You fill in the UCAS application in UCAS Hub, section by section: personal details, contact and residency, nationality, supporting information, English language, finance, education (every qualification from secondary school onwards, including pending ones), employment (paid work only), your five choices and the three-question personal statement. You then send it to your school or college, which adds your reference and predicted grades and submits it to UCAS. For 2027 entry, most applications must reach UCAS by 18:00 on 13 January 2027.
The UCAS application is not hard, but it is long, and small errors (a missing GCSE, the wrong course code, a statement pasted with broken formatting) cause most of the delays schools see. This is every section of the UCAS Hub application for 2027 entry, in a sensible order, with what to watch for.
Before you start
- Register in UCAS Hub with a personal email address you will still use next summer, not a school one. Universities will contact you through it during offers, results day and Clearing.
- Choose 2027 entry, even if you plan to defer to 2028 (you can request deferred entry on the course).
- Link to your school or college using the code it gives you, so it can add your reference.
- Ask for your school's internal deadline. It is earlier than UCAS's, and it is the one that matters.
1. Personal details
Your names as they appear on your passport or birth certificate, date of birth, gender, title. Check spelling carefully: universities, the Student Loans Company and visa systems match on these.
2. Contact and residency
Address, phone and residency details. Residency affects fee status, so answer accurately. If you have lived outside the UK, you may be asked follow-up questions.
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Review my statement → From £7.49 · Results in under 10 min3. Nationality
Your nationality and, for some applicants, visa or passport details. Answer exactly; this also feeds fee status.
4. Supporting information
Optional questions about circumstances such as being a young carer, care experience, estrangement or parents' education. Answering helps universities support you and can make you eligible for contextual offers (how they work). It is confidential and is not used against you.
5. English language skills
Whether English is your first language and, if not, any English qualifications.
6. Finance and funding
How you plan to pay fees, for example a student loan. This lets your details be shared with the funding body. More: UK student finance explained.
7. Education
This is where most mistakes happen.
- List every qualification from secondary school onwards, including GCSEs (or equivalent) with grades, and every qualification you are still taking, marked as pending.
- Enter qualifications exactly as on your certificates, including the exam board where asked.
- Do not leave anything out, including resits and failed qualifications. Universities check against official records, and omissions can lead to offers being withdrawn.
You do not add predicted grades yourself. Your school does that. How predictions are set: predicted grades explained.
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8. Employment
Paid work only: part-time jobs, summer jobs, with dates. Volunteering and unpaid work experience go in your personal statement instead. If you have never had a paid job, leave it empty and mark the section complete.
9. Choices
- Up to five courses. Choices are not ranked, and universities cannot see your other choices.
- At most four in medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine or science (what to do with the fifth).
- Oxford or Cambridge, not both, in the same year (with rare exceptions).
- Check the course code, campus and start date for each one. A wrong code is one of the most common errors.
How to choose them: how to choose your UCAS universities.
10. Personal statement
Three questions sharing 4,000 characters, with at least 350 characters for each answer:
- Why do you want to study this course or subject?
- How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?
- What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?
One statement goes to all five choices, so it needs to suit them all. Write it in a separate document, then paste it in and check that line breaks and special characters came through. Guides to each question: question 1, question 2, question 3.
The statement cannot be changed once submitted. Get it checked before you send it to your school.
11. Pay, send and the reference
When every section is complete, you pay the fee (or your school does) and send the application to your school or college. Your referee then adds the reference, three structured questions about your school's context, any circumstances, and you (the reference explained), plus your predicted grades. The centre then submits it to UCAS.
12. After you submit
UCAS checks your application and sends you a welcome email with your Personal ID. You track decisions in UCAS Hub. Next dates: UCAS deadlines for 2027 entry and, when offers arrive, how to reply to your offers.
Check your statement before you send it
It is the only part you cannot fix later. Score your personal statement with Statementory: a score out of 100, notes on every line and a 10-step plan, back in 5 to 10 minutes.
Related guides
- How to apply to university in the UK
- The three UCAS personal statement questions
- The UCAS reference explained
- UCAS deadlines for 2027 entry
Sources
- UCAS, How to fill in a UCAS application
- UCAS, Paying for your application
- UCAS, 2027 entry deadline
Frequently asked questions
In what order should I fill in the UCAS application?
There is no required order, but a sensible one is: personal details first, then education, employment, choices and finally the personal statement. Leave the statement until last so you can paste in your finished version, and check your school's internal deadline before you start.
Do I put volunteering in the employment section?
No. The employment section is for paid work only. Volunteering and unpaid work experience belong in your personal statement. If you have never had a paid job, leave the section empty and mark it as complete.
Do I have to list my choices in order of preference?
No. Choices are not ranked, and universities cannot see where else you have applied. You can apply to up to five courses, with at most four in medicine, dentistry or veterinary science, and you cannot apply to both Oxford and Cambridge in the same year.
Who adds my predicted grades and reference?
Your school, college or centre. Once you send your application to them, your referee adds the reference and predicted grades, then the centre submits it to UCAS. That is why school deadlines come before UCAS deadlines.
How much does the UCAS application cost?
One fee covers up to five choices. It was £28.95 for 2026 entry; check UCAS Hub for the 2027 fee. Many schools ask you to pay through them.
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