Students have experienced a lot but not the worst since the tuition fees have been increased. It's planned to itroduce the law according to which applying to universities would be possible only after pupils receive their A-level results rather than using the system of "predicted grades". The latter is considered to be flawed.
According to Ucas, the admissions service, a very low percentage of the predicted grades is accurate, being only 10%. Consequently, many students have to take gap years and go through clearing because they have applied to the universities for inappropriate courses.
Applying for universities with prediction rather than assurance of getting certain grades is very risky. Not many students put in a deferred application so that they can have a gap year if their grades are lower then expected.
What is the way out? Of course, you can go through clearing and do a different degree somewhere else. However, that does not mean that students' aims should be not as high as they could be. In the prospect of having been offered a place at whatever university with the grades that you have, students would not struggle for better opportunities.
Clearing is a flawed process and this means that the best places would be given to the first applicants. The Ucas admission system is also unfair to those students who achieve higher grades than predicted. Many pupils' abilities are underestimated by teachers in schools. Pupils from low-income familes find it difficult to pass exams because of their teacher's assessments while other pupils often receive petition from their parents.
There is also an opinion that pupils do not have enough time to prepare both to exams and applications during a school year. Would there be more time if students had less exams to pass to do their best while writing a coursework?
