UCAS has ditched personal statements in 2024 applications to favour middle-class students and make the application process less stressful. Now UCAS has decided to use structured questions (multi-question survey) to ‘bring focus and clarity for students and reduce the need for support.
Rather than looking at the advantages students have had in their life, the focus is more on their motivations for studying the courses, their preparations, and their circumstances. UCAS has announced the summary of what the questions will be focusing on:
- Motivation for Course – Why do you want to study these courses
- Preparedness for Course – How has your learning helped you be ready to succeed in these courses?
- Preparation through other experiences – What else have you done to help you prepare, and why these experiences are helpful?
- Extenuating circumstances – Is there anything that the universities and colleges need to know about to help them put your achievements and experiences so far into context?
- Preparedness for study – What have you done to prepare yourself for student life?
- Preferred Learning Styles – Which learning and assessment styles best suit you – how do your course choices match that?
- There are also more changes being made to the 2024 applications:
Academic references are being reformed, moving from a free-text approach to a set of three questions, similar to the Personal Statement reforms.
The ‘Entry Grade Report’ will be created, which allows applicants to see grade profiles that have been accepted for courses over a five-year period.
A ‘Course Recommendation Tool’ is being created to provide applicants with personalised suggestions for courses based on their current grades and preferences.
A ‘Fair Access Programme’ is being created to encourage widening access and participation.