A Guide to UCAS Clearing

What is UCAS Clearing?

Clearing is the chance for your child to find a place at university if they haven’t received (or have exceeded) their required grades and want or need to apply to new courses, or if they missed earlier deadlines and have now decided they’d like to go to university this year. When Clearing opens universities publish a list of courses that still have available places. Thousands of students secure a place through Clearing every year.

Students can use Clearing if:

• They didn’t receive any offers or none they wanted to accept
• They didn’t meet the conditions of their offers and need to find a new course
• They have declined their firm place in favour of another course

Key dates for Clearing

Clearing 2026 opens on July 2nd and the deadline for clearing is the 19th of October 2026.

Preparing for Clearing

We advise parents and students to prepare for Clearing well in advance. Taking a few hours to research alternative courses and university options will significantly reduce stress and improve outcomes. On results day, if you are going through Clearing, working quickly against a pre-selected shortlist will give your child a headstart rather than them scrambling to make a decision without enough research into courses and universities.

Not all courses or universities will be in Clearing. Popular courses at particularly competitive universities, including UCL and Imperial, are unlikely to feature. Oxford University and Cambridge University do not offer places through UCAS Clearing at all.

To prepare for Clearing, students should be armed with a list of courses they would consider based on a range of various grade outcomes. They can quickly check availability for those courses on results day.

How to use Clearing

It is well worth seeking advice from your child’s school or contacting the UCAS helpline to help guide you through the following steps. If you would like a more personalised and focused support, we supply a complete Clearing service.

 

To quickly navigate all available places in Clearing, the UCAS website is the best place to start. This has the official and most up-to-date vacancy list. It is important to contact universities as soon as possible. Most universities will ask students to express their interest online or via email. However, if the option to contact a university on the phone is available, we would always advise the student to use it. A Clearing course choice can only be added to UCAS once formally confirmed in writing with the university. This will count on UCAS as an offer acceptance, so if the university confirms, it will show as an acceptance on the student’s ‘Choices’ page. If the university confirms the place, the next step is to complete the necessary steps for student accommodation. We suggest doing so as soon as possible to have the most choice.

Clearing Plus

UCAS has created a tool called Clearing Plus. Since 2020, this is a tool that recommends Clearing courses for your child based on their application. This is only available if your child does not receive any university offers or does not meet the grade requirements of any of their offers. You can view their matches in their UCAS Hub. If they express an interest in a course, that university will contact them. Rather than just relying on Clearing Plus, we advise looking for other courses directly using the Clearing search tool on UCAS or university websites because participation in Clearing plus is optional for universities. You may find more attractive courses on your own, and you will need to move quickly because places will fill up.

What’s new in UCAS Clearing?

Students will be able to log onto UCAS at 08.00 on JCQ (Joint Council for Qualifications) results day to see whether their offer(s) has updated to unconditional. The majority can also access their results at 08.00 but it is worth confirming with your child’s school how and when their results will be available. Their Clearing choice can be added to their UCAS application from 13.00. Universities and Colleges can now add a reason/reasons why an applicant’s conditional offer is still conditional in the Hub.

This is the same as recent years; although there are no major changes to the UCAS Clearing process for 2026, the way Clearing works has evolved significantly in recent years. These developments have made the process more flexible and have encouraged many more students to view Clearing as an opportunity rather than simply a last resort.

One of the most significant changes was allowing students to explore alternative university options before giving up their confirmed place. Applicants can now research vacancies, speak to universities, and in many cases, receive an informal indication that they are likely to be offered a place before deciding whether to release themselves into Clearing. This gives students much greater confidence to compare their options and make an informed decision.

UCAS also introduced Clearing Plus, as outlined above. So, while the process itself is largely unchanged for 2026 these developments remain important for students to understand. With universities publishing vacancies from early July and students being able to investigate alternatives before making a final decision, preparing in advance has never been more valuable.

Is UCAS Clearing different for International Students?

At Simply Learning we work with students from all over the world. The key consideration for Clearing is that many universities will have different clearing offers for students from different countries. This is because international students pay higher fees and build strong cohorts. The process of entering Clearing is the same, but students should ensure that they are looking at the right admissions criteria.

What should I do if I can’t get a course through clearing?

If you believe your grades are incorrect you should speak to your school as soon as possible to discuss a remark. This may come through in time for you to pick up a course through UCAS Clearing but it’s important to remember that course vacancies are continually changing and many fill quickly. As remarks typically take around two weeks, there is a possibility that courses currently available may no longer have places by the time your outcome is confirmed. Grades rarely change and they can go down as well as up.

Retakes are a common option. One or more A Levels can be re-taken in one academic year and students often see dramatic increases because they have more time to cover content and exam technique. Simply Learning offers intensive A Level retake support, and your school or a local college will also be able to advise. There is lots of advice on our A Level retakes page to help you decide if it is worth retaking.

Many students take a Gap Year to fill in the time until they can apply again to a new course. However, even if you spend your time doing something fantastic, if your grades do not change, your university options are unlikely to improve significantly. You can read more about the pros and cons of taking a Gap Year here.

Finally, it is always worth calling or writing to your university to see if they will consider making a changed course offer. This is a particularly good way of getting to the university you want, albeit on a slightly different course. Universities may offer this through your UCAS Hub, or you may need to ask them.

How can Simply Learning Tuition help with Clearing?

Our UCAS Clearing service provides expert, personalised support at every stage of the process, giving your child the best chance of securing a place at a top university.

Our Service Includes:

1. Initial Consultation – We review your child’s current applications, results predictions, academic goals, and preferred universities or courses.

2. Tailored Course Search – We prepare three strategic plans for different results scenarios, identifying both ambitious and ‘Plan B’ options aligned to your child’s aspirations.

3. Shortlist & Strategy – We meet to finalise the universities to target and develop a Results Day strategy, prioritising where to apply first.

4. Preparation – We help your child register for Clearing updates, prepare for university calls, and draft tailored statements and emails for Results Day.

5. Results Day Support – On A Level Results Day, we are by your side (online or in our Kensington office) to guide applications, liaise with universities where possible, and monitor new course openings in real time.

We remain available throughout to answer questions and can also advise on alternative pathways such as gap years or foundation degrees