Up to 150 high-quality students receiving their A-level results today (Thursday 16 August) could still get a place at Sussex via clearing.

Fewer students deferring the start of their degrees from last year and relaxed government limits on numbers of high-quality students have contributed to a higher-than-usual number of clearing places for most universities.

The 150 places at Sussex, which account for around five per cent of the University’s 2,700 or so new undergraduates, will be allocated via the annual clearing and adjustment process. This gives applicants from the UK and other EU countries a chance to get a last-minute place at university. Typically only around one per cent of new students get their place at Sussex in this way. 

Rob Evans, the University’s Head of Admissions, explains why 2012 is different:

“Each year, many students accept and then defer their place at universities.  In 2011, however, many students who might have deferred opted instead to take up their place because of the national change in fees. 

“This means that almost all universities started this year’s admissions process with far fewer students having deferred from 2011.

“We have had a large number of high-quality applicants for 2012 entry and expect to fill around 95 per cent of our undergraduate places from those applications alone.

“But that leaves about 150 places available through clearing.  This is positive news for high-quality candidates looking to study at an excellent institution such as Sussex.

“In addition, the government no longer places artificial limits on the number of UK and other EU students we can admit with A-level grades of AAB and above. By being in clearing and adjustment we can therefore offer talented students with AAB grades or better the opportunity to study at Sussex.

“We fully expect to comfortably fill all of the spaces available.”

And, although government funding rules still limit the number of UK and other EU students that universities can take, Sussex is able to consider suitably qualified overseas (non-EU) students in most subjects.

The Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning), Professor Clare Mackie, says: “We have a clear strategy to increase the number of international students at Sussex, which is proving successful, but no international students is admitted at the expense of a UK or EU student.

“The number of places we have in clearing has no bearing on the number of international students, or vice versa.”

Despite a slight national fall in applications this year, Sussex received around six applications for every place on offer and the number of people who applied this year was 44 per cent higher than in 2009.

Professor Mackie explains why she thinks the University is proving so attractive: “The grades we ask students to achieve to get into Sussex have been increasing year on year and applications to Sussex have been better than the national average and better than some other universities in the region.

“We believe we offer a very high-quality education and, with the campus location and Brighton on our doorstep, an unrivalled quality of student experience.”

The admissions team is holding open days this week (16-18 August) for students interested in joining Sussex through clearing.

More information can be found on the University’s clearing web pages, which also provide details of those subjects at Sussex that have vacancies for entry in September 2012.