UCAS application 2027: what to include and how to apply

Planning to start an undergraduate degree in the UK in 2027? Check whether your chosen course uses UCAS, then prepare your application in the UCAS Hub.

UCAS stands for Universities and Colleges Admissions Service. It centralises applications to many full-time undergraduate courses in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Check each institution’s application route.

Use the official UCAS application guide alongside this checklist; requirements and deadlines depend on your course and entry year.

What are the advantages of the UCAS platform?

The UCAS portal has been designed to make things easier for students and offers many advantages:

• Search for participating undergraduate courses and select up to five choices, subject to course restrictions.
• Complete one shared application with your education history, Personal Statement and reference.
• Pay the UCAS application fee: £34.50 for 2027 entry, with waivers for eligible applicants.
• Track decisions and reply to offers in your UCAS account through the Hub.

Related reading: Why study in the UK? (Part 1): What do you aspire to?

Related reading: What to do after sending your UCAS application.

What should you include in your UCAS application?

Although the UCAS portal has been designed to make it easier for students to apply, there are a number of steps you’ll need to take before, during and after registering on the platform.

Putting together your application

Create an account in the UCAS Hub, select undergraduate study and the correct entry year, then start your application. Keep your Personal ID and sign-in details available for future access.

If applying through your school or a registered centre, ask for its buzzword and internal deadline. Otherwise, follow the independent applicant route and arrange a suitable reference.

In the Personal Details, complete your personal information :

• Your name, contact details and address.
• The nationality, residence and funding information requested.
• Any additional information relevant to your circumstances, following the help provided in the application.

In Choices, select up to five course choices without ranking them. These do not have to be at five different universities. Medicine, dentistry and veterinary courses have a four-choice limit; a fifth choice can be in another subject. Normally, you cannot apply to both Oxford and Cambridge in the same cycle.

It’s vital to take the time to carefully select the courses and universities you’re applying for, and to make sure that the programs on offer are in line with your profile and your predicted baccalaureate grades.

An illustrative mathematics shortlist might include the following courses. Check the current course title, code and entry requirements before adding any choice:

• BSc Mathematics (G100), University of Manchester ;
• BSc Mathematics (G100), University of Warwick ;
• BSc Mathematics (G100), University College London (UCL) ;
• BSc Mathematics (G100), University of Edinburgh ;
• BSc Mathematics (G100), King’s College London (KCL).

It’s important to note that since the UCAS application form is common to all the selected courses, your five choices will have to be consistent.

Related courses can make it easier to explain your preparation coherently in a shared Personal Statement. You do not have to use all five choices, and more than one choice can be at the same university.

On the other hand, in the same UCAS application, you would be strongly advised not to apply for both mathematics at Manchester and philosophy at UCL, for example. It will be difficult for you to demonstrate a genuine interest in such different courses in your joint application.

Some courses request additional written work, questionnaires or other material. Check the current course page rather than assuming that a second Personal Statement will be available to explain a different subject choice.

It’s also important to note that there is no order or hierarchy of courses at this stage. So don’t worry about the order in which you enter your choices!

An offer may be conditional, requiring specified results, or unconditional. Read the exact offer in your UCAS account: admission is not always conditional on future school results.

A conditional offer may specify an overall school grade, grades in particular subjects and an English-language requirement. These thresholds vary by course and qualification; no example is a universal target.

For a conditional offer, check which evidence must be supplied and by what deadline. Your place must be confirmed by the university; a single July deadline does not apply to every applicant.

If you fail to meet these requirements, the university reserves the right not to admit you, and the decision will be made on a case-by-case basis. In the most selective universities, if you fail to meet the requirements of your offer, even if it’s only 0.5 or 1 point less in a subject, you may not be admitted.

The admission criteria, depending on the type of baccalaureate and the course of study you wish to apply for, are available on each university’s website. If you can’t find the information you’re looking for on their website, don’t hesitate to contact the admissions department of the university concerned by phone or e-mail.

Check both the institution and course code, as well as the campus and entry year. The same course code can be used by different universities.

Use the UCAS course search and the university’s own course page to check that you are selecting the intended programme.

Here are some tips for writing your UCAS personal statement.

Gather information from each university’s current course page and admissions guidance:

• check out the university websites and YouTube videos;
• Take a look at the admission criteria for your chosen course, and ask yourself the following questions:

• what grades and subjects are required?
• what level of English is expected?
• Is professional experience required (as for medical or veterinary studies)?

In Education, enter your secondary education history as requested by UCAS, including the schools attended and relevant dates.

Enter your qualifications and subjects accurately, including completed qualifications and those still in progress. For the French baccalaureate, select the relevant qualification and follow the UCAS guidance for your results.

For qualifications whose results are not yet available, use Pending as instructed by UCAS and give the expected award date. Do not invent results or leave a required result field blank.

Record English-language qualifications where requested. Whether a test is needed, which evidence is accepted and when it must be supplied depend on the university and course; do not assume that every applicant has until the end of July.

If an English test is required, plan preparation, test dates and any retake around the institution’s deadline. Previous qualifications may sometimes meet the language requirement; check the official policy.

In Employment, enter paid work as requested. Volunteering and unpaid work experience can be discussed in your Personal Statement where relevant. If you have no paid employment, follow the application instructions to complete the section.

The Personal Statement consists of three responses, with a total limit of 4,000 characters including spaces and at least 350 characters per response. You can allocate the remaining space according to what is relevant to your application.

The three questions cover why you want to study the subject, how your qualifications and studies have prepared you, and what else you have done outside education to prepare and why it is useful. Read the official UCAS guidance.

Allow time to gather examples, draft and review your responses. Explain your own experiences in your own words and avoid repeating the same point across the three answers.

Enter each response into its corresponding field and check the character counts in UCAS, including spaces. Proofread all three answers and the application preview before marking the section complete.

Arrange your reference early with someone who can comment on your suitability for the course. Your school or registered centre normally coordinates it when you apply through them. Independent applicants must follow the UCAS instructions for inviting a referee.

The referee supplies the reference through the relevant UCAS process and, where applicable, predicted grades. Check that it is ready before the application deadline; do not assume that entering contact details alone completes this requirement.

Review and submit your application

Before validating your file, please ensure that all sections have been completed and that all information is correct.

For 2027 entry, the UCAS application fee is £34.50, with waivers subject to official eligibility criteria. Check the reference, payment and submission status, and respect your school’s internal deadline where applicable.

Of course, you don’t have to complete your application all at once. You can save your answers to each section and complete it as you go along.

Find here the best examples of UCAS personal statement.

Need guidance with your UCAS application? Contact us to discuss your plans. You can also read about what happens after submission.