Firm and Insurance Choices in UCAS: How to Accept Offers Correctly

Short answer: Once you have all your UCAS decisions, you accept one offer as your Firm choice and another as your Insurance (backup) choice, and decline the rest. Your Insurance should usually be an offer with lower conditions.

Types of offers

• Conditional: Your place is confirmed once you meet certain grades or provide a language certificate.
• Unconditional: You have already met all the requirements.

Your Firm choice

Your Firm choice is your first choice. If you meet its conditions, you are committed to going there, so choose the university you really want most.

Your Insurance choice

Your Insurance is a backup that applies if you do not meet the conditions of your Firm offer. A sensible approach:

• Its conditions should be lower than your Firm offer;
• It should be a university you would genuinely be happy to attend;
• An Insurance choice is optional, but it reduces risk.

Common mistakes

• Choosing Firm and Insurance offers with the same conditions.
• Choosing a university you do not want to attend as your Insurance.
• Missing the reply deadline, in which case offers may be declined automatically.

If your plans change

If your plans change after results, you can release your place in UCAS and apply for another course through Clearing. See: what is UCAS Clearing.

For international students

After you accept your Firm offer, the university may ask for a deposit and documents for your CAS: what is a CAS.

EDDE Global

EDDE Global helps you compare offers and make the right choice in UCAS. Free consultation: konsultasiya.eddeglobal.az.