by Silva Payne

Created on: January 17, 2010   Last Updated: February 01, 2012

Studying at a British university is still considered to be a luxury for many people. home students (those who are legally resident in the UK before their application to the course) are required to pay a capped fee for their tuition. Overseas students are required to pay considerably more in tuition fees if they are accepted onto a degree course. Despite this, in 2009 the number of undergraduate applications rose again and during the clearing period in August 2009 there were 14 applicants for every 1 course place. The desire for a university education is still strong among potential students.

To apply for a place on a history degree course at a British university, you will almost certainly have to use the centralised University and College Admission Service, known as UCAS. Some universities and colleges will accept direct applications from potential students wishing to study part-time. UCAS has now moved to a paperless application system, and all applications must be made on-line via their website http://www.ucas.ac.uk/ . Here you can also find information on different types of undergraduate course options, including Foundation Degrees. There is also information to help you through the application process, and you may wish to sign up to the UCAS social networking site YouGo.

To view the complete range of history degrees available to study through UCAS member institutions, simply use the UCAS course search function. This allows you to search by institution (useful if you already know where you wish to study), by subject, or by UCAS course code. Courses in the history subject range are usually given 4-character UCAS codes that are currently based on the JACS2 classification system and include the letter “V”. The subject search is based on a keyword system, and you can either search for a generic history course or refine your search to look at specific aspects of history such as European history or sport history.

Once you have made your choices of where you wish to study you will need to register with Apply on the UCAS web site. This is where you record all of you previous academic achievements, your aspirations, your application choices, and your personal references. There are 2 fee bands: a basic fee for applicants with 1 or 2 course choices, and a higher fee for applicants with 3 or more choices up to the maximum of 5. In 2009, the higher fee was £17.

UCAS distributes the applications to the relevant universities and colleges for their assessment. You may be invited to attend an interview at one or more of your chosen education establishments. You may alternatively be made a conditional or unconditional offer of a place on the course of your choice. A conditional offer is usually based on the outcome of your grades in any examinations you have yet to complete such as A-levels. Institutions will also be looking for evidence of all-around achievement and interest in history, based on your personal statement and your references given as part of your application.

Many institutions use the UCAS tariff point system to set the entry requirements for their courses. This consists or a range of qualifications that have been assigned a specific number of points for each level of achievement. The points are then combined to give an overall tariff requirement for the undergraduate course. Most history courses require a tariff of between 200 and 280 points.

If you are successful at your interview, and achieve the required number of tariff points in your current studies, you may be offered a place on your chosen history degree.

Learn more about this author, Silva Payne.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.