What Happens Next? - Undergraduate Applicants
Undergraduate Applicants
Thank you for submitting an application for undergraduate study at Queen Margaret University. Below is a step by step guide to each stage of the admissions process, detailing what will happen when your application is being processed, what you are expected to do once you have been given an offer of a place, and guidance on areas such as applying for accommodation and funding your studies.
Step 1 – Application reviewed
All undergraduate full time applications should be submitted via UCAS and once your application is received by the University, it will be processed by the Admissions team. Once you submit your application you should receive an official acknowledgement email which confirms receipt of your application.
We aim to transmit a decision to you within 3-4 weeks of your application being received, however, at peak times this may be longer. If the selection process for the course involves an audition, interview, or portfolio, then the processing time will be longer. Please note that in a number of courses where demand for places is high we often consider applications collectively after the deadline (the UCAS deadline for on time applications is the last Wednesday in January). All applicants who submit an on time application will received their decisions back from all their university choices by the UCAS deadline in mid-May.
Receiving a decision
Once your application has been considered an email informing you of the decision shall be sent to you. Your decision will also appear on UCAS hub. If successful we will send you further information and confirmation by email, so please notify UCAS and QMU if you change your contact details.
What does your decision mean?
If you are made an offer of a place on the course this offer shall be either Conditional or Unconditional. If you are not successful the decision will show as Reject on UCAS hub with the reason for the decision.
- Conditional Offer
If your offer is conditional this means that your place on the course is subject to you meeting specific conditions, such as meeting specific grade requirements for entry. If you decide to accept a place at Queen Margaret University, you must do this through the UCAS website, and your offer will remain conditional until you have satisfied the conditions made. In order to take up your place you must fulfil the conditions that have been set in your offer. Your offer will be changed to unconditional once all these conditions have been met.
- Unconditional Offer
If you receive an unconditional offer then you have satisfied all the academic requirements for entry to your chosen course. You may still be required to send evidence of the qualifications stated on your application to Admissions.
Step 2 - Offer Holder Days
To help you decide whether you would like to accept our offer, you will be offered the chance to visit the campus, or attend an online session. An invitation to attend these events will be emailed to you.
The on campus offer holder day is an opportunity for you to tour the campus, discuss the academic programme with your course tutor, and the chance to meet current students and student service support staff. Subject to space, you are welcome to also bring along a friend or family member to the visit.
Offer holder days are typically held in March and April. If you are invited to an interview as part of the selection process (i.e. for Paramedic Science and Nursing) then the activities from the offer holder events are typically included in your interview programme.
Map of the QMU campus
Step 3 - Responding to your offer
Accepting
Once you get the decisions back from your chosen universities, you can submit two of them as your firm and insurance choices. Your firm choice is your first choice – the place you most want to go to. If you accept a conditional offer and meet the conditions, you'll have a confirmed place here. The insurance choice is the choice you'd want if you didn't meet the conditions of your firm choice.
If you decide to make us your firm or insurance choice through UCAS, you are agreeing to our Terms and Conditions. Please ensure that you read these before accepting your offer.
Please ensure you make your decisions by the UCAS deadline which is typically in early June. If you do not make a decision by this date, UCAS will decline all your offers.
Declining
We are sorry that you have decided not to take up your place at Queen Margaret University. We wish every success with your chosen course of study.
Deferring
If you would like to defer your offer to the following academic year, please email admissions@qmu.ac.uk . We shall inform you of the Admissions Tutor's decision to you as soon as possible. Please be aware that deferral requests are not always approved, but you are welcome to submit a fresh application the following year.
Step 4 – Prior to Entry
If your offer is Conditional -
If you are sitting the following exams, then UCAS will automatically inform us of your results. If you are sitting any of these exams, then you do not have to send us copies of your exam grades unless we find that a result is missing. If this is the case, we will contact you directly.
- SQA (Scottish) qualifications
- A levels
If your conditional offer is based on a qualification that is not listed above, then it is your responsibility to send a photocopy of your results to the Admissions Office. We especially advise applicants sitting Access courses or HNC/D courses, to send us or email copies of your results as soon as you receive them. We also do not receive National 5 results, so please ensure these are sent directly to the Admissions team.
We would strongly recommend you provide all required qualifications as early as possible and by the end of August at the very latest. If you are international student requiring a Student visa to study here, you must meet these conditions much earlier in order to obtain a CAS letter.
If your offer is Unconditional -
If you decide to make Queen Margaret University your Unconditional Firm choice through UCAS, you should send in photocopies of the academic qualifications that you listed as having achieved on your UCAS form. These photocopies should be sent directly to the Admissions Office with your name and QMU Application number stated in the email – this number can be found in your offer letter which you will have received by email.
Send your results to the Admissions Team
You can send in your official results via email to admissions@qmu.ac.uk
Once all your qualifications are confirmed by the Admissions team, joining information will be sent to you via email.
Disclosure/Police Check
If you decide to accept an offer to certain courses, you will be required to provide us with a satisfactory criminal record check. Please note that Queen Margaret University reserves the right to withdraw your offer if your criminal record is not acceptable.
You will typically pay for an Enhanced PVG as part of the matriculation process, however Applicants who have lived outside the UK for 3 months or more in a single period, at any time since the age of 16. Will be required to provide a Criminal Record Check from all countries outside the UK where they have been resident for a single period of more than 3 months, since the age of 16, in addition to joining the PVG scheme.
Please contact disclourse@qmu.ac.uk to declare a criminal conviction if you have not done so earlier in the application process.
Further information about how to apply for this criminal record check can be found by clicking on the link.
HNC/D Students From College
Please refer to Coming from College web section
Don’t forget to send copies of your HN award when you receive it (see above). Your place can them be confirmed and you can matriculate (go through the formal process of joining QMU) online. Once you do that you can access the university’s electronic resources.
Associate Students
If you have been successful in receiving an offer for one of our Associate Student places, you can find out more about the course using the same link.
International Applicants
If you are a non-EU/EEA national and require a visa to gain entry to the UK then you must pay a minimum tuition fee deposit of £5000 or provide proof that you are being sponsored by an official agency in order to be issued with a Confirmation of Acceptance of Study (CAS). Your CAS Number is a unique number generated by Queen Margaret University through the UKVI and will be emailed to you in a CAS Statement.
International students who require a student visa can find further information on how to arrange this by clicking on the link.
A CAS will only be issued to applicants who have firmly accepted an unconditional offer from QMU.
Step 5 – Joining Information
Joining Information
Joining Information shall be sent in the summer to those who hold and have accepted an offer. Full joining information will be made available on our induction web page in the Summer.
Any questions?
If you have any queries about the University, your chosen course of study or the admissions process, then please do not hesitate to contact the admissions@qmu.ac.uk
Tel: 0131 474 0000
