From Gap Year Plans to Newcastle in Two Weeks: My Clearing Story

Results day without a plan

Results Day was a strange experience because I wasn’t walking in expecting an offer.

Most people around me were checking whether they’d got into their firm or insurance choices. I didn’t have either. There was nothing to compare my grades against because I hadn’t applied anywhere in the first place.

I began researching courses, looking through Clearing vacancies and trying to work out where I could see myself living for the next three years. It felt like a huge decision to make in such a short amount of time, but at the same time there was an excitement to it that I hadn’t expected.

Why Newcastle?

Newcastle wasn’t originally on my radar at all. It was actually my mum who found the journalism course while we were looking through options together. I had around five or six universities I could have applied to through Clearing, but Newcastle stood out.

The course looked strong, the city seemed lively, and everyone I spoke to had positive things to say about student life there. Coming from Essex, though, moving all the way to Newcastle felt like a huge leap but I was excited.

What surprised me most was how welcoming Newcastle felt. The city is big enough that there’s always something happening, but compact enough that you quickly learn your way around. Within a few weeks, somewhere I’d never visited before started to feel familiar.

Finding accommodation 

Once I’d accepted my place, accommodation became the next challenge.

Because everything had happened so late, I genuinely wasn’t sure what would still be available.

I remember calling Downing Students and expecting to hear that most rooms had already gone. When a room became available the team talked me through the options, answered all my questions, and helped me secure a room much faster than I expected.

The reassuring thing is that it didn’t all happen on Results Day. I think a lot of students imagine they need to have everything sorted immediately, but I actually secured my accommodation a few days later. From deciding to go to university to having both my place and accommodation sorted took less than a week.

Moving to a city I didn’t know

There were definitely moments during that first week when I wondered whether I’d made the right decision. I didn’t know anyone, I didn’t know the city, and everything was completely new.

Settling into living at Verde was easier than I thought. The communal spaces are great and the team was helpful in making the moving process straight forward.

The location helped too. Being close to campus, shops, cafés and everything I needed meant I never felt overwhelmed by the size of the move. The city became manageable very quickly because everything was within easy reach.

My advice for students considering clearing

If you’re thinking about going through Clearing, here are a few things I wish I’d known:

• You don’t need to know a city inside out before choosing it. Most students are starting somewhere unfamiliar. What matters is whether you can see yourself building a life there.
• Accommodation can feel scary but in reality is ok. It feels like a huge thing to organise, but universities and accommodation providers deal with Clearing students every year.
• Don’t assume a last minute decision is a bad one. Sometimes the right opportunity appears later than planned. Just because you didn’t spend months preparing for it doesn’t mean it can’t work out brilliantly.
• If someone had told me a year ago that I’d be living in Newcastle, studying journalism and planning to move in with friends for second year, I probably wouldn’t have believed them.