Offers · 2027 entry

UCAS offers, explained

Most offers are conditional: the place is yours if you get the grades or points written in it. You keep two of them, a firm choice and a lower insurance, and decline the rest. Here’s how to read the conditions, which offer to put where, and the reply dates for 2027 entry.

Checked against the UCAS 2027 Tariff tables on 31 October 2026how we check

Conditional or unconditional

A conditional offer means you still have to meet the requirements, usually your exam results. Nearly every offer to a Year 13 student is conditional, because the results are not out yet.

An unconditional offer means the place is yours. You might still need a DBS or PVG check, proof of results you already hold, or a medical or financial condition. Unconditional offers mostly go to people who already have their qualifications, and to creative courses where a portfolio or audition counts for more than predicted grades.

Watch for a third kind. UCAS notes that a conditional offer can turn unconditional if you make that university your firm choice. The Office for Students banned these in England for one cycle during the pandemic (until 30 September 2021). In August 2026 it repeated that they put undue pressure on students, but there is no ban now. If you get one, ask yourself whether you would pick that university as firm without the sweetener.

Reading the conditions: grades, points or both

These four are the examples UCAS gives on its types of offers page. Each one is read differently.

“A levels grade AAB with A in chemistry and at least two other sciences or mathematics”

Grades, not points. AAB is 136 points, but A*A*B with the B in chemistry fails it. The A has to be in chemistry.

“112 UCAS Tariff points including BTEC National Diploma grade DM”

Points, with one fixed part. The Diploma at DM gives 80, so the other 32 can come from an A level, an EPQ or another qualification the course accepts.

“AAA from three A levels, or AAB from three A levels and grade B in your Extended Project”

Two ways in. A B in the EPQ lowers the A level grades by one step. The EPQ only helps here because the offer names it.

“88 UCAS Tariff points, of which at least 60 must be obtained from two A levels, excluding General Studies”

Points with a floor. CD is 56, short of 60, while CC (64) clears it. The other 24 points can then come from a third A level at D or anything else the course counts.

The rule underneath: a points total can never stand in for a named grade. And universities pick which points they count. UCAS says they don’t have to accept a qualification just because it is on the Tariff, may count only your best three A levels, and usually ignore an AS in a subject you also took at A level. Add up what you hold on the calculator, then check the course page for what it leaves out.

Typical offer or your offer

Course pages show a typical offer: what the course normally asks for. It is a guide, not a promise. Your own offer can be lower (a contextual offer is often one or two grades below) or set differently, and late or Clearing applicants can see other terms. Plan around the conditions in your own offer, which you see in your UCAS Hub.

Firm and insurance: which offer goes where

Once every university has replied, you accept one firm choice and, if you want one, one insurance. Every other offer has to be declined. The insurance only exists as a back-up to a conditional firm.

On results day it works like this:

you meet the firm conditions: you go to your firm;
you miss the firm but meet the insurance: you go to your insurance;
you miss both: the universities may still take you, or you look in Clearing.

You can’t pick between them once results are out. So put the one you want most as firm, and an insurance with lower conditions that you would still be happy at. A firm of ABB with an insurance of BBC gives you two grade steps (16 points) of room. A firm and insurance both at AAB give you none.

If you hold an unconditional offer you like, accepting it as firm ends the question: you can’t add an insurance to it.

Reply dates for 2027 entry

You can only reply once every choice has a decision. Your deadline follows the date of the last one, per UCAS:

Last decision received by	Reply by
31 March 2027	5 May 2027
12 May 2027	2 June 2027
14 July 2027	21 July 2027

Miss your date and UCAS declines your offers for you. You then have 14 days to call UCAS and undo it. Some early-start courses set an earlier reply date of their own and can withdraw the offer if you let it pass.

Changed your mind after replying? Within 14 days you can swap once by contacting UCAS. After that, or for a second swap, the universities have to agree. No swaps are possible after 22 July 2027.

UCAS offer questions

What is the difference between a conditional and an unconditional offer?

A conditional offer means you still have to meet requirements, usually exam results. An unconditional offer means you already have the place, though checks such as a DBS check, proof of results or medical requirements can still apply.

Can I have an insurance choice with an unconditional firm offer?

No. UCAS says that accepting an unconditional offer as your firm means you are committed to going there, so you cannot add an insurance choice.

Should my insurance offer be lower than my firm?

Yes, that is the point of it. UCAS advises picking an insurance with lower offer conditions, at a university you would still be happy to go to. An insurance with the same grades as your firm only helps if the two make different subject demands.

Can I swap my firm and insurance after results day?

No. You cannot choose between them on results day. If you miss your firm, meet your insurance and now prefer neither, the route is Clearing, and you should check with the insurance university first.

When do I have to reply to my UCAS offers for 2027 entry?

It depends on when your last decision arrives: by 31 March 2027 means replying by 5 May 2027; by 12 May 2027 means 2 June 2027; by 14 July 2027 means 21 July 2027. Miss the date and your offers are declined automatically.

Does a typical offer mean everyone gets those grades?

No. A typical offer is what a course usually asks for. A university can make you a lower offer (a contextual offer, for example) or a different one, so the figure in your own offer is the one that counts.