Once we have received your application, the Admissions team will consider it. We check the suitability of your qualifications while liaising with the Admissions Tutors in your chosen department.
Check the status of your application using your UCAS Hub or on Royal Holloway Applicant Portal.
Whatever the outcome of your application, you will be notified by UCAS.
How we assess your application
We are looking for applicants who we think will be successful on our degree programmes. We consider the following information:
- Your completed qualifications and the grades achieved.
- Your predicted grades in any qualifications not yet completed.
- Your personal statement and motivation to study your chosen course.
- Your reference.
Please note that we do make offers to applicants who have predicted grades lower than our advertised grade range if we believe, based on the whole of their application, they can be successful.
Types of offers
Conditional offers
Most students who apply to Royal Holloway for an undergraduate course will receive a conditional offer.
Offers are usually conditional upon the final grades of the qualifications you are taking.
If you accept Royal Holloway as your firm choice, and then meet all the conditions stated in your offer, your place on the degree programme is guaranteed.
Unconditional offers
Some students who apply to Royal Holloway for an undergraduate course will receive an unconditional offer. This means there are no further qualifications you need to achieve in order to take up your place.
If you accept Royal Holloway as your firm choice your place on the degree programme is guaranteed.
English language conditions
If English is not your first language and you haven’t taken a recognised English language test, it is likely that a condition of your offer will relate to English language.
You may have already taken an English language test, but not quite reached the required marks. If so, you could be eligible to apply for an English language pre-sessional programme, meaning you won’t need to retake the English test.
What to do if your application is unsuccessful
Unfortunately, Royal Holloway is unable to make every applicant an offer of a place on your chosen course.
You may not be offered a place due to the very specific entry requirements of some of our courses, or because courses have become oversubscribed.
If you would like more detailed feedback on why your application was unsuccessful, you should contact the Admissions Team at applicants@royalholloway.ac.uk
If you have been unsuccessful because your qualifications or your background was not suitable for a specific course, you could consider applying for an alternative course via UCAS Extra.
Explore Royal Holloway
We invite everyone who applies to Royal Holloway to explore Royal Holloway virtually on our Campus page.
Making your choice
Once you’ve received decisions from all the universities you applied to, you need to choose a firm (preferred) choice of university and an insurance (second) choice. All your other offers will then be declined.
You usually have to make your final decision in the beginning of May. However, the deadline can vary depending on when you made your application to UCAS.
Find out more about how to accept your offer
If you’ve chosen Royal Holloway as your firm choice and hold a conditional offer, the Admissions team will need to see copies of your exam results or certificates once you have fulfilled any of the conditions of your offer.
In most cases, A-level and International Baccalaureate results are communicated to the university directly via UCAS. If you're studying a different qualification, or aren't sure if we receive your results automatically, you should upload a copy of your results to the application portal.
If you accept our conditional offer, but don’t achieve the required grades, we will reconsider your offer in mid-August, when we’ll have a clearer picture of the demand for our courses.
Deposits for international students
All international students need to pay a course tuition fee deposit of £3,000 for all undergraduate courses. We require this deposit before we can issue you with a Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies (CAS) letter.
The deposit will be deducted from your tuition fee when you enrol.
Deferring your offer to the next academic year
If your plans change and you want to defer your offer to the next academic year, you should contact the Admissions team:
Tel: +44 (0)1784 414944.
We will then liaise with the department on your behalf. It is worth noting that offers are made based on predicted student numbers, so it may not always be possible.
We will notify you as soon as we’ve received a decision from the department.