems and to explain exactly what you will be asked for on the call so that you can be prepared on the day.

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1. Get ready

Firstly, grab a cup of tea and settle in for your chat with one of our friendly advisors. Remember, they are here to help you find your perfect course, so there’s no need to be nervous.

If you’re calling on results day, there may be a queue but don’t worry, you’ll get through! If you’ve been waiting to get through to someone on our hotline for more than five minutes, you’ll be given the option of receiving a callback. Meaning that you can hold your place in the queue without sitting on the phone for ages. We’ll call you back once it’s your turn.

Also, make sure you’re the person giving us a call. We can’t talk about your application with friends, parents or carers, so make sure you’re the one doing the talking.

2. The call

During the clearing call, we'll ask you a number of things, for example:

Your personal details (name, address, email, phone number).
Your UCAS number and Clearing number – you should be able to find these on your UCAS Hub account.
The name of the course(s) you want to apply for.
Your results – both A-Level/BTEC/T-Level and your GCSEs or equivalents. Make sure you tell us the subject and the name of your qualification (e.g. BTEC Extended Diploma).
Any questions you might want to ask us!

If you're applying directly to us without a UCAS account, then we may have a few more questions about yourself but don't worry, the application won't take too long!

Make sure you have a pen and paper to note any important details down.

3. Get your place!

Hopefully, you're now fully prepared and informed ahead of clearing. If there's anything you aren't sure about, we’re here to help you and give you any advice and guidance you need.

Good luck!

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Lots of people find clearing nerve-wracking and a big part of that is the phone call.

If you aren't sure how the phone call is going to go or what universities may ask, this can cause a lot of stress and anxiety for applicants. We're here to help.

I'm going to explain exactly what we ask for during a clearing call at BCU so you can be prepared on the day. Going into the phone call confidently means there's one less thing to worry about.

A great tip is to have all your documents ready, including your results, before you make the call. It'll be less stressful if you've done these four things to prepare.

Know what subject you want to apply for and have backups. Once you have a subject you enjoy, look into related courses with different entry requirements. Two subjects might lead to similar careers but have different entry requirements, for example; Marketing and Digital Marketing. This is a chance to be open-minded and think about courses you might not have thought of before.

Get the university's clearing information ready in advance, this includes hotline numbers, opening times, and links to their websites. You could have a few tabs open for this, or put the information in a Word doc or note. A great tip is to save the clearing number as a phone contact so it's easier to call on the day. The last thing you want is to get mixed up with your uni choices.

Find out where you'll get your results, whether that's going in or through an online portal. Collect your results and make a note of the qualification titles and your subjects. This means for example what type of BTEC it is.

It's time to make your clearing call and ring the hotline. Be in a quiet room with strong signal. If you're able to it's important that you make the call, not a guardian or anyone else, but it's fine for them to be there for moral support.

Here's exactly what we'll ask you on the Clearing call. To start the phone call just say something like "Hi, I'm looking to apply to [course name] through Clearing please."

Then we'll ask what's your name, address email, and phone number? Do you have your UCAS and Clearing number? Do you know the course you want to apply for? if you're not sure let us know the subject you're interested in and we can help. What results did you get in your A Levels, BTECs and GCSEs? You need to let us know the subjects that you took and the grades. Do you have any questions for us? If you have any questions about accommodation or Student Finance, let us know. And that's pretty much it.

Some courses like health and teaching might need you to come in for an interview at a later date. Clearing can be a stressful time, but the person at the end of the phone is there to help you. There's no need to be scared or worried and there's no more tests. If you take all the steps to prepare, the call will be easy and hopefully you will end up with a place at uni.