Surprised there isn't somewhere to really put topics about Education. I've put it here, but feel free to move it if it's in the wrong place..

Basically i left college summer before last, and took a year out to work and really think about what i want to do. However, the process for going to University this year has finished already and i'm still no nearer to deciding what i want to do.

I kinda made abit of a hash of college.. finished with 1 A-level and 1 AS, but i still want to go to Uni. I've been doing some online freelance journalism work for the past 3-4 years now, and want to take this experience further in the future.. with University being an integral stepping stone to this. Ideally i want to do some sort of Journalism course at University, but not sure if i'll get on any courses due to my lack of A-Level qualifications and UCAS points..

Is it too late to apply for Uni this year now? Does my lack of UCAS points rule me out of ever taking up Jouranlism at University?

Any help greatly appreciated.

There isn't a separate section for various topics about education, because it would be tiny. I would guess that the General Chat section would be more appropriate for this post.

Anyway, moving on... You've missed the deadline for 2006 UCAS application. Your next opportunity starts in, I think, September, for 2007 admission. I've no idea about the specific entry requirements for Journalism courses. Go to the UCAS (http://www.ucas.com/)site and do a course search; that should direct you to the appropriate university home pages.

Are you 21 yet? If so, you're classed as a mature student and as such the entry requirements might be a little less strict; your experience will help too.

If you're not 21, how about checking out if you could do a couple of fast-track A Levels? I believe there are some subjects that you can do in a year instead of the usual two at some colleges.

Good luck.

The University of Sheffield do a journalism degree which I got on to with an access course and one A Level. It is quite competitive though as there aren't many NCTJ accredited courses in the UK.

I'd recommend getting in touch with the department, maybe set up a meeting with the head (Peter Cole) to ask him for some advice on getting onto the course. They like it when you show initiative and I think it's a good idea to make a connection with a real person rather than just dealing with UCAS forms.

http://www.shef.ac.uk/journalism/
Hope that helps!

2 main options:

1) Try and get a place through clearing in August. I think you can do this without having made a UCAS application so long as you send one off not for late entry. However, I think you may have trouble with Journalism as it's a very popular course, usually oversubscribed and many people on the courses have more than the minimum entry requirements.

2) Go to college and do an access to HE course. They can give you all the guidance you need with applications, and the access course will count as A-levels.

However you do have relevant work experience which is definitely a big plus especially if you're over 21 and can be classed as a mature student