How to self-release into Clearing

If you’ve got a place at university but changed your mind and want to decline your Unconditional Firm offer, you’ll need to self-release into Clearing. This will allow you to add a Clearing choice to your UCAS Hub account and apply for your chosen course and institution through Clearing.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to self-release:

1. Make sure that you definitely don’t want to take up the place you have been offered at your firm choice. If you follow the steps below, your place will be declined and you will lose your place, so only follow these steps if you are sure that you no longer want your place.

2. Log in to your UCAS Hub account, you’ll find the ‘decline my place’ button on the home screen. Click the button if you are sure that you want to decline your place and be released into Clearing.

3. Select the reason you want to decline your place. If you are applying through Clearing this year, you want to select ‘I want to apply somewhere else’.

4. Your place will be declined and you will be given a Clearing number, meaning you can now give us a call and apply!

If you have a Conditional offer:

If you have a Conditional offer and want to be released so you can apply for a different course and/ or different university then you won’t be able to see the ‘decline my place’ button.

Get in touch with the university you hold your Conditional offer with. If you hold your Conditional offer with Birmingham City University and would like to be released, you will need to put your request in writing to Admissions via our contact form.

If you want to remain at the same university but study a different course:

If you want to remain at the same university but swap your course, you must speak to the university you hold an offer with.

If you click the ‘decline my place’ button, any arrangements you may have for accommodation or scholarships will also be cancelled.

If you hold an offer with Birmingham City University and want to see if you can change to another course with us, you must put this request in writing to Admissions via our online form. Please do not use the Clearing Hotline to try and change your course if you hold a firm or insurance offer with us.