What to do before results day to get the most out of university clearing

At first, he wanted to take a gap year after his A-levels so did not apply for university, but was persuaded to go by family and friends after achieving “great grades”.

On the day, with the help of his A-level teachers, he filled in a Ucas form, applied to six universities via clearing and picked the University of Manchester to study politics and modern history.

“The good thing about clearing is that you can apply to as many universities as you want, unlike with Ucas, where you are limited to five,” he says.

“That was definitely stress-relieving,” he says.

For those on the fence about university, Nasir recommends people put in a Ucas application “just in case” to avoid the stress of results day.

That’s a piece of advice that is echoed by Wade.

“You will need a referee, which is why I’d suggest doing it now,” she says.

“Let’s say [you’ve] got to email the teacher, the teacher’s got to add a reference, then Ucas only gets sent once all of those parts are sent together.”

Nasir says he wished he was more prepared for clearing, and advises students to write down some notes on location, accommodation and cost for each university you contact.

“Make sure you know whether you qualify before calling,” he says.

“With my university I was required to have a specific A-level, so make sure you meet the requirements.”