What's it really like applying to university through Clearing? In this post, Student Ambassador Millie shares stories from her fellow students who joined St Mary's through this last-minute route.
Before coming to university, I knew very little about Clearing. I had applied through the traditional UCAS route as I was certain about what I wanted to study. However, after arriving at St Mary's, I realised the journey into higher education can take many shapes. Some of my friends had taken gap years or pursued different career paths before deciding to attend university.
Through conversations with my friends, I wanted to learn more about what Clearing is really like. If you’re looking into Clearing yourself, this article might help ease some of the nerves and uncertainty that often surround the process.
Isabel's story: wanting to be closer to home
For someone who wanted to stay within commuting distance of home, a last-minute university change through Clearing proved to be the perfect choice.
After spending a year away from home on a gap year in Southeast Asia, Isabel was ready for her next step. towards the end of her travels, the experience had prepared her well for university, saying, "I built skills outside of education which have since helped me with my degree".
Despite already accepting an offer from another university, Isabel no longer wanted to move away after spending so much time travelling during her gap year. She’d also built a strong network at home through work in recruitment and hospitality; she valued the connections she had established and wanted to remain close to them.
At the same time, having already taken a year out, she was eager not to delay university any further. With her travels behind her, Isabel felt "refreshed to return to education" and saw Clearing as the ideal opportunity to find a university that better suited her circumstances.
After contacting the University, Isabel added UCAS Clearing as her chosen route to St Mary’s University. In the lead-up to results day, she admitted feeling anxious about the pressure surrounding the process. Lots of friends had warned her that she needed to call as early as possible before spaces filled up, which heightened her nerves.
In reality, the experience turned out to be far less stressful than she had expected. Isabel found the staff on the phone calm, supportive, and reassuring, which immediately put her at ease.
Reflecting on the process, her advice for anyone feeling overwhelmed is to "make sure you have got a good idea for your alternatives, maybe speak to some people who have been through Clearing before if you can make the process more familiar".
The University have specific , which can give you the opportunity to speak directly with staff about the process. By the time September arrived, Isabel was already familiar with campus life, having previously attended an Open Day with her parents, where she enjoyed the experience.
Beyond those early anxieties, her experience was not significantly different from that of other students. She participated in inductions and used the University website to research her course and see which modules really sparked her interests.
Ultimately, it was the course itself that drew her to St Mary’s, particularly its interdisciplinary structure and the variety of modules spanning History, Politics, Film, and English Literature. Since coming to St Mary’s, she’s even learnt history about the countries she travelled to in her gap year.
Tom's story: a last-minute career change
Tom is a student who has truly made the most of university life, joining many during his time, and is now the President of the team!
Before St Mary’s, Tom had worked for a couple years in construction but always had a passion for It was this decision to study something he loved that led him to make a last-minute switch through Clearing. He said the decision to enrol had been delayed because it felt "pretty nerve-wracking." The experience turned out to be quite the opposite as he got lots of support.
Before Clearing opened, Tom emailed the Admissions team to check he met the requirements. Despite not studying History at A-level, they explained how he fit the UCAS points system. For Tom, the Admissions team were super helpful beyond Clearing queries, and after letting them know of his accessibility needs, they provided him information with regards to wellbeing and .
Tom was then also directed to the Finance team by Admissions, which was particularly helpful as one of his biggest hesitations about attending university was over student loans.
In Tom’s experience Clearing didn’t massively change his university experience and during our conversation he even admitted he’d "pretty much forgot I was a Clearing applicant". If anything, he felt the process better suited his situation, as it gave him more time to consider his career path and decide whether he really wanted to leave construction.
Once he had made the decision, Tom spoke to his parents about starting a degree and said they were happy and delighted that he’d chosen to continue his education. His , so it was familiar to the family.
Alongside his studies, Tom was able to continue developing his skills in construction, which financially supported him while completing a degree in something he genuinely loves. The degree has allowed his passion for knowledge and history to grow, and despite his initial nerves, going through Clearing is a decision he is proud of.
Derryn's story: it's never too late
After working her way up to assistant manager during her time in retail, Derryn had not only saved money for her studies, but also developed valuable skills in time management and communication. By the time she decided teaching was the direction she wanted to pursue, she said she was ready to ‘jump right in’.
By this point, the UCAS application deadline had passed, but Derryn still wanted to begin her studies that September, so she decided to apply through Clearing. After submitting her application online, she received an offer within the same week.
As she applied for a teaching course, the process included an online interview, which she described as very organised and friendly. She added, "I felt very comfortable, and whoever called me was lovely."
The experience came as a surprise to her, as she had expected the process to be far more difficult because of how last minute it felt. Instead, she found everything organised and smooth, and even suggested it may have been "less stress than applying to lots of places and waiting to hear back".
Her biggest concern was not the Clearing process itself but committing to three years of study. However, she said this had not been a problem at all, as she has thoroughly enjoyed her time at university and feels the experience has flown by.
Derryn is now my housemate, and for the past two years we have lived with a group of girls in Twickenham. During first year, however, we all lived in halls.
Despite applying later through Clearing, securing was not difficult for Derryn. While the rest of us had applied for accommodation months earlier, she completed the process during Clearing and was still able to secure an en-suite room.
The only regret Derryn has about applying through Clearing was not attending a , for the opportunity to speak with staff who understood the process in more detail, which could have helped ease some of the initial anxieties she had about applying. This could have also been useful for her parents, who had concerns about how the student loan system worked.
Conversations with her parents ultimately reinforced Derryn’s confidence that teaching was the right career path for her. They asked why she wanted to become a teacher, a question which still resonates with her today as she comes to the end of her placement and interviews for jobs starting in September, "I want to be a teacher because children are our future, and as a teacher you can help shape their values and guide the decisions they make in life".
Derryn began her journey to university last minute due to an earlier lack of direction but now leaves with a strong sense of what she wants to do in life, alongside a purpose for teaching that drives her every day.
My take on Clearing
Here are Isabel, Tom and me celebrating our success after this year's Student Union Summer Ball.
Although my friends’ journeys differed, all my conversations shared a common piece of advice for people making the decision during Clearing. As Derryn said: "Don’t put it off any longer if you know you want to do it. You’ll never regret applying, but you might regret not applying".
St Mary’s is full of helpful and understanding people in every department, and whilst nerves are normal, they will happily answer any questions and make the process as easy as possible. Universities are full of lots of different people whose journeys are just as interesting. If anything, my friend's experiences before university, whether that be work or travelling, have given them so many useful tools which they have applied during their studies, and beyond.
Applying to St Mary's through Clearing
Every year, lots of students join St Mary's through Clearing and our team is here to make the process as smooth and stress-free as possible. For more information about what Clearing is and how it works, check out our , or now, and we'll give you a call when it opens in July.