Sample reportFictional studentReal admissions data
Amara is a fictional student. Every course figure in here is real UCAS data. Your family’s report is written from your own answers and checked and adjusted by me before it’s sent.
Every one of the 8 sections, start to finish, so you can see exactly what you get before you pay.
1
Your five courses - choice by choice
Three of the five courses ask no more than her predicted grades. UCL has an offer rate of 10% of applicants, so it's a long shot for everyone. Keep it - don't rely on it. Warwick asks a grade more than she's predicted, which makes it a reach too. 70% of applicants get an offer though, against 10% at UCL. Bristol and Birmingham both ask exactly her A*AA. Sheffield asks a grade less at AAA and takes 80%.
Your five courses, tiered at A*AA. Achieved ranges are aggregated UCAS figures †| Choice | Tier | Offer | Achieved † | Rate | Pay, 5 years on † |
|---|
| UCL CS | Reach | A*A*A | A*A*A* to AAA | 10% | £70,600 |
| Warwick CS | Reach | A*A*A | A*A*A* to AAA | 70% | £71,400 |
| Bristol CS | Target | A*AA | A*A*A* to ABB | 60% | £70,100 |
| Birmingham CS | Target | A*AA | A*A*A* to ABB | 71% | £62,600 |
| Sheffield CS | Safety | AAA | A*A*A* to ABB | 80% | £56,000 |
2
How to read the numbers
These are real UCAS course figures from 2023 to 2025. Achieved means the grades students arrived with. Offer rate is the share of applicants who got an offer, so it's competition and not a personal chance. Pay is the median for that subject at that university five years after graduating, from the 2023/24 tax year, so every computing course at one university shares the figure. Confirm the entry requirements on each course page for 2027 entry. No outcome is guaranteed.
3
Where you stand
At A*AA predicted she meets or beats the entry requirements at four of the five courses. The list has two reaches, two targets and one safety. Sheffield is the safety and it asks AAA, one grade below her prediction. Drop two grades to AAB and there's no course left on the list that's likely to take her.
What I'd change. Keep UCL on the list and add a safety that asks less than AAA, so there's still something there if two grades slip.
5
Grade scenarios - if the grades move up or down
At AAB no course on the list of ten asks as little as that. Eight of the ten have taken students with AAB. Four of those make offers to 75% or more of applicants.
Read against my list of ten courses. The achieved grade range is the grades students arrived with, aggregated UCAS figures †| Scenario | Results | Based on entry requirements | Based on achieved grade range and offer rate † |
|---|
| Prediction rises two grades | A*A*A* | All ten | All ten |
| Prediction rises one grade | A*A*A | All ten | All ten |
| On prediction | A*AA | Eight. UCL and Warwick ask a grade more | All ten |
| One grade drops | AAA | Four. Glasgow, Queen Mary, Leeds and Sheffield | All ten. Southampton takes 85% and Nottingham 82% |
| Two drop | AAB | None of the ten | Eight. Sheffield, Leeds, Southampton and Nottingham all take 75% or more |
6
A practical shortlist
Five sensible choices are either two reaches, two targets and one safety or one reach, two targets and two safeties, depending on how much risk you want. Amara's five are the first of those two. A safety is a course where her grades are above what it asks and most applicants get an offer. Sheffield is the safety here, with an offer rate of 80%.
If the firm and the insurance ask for the same grades, the insurance isn't doing its job.
7
The fine print that catches families
A few things on this list get decided before an application is ever read.
Admissions tests. Some top CS courses use a test or an interview. Check each of the five courses for 2027 entry and register early.
GCSE rules. The 8 and 7 clear every course here, no issue.
Subject rules. Maths is required everywhere and Further Maths helps at the most competitive courses. Amara has both.
8
What to do next
This week. Decide the safety. Sheffield stays or Southampton comes in.
End of term. Find out which of the five courses need an admissions test and put the registration dates in the calendar.
Next. Book open days for the final three. Slots go early.
After the next mocks. Look at the predictions again and decide the final five courses.
If you want to talk any of it through, that's the Family Strategy or the Deep Dive call.
This is a sample. To get one written for your family, start your own report.