The ultimate student calendar

The academic calendar can be a tough one for students to wrap their heads around - so many dates crammed into one academic year. We don’t doubt you’ll have so many questions circling round your head: When do applications have to be in? When do you need to have your personal statement ready? When are A Levels released? Fear not! All the important dates are found below.

September 2023

September is, likely, when your university course will finally begin! All the hard work and preparation has finally led to this moment. You may find the occasional course that begins in October, too.

Most universities have different dates for when their courses actually begin. The main moments for September are:

• Friday, 1st September 2023: BMAT registration officially opens.
• Sunday, 10th September & Thursday, 14th September 2023: CAT 2023 Form Correction Window opens.
• The beginning of university/school/college.
• Final date for registration for the CAT exam.
• For university first years, it’s Freshers week!

Make sure you have everything you need for the start of term. You can check out our university checklist to make sure you have everything you need, and make sure you have all of your books and equipment.

October 2023

October is the time for early applications for specific subjects and universities. Oxbridge always have earlier application dates than other universities, as do certain medical courses.

Sunday, 15th October 2023:
• Oxbridge admission deadline.
• Application deadline for dentistry courses.
• Tuesday, 17th October 2023: Clearing officially closes.
• Wednesday, 18th October 2023: BMAT test date.

University admissions tests for Oxbridge will generally be around this time. The university may hold these at different times or dates, but the majority will be in October, with university interviews to follow at a later date.

November 2023

Very little happens in November beyond general university application prep work. This is typically the time for writing your personal statement, and having teachers, guardians or friends have a look at it for you to giver you some feedback.

The main dates for November are:

• Saturday, 24th November 2023: BMAT Results are released.

Lots of students also begin revising for exams around this time. Thisdepends on your own approach to exam prep and what exams you have coming up.

December 2023

There are no key dates for December 2023. The IELTS final dates will be this month, but, other than that, there’s not a tremendous amount to be focusing on.

Enjoy the time off! You have two bank holidays and Christmas to enjoy, if you celebrate it - so enjoy some time off.

January 2024

January is a pretty easy time in terms of the academic calendar. After all the new year’s resolutions have been abandoned and the sight of a bottle of alcohol fills you with a sense of forboding; you’ll be pleased to know that there are no truly taxing things to be getting on with this month, whether you're already at university, or looking to go.

The important dates for January are:

• Thursday, 25th January 2024: UCAS deadline for the majority of university courses.
• Wednesday, 31st January 2024: Final deadline for all courses. Referred to by UCAS as the “equal consideration deadline”, meaning all course providers must consider all applications submitted on this date equally.

February 2024

Like January before, February has comparatively very little to be worrying about, other than your ongoing studies. Some universities may begin formal examinations or focused work, but this will, ultimately, depend on your university.

The important date in February are:

• Wednesday, 28th February 2024: UCAS Extra opens for students.

This is the chance to add more selections to your UCAS application. If you have not yet received an offer, but have used all five of your choices, then you can add another to your profile.

March 2024

You can rest easy for March! There are no especially big dates for students looking to go to university or for students who are already attending.

However, March does bring in our first (official) bank holiday, unless you include New Year’s Day. Friday, 29th March 2024 (Good Friday) is a bank holiday, so mark your calendars!

April 2024

April is also a quieter one, compared to other, more hectic months. This is generally when schools and colleges begin winding down formal teaching, and begin focusing, in earnest, on examinations.

You also get the chance for another bank holiday. This time, it falls on April Fool’s Day (Monday, 1st April 2024), so despite what your mates might tell you, there is no school that day!

May 2024

May is when it all starts to kick into overdrive. It’s possibly the most stressful month of the academic year, as this is when A Levels and GCSEs are sat.

There are even two bank holidays: Monday, 6th May and Monday 27th May 2024. Luckily though, these won’t coincide with exam dates.

It’s difficult to give exact dates as they’re set by the schools or colleges, or are set by the people who administer the examinations; however, the important moments are:

• A Level examinations.
• BTEC examinations.
• GCSEs examinations.
• T Levels examinations.

Not all BTECs or T Levels will have examinations. Some may but this will depend on the course asmost will have practical assessments.

June 2024

June is a mixture of the good and the bad. The bad thing is that your exams are, likely, still ongoing in June. The good thing, however, is that they officially end in June for most people. Some may run into July, but, for the most part, they’ll be over in June and your holidays can begin!

The main date for June is:

• Thursday, 6th June 2024: Your deadline for replying to offers is if you received your last decision on or before Thursday, 16 May 2024.

You won’t have your results yet, but you can begin the process of accepting and rejecting. All that awaits is your results in August.

July 2024

July is the month when university admissions begin to pick up. However, not all students will have their results just yet. Students who have sat their A Levels and GCSEs will need to wait until August for their results.

The key dates for July are:

• Friday, 5th July 2024: UCAS Clearing officially opens.
• Wednesday, 24th July 2024: This is your deadline for replying to offersif you received your last decision on or before Wednesday, 17th July 2024.

Don’t worry about Clearing officially opening just yet. Clearing is only open for students who have received their grades back and also for international students who have their International Baccalaureate and IELTS scores.

August 2024

The month of maximum stress and worry: August. For students, it’s the month when A Level results are released, likely determining what university you are going to, and seeing if all the months of hard work and solitude are going to pay off.

The key dates for August are:

• Thursday 15th August 2024:
• A Level Results day
• AS Level Results day
• BTEC results day
• T Level results day
• Thursday 22nd August 2024: GCSE results day
• Date to be announced: CAT exam registration opens.

August is when Clearing begins to take shape more earnestly. Students are able to decide what courses they want to study, which university they want to attend, or whether they want to retake their exams.

There is also a bank holiday to enjoy too.. The bank holiday for August, falls on Thursday 26th, it is also, sadly, the final one of the year before Christmas.

September 2024

September is, traditionally, the month when most university courses begin. Some may start in October, but the majority tend to start in September.

It is tough to give a precise date, as most universities change when their courses actually begin. Schools and colleges are usually back in the second week of the month, while universities can be a little later.

The main moments for September are:

• The beginning of university/school/college.
• Final date for registration for the CAT exam.
• Freshers week.

Though the CAT exam date is not yet announced, the deadline is always in September. This is also when the Opening of Form Correction Window begins for the exam.

October 2024

October is where things can get a little strange. For students who are applying for 2025 entry, certain specific courses and universities must be applied to in October, rather than at the end of January.

The key dates for October are:

• Thursday, 17th October 2024: Oxbridge admission deadline.
• Thursday 17th October 2024: Application deadline for dentistry degrees.
• Monday, 21st October 2024: BMAT test date.

The dates for specific entry courses for 2024 have not yet been announced. These will likely be announced in due course.

November 2024

November is the month when students begin to get their admissions test results back. Not all results will be sent back to students immediately, as most may sit with the university before they are given to you, however.

The main dates for November are:

• Sunday, 24th November 2024: BMAT results are returned.

This is also, typically, when students begin writing their personal statements. This is not when they need to be submitted, as that falls in January, however, it is a good idea to at leastbegin work at this point.

December 2024

December is generally fairly quiet. That isn’t to say there is nothing to do, it is just generally the time when students are starting to add their main components to their UCAS application.

December is usually the start of the main half terms too. Christmas and Boxing Day tend to dominate the month, bringing with it the final two bank holidays of the year.