Entry requirements

We publish two sets of information on Discover Uni. These are both based on data collected for students who have previously started the course.   These are the qualifications students had when they were accepted into this course and the UCAS Tariff points ‘value’ of the qualifications held by students who started the course over the last three years.

They are not a list of the qualifications or Tariff points a person needs to be accepted onto this course.  However, they can be helpful to look at alongside current published entry requirements.

Qualifications held on entry

This gives you an idea of what qualifications those who did the course previously had. You might find this useful if you have qualifications other than A-levels or BTECs.

Tariff points held on entry

This shows the average UCAS tariff points for qualifications held by students who started the course over the last three years.

It is important to know that some universities and colleges accept a wider range of qualifications for entry to their courses, some of which are not accounted for in the UCAS Tariff points.  This means that the tariff points data we show for some courses may not reflect the value and grades achieved by some students accepted onto the course. This may affect the majority of courses at some institutions with higher proportions of international or non-UK intake.

The UCAS tariff is used in university and college admissions and qualifications are assigned a tariff value based on their level, size and the grade achieved. You can find out more about the UCAS tariff and calculate the points for your qualifications on the UCAS website.

Published entry requirements are often only a guideline and the actual grades held by those who get accepted onto the course can be different.

It is important that you do not rule out courses that you actually may be able to get onto, which is why we do not have a ‘search by entry requirements’ option.  For instance, you could be given a lower offer if you meet certain criteria. This is sometimes called contextual admissions. Contextual admissions involve universities and colleges considering the personal circumstances of applicants that can affect academic attainment, and making offers requiring lower grades than the standard offer for that course.  The personal circumstances considered for contextual offers vary, but can include being the first in a family to attend higher education, low parental income, the school or area where applicants live, or personal characteristics, such as being a care leaver, a refugee or having a disability. Not all unis make contextual offers, and some only offer them on specific courses and the criteria they use will vary, so it’s worth speaking to a teacher or adviser about this and checking on the university or college course page to see whether that applies.