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Aimhigher
Monday, 23 February 2009 11:35

The national objectives of Aimhigher:

  • to raise aspirations and motivation to enter Higher Education among young people in schools, further education and workplace learning, who are from under-represented groups
  • to raise the attainment of potential Higher Education students, who are from under-represented groups, so that they gain the academic or vocational qualifications and learning skills that will enable them to enter Higher education
  • to raise students' aspirations to attend Higher Education and to apply to the institution and/or course best able to match their abilities
  • to improve the attainment, aspirations, motivation and self-esteem of gifted and talented young people aged 14-19; and the quality of identification, provision and support for those students in schools and colleges

Activities supported by the programme include:

  • visits to university campuses
  • residential summer schools
  • master-classes and open days
  • mentoring schemes

Why go to higher education?

  • To study a subject you enjoy in more depth.
  • To get more 'life experience'.
  • To gain a sense of personal achievement.
  • To increase your confidence - personally and professionally.
  • Gain some independence.

And in the future:

  • Much better job prospects.
  • Some jobs actually require a Degree qualification - such as a Doctor or a Vet. Also, many jobs require you to have a higher education qualification but not necessarily in a specific subject.
  • Graduates can earn, on average, 59% more than people who went straight to work from school (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development 2004)

Who goes into Higher Education?

  • The Government is aiming for 50% of the workforce in the UK with a Degree by 2010.
  • The entrance requirements vary for all courses and institutions, therefore courses are accessible for people from different educational backgrounds. You could be a mature student with an access course, or a young person with BTEC qualifications or A-levels - there will be an institution to suit you all.
  • The vast range of subjects make Higher Education appealing to many different people - no matter your education background, finances, race, gender or age.
  • There is financial support e.g. student loans, bursaries, grants, for people with financial difficulties.

How to Apply

To apply for a full-time course in higher education you have to use a UCAS application form. UCAS stands for the University and Colleges Admissions Service. They handle all applications and are a good resource for researching your higher education choices. Visit their website by using the link below:
http://www.ucas.com/   

Choosing your course

There are more than 50,000 courses in higher education.  To do a comprehensive search of every university and every course in the UK, look on the UCAS website where you can search by course, by area of the country or by institution.

Open Days

An Open Day is when a University opens its doors for prospective students to visit the campuses and attend subject talks. It is very important that whilst you are researching a course and institution of higher education, that you attend a couple of Open Days to get a feel for the place you are thinking of spending the next three years. Visiting a few Universities will also help show you how different your choices really are from each other.

Every single University will have several Open Days throughout the year. Open Days can take place on any day of the week - this will vary from place to place. It is very useful to go and visit a university as you have the opportunity to see the environment in which you will be studying and/or living. It is also a good opportunity of seeing how far it is from home. Finally, you get to speak to tutors and students first hand, so can find out what it is really like to study at university, and to study on that particular course.

If you cannot attend an Open Day, it is useful to know that many Universities will offer you a guided tour and possibly a chat with a subject tutor at another time - contact the Recruitment team and have a chat to them about how you can do this. And do not be worried about taking a friend or family - most people tend to take someone along with them for a second opinion!
For further tips on what to ask on an Open Day and to find out when Open Days are running, look on the opendays website. This is really useful and has some really handy tips.

http://www.opendays.com/

Filling in your UCAS application form - more of this information will be available from your Sixth Form or College

Students are being encourage to fill out their application forms online, on the web based system 'APPLY'. If you are at school or college your Head of Sixth Form or careers co-ordinator will be able to advise you on filling this in, and will be able to give you a 'User Name' and 'Password'.

The on-line application form makes it very easy to fill in your form, you can save it and return to it anytime and you can also track your application as it goes through the UCAS system, and sent to Universities.
As any other application form, you have to fill in various sections of information about yourself, your education and your work experience. These areas are:

  • Courses
  • Education
  • Employment
  • About You
  • Personal Statement

To find out more about the application process and using APPLY, see the UCAS website.
www.ucas.com/apply   

Useful Websites

Aimhigher

Universities and Higher Education

Finance and Student Support

 

Last Updated ( Thursday, 26 February 2009 09:43 )