Before you apply
Step 1 - Choose your course
Browse our courses to find the right one for you and consider visiting us at one of our open days to find out more.
If you’re an international student, you should contact a UAL representative in your country to receive personalised advice and support with your application and to hear about upcoming UAL events in your country, including portfolio workshops. Our in-country representatives can provide you with information and specialist advice about all the courses we offer, guidance on portfolio preparation, application process and interviews.
Step 2 - Check the entry requirements
- Read the entry requirements on the ‘How to apply’ section on your chosen course page carefully before applying.
- We accept a range of qualifications including but not limited to A-Levels, T-Levels, BTEC Extended Diplomas, UAL Extended Diploma and equivalent international qualifications.
- Many practice-based courses ask for a portfolio of work as part of your application process, as well as a personal statement and academic references.
- If English isn’t your native language, you’ll usually need to meet an English language requirement.
- Many undergraduate students previously completed a pre-degree course to help prepare them for undergraduate study.
Step 3 - Think about funding
You can get an idea of how much your studies may cost you in your first year and what funding may be available to you by using our Fees and Funding Calculator.
You’ll also find plenty of advice about funding your studies and living as a student in London.
Apply (step 4)
Home applicants
If you’re a Home applicant, you need to apply through UCAS (the University and Colleges Admission Service). The UCAS deadline for 2025/26 entry is 29 January 2025 6pm (UK time).
If you miss the UCAS deadline, you may still be able to apply for some of our courses, so make sure you check the course pages for more information. You may also be able to apply for some of our courses through Clearing and Adjustment. Visit our website in June/July to find out more.
International applicants
If you’re an International applicant, you can apply in 2 different ways:
- Apply through UCAS with support from a UAL representative in your country. This is our recommended way to apply to make sure you are fully supported and guided throughout the application process.
- Through UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admission Service)
By applying through a UAL representative, you’ll have access to benefits including personalised support throughout the application, interview and enrolment process. Our in-country representatives can provide you with information and specialist advice about all the courses we offer, guidance on portfolio preparation, application process and interviews, visas and immigration, accommodation and much more. Read our application guidance for international students.
The UCAS deadline for 2025/26 entry is 29 January 2025 6pm (UK time). If you miss the UCAS equal consideration deadline, you may still be able to apply for some of our courses, so make sure you check the course pages for more information.
Any students living in Iran, Crimea region, Cuba, North Korea, or Syria will not be able to make their application via UCAS due to a restriction imposed by one of UCAS's technology suppliers based in the US. Please contact our admissions team at admissions@arts.ac.uk for further instructions on how to apply.
After you apply
Step 5 - Wait for a decision
After you’ve applied, you’ll receive a confirmation email with your login details for the UAL Portal. We’ll contact you by email to ask you to upload any additional information to the UAL Portal, including inviting you to upload documents or book an interview, so make sure you check your email regularly, including your spam folders.
Once we’ve reviewed and assessed your application, we’ll contact you via UCAS Track or the UAL Portal to let you know whether your application has been successful.
We receive a great number of applications from talented students from the UK and across the world and it’s very important for us to ensure that each one gets the consideration it deserves. The amount of time it takes to reach a decision depends on many factors, including volume of applications, level of competition and whether your application is portfolio-based.
In some cases, you may receive an offer from a different course or College from the one you applied to. This happens when your application has not been successful for your chosen course but our admissions tutors have found another course that they believe would be a strong match for your skills and interests.
Step 6 - Receive your response
The outcome of your application determines what you need to do next. Find out what happens on the next stage of your journey...
More on applying through UCAS
UCAS stands for the 'Universities and Colleges Admissions Service'. They are the organisation responsible for managing applications to higher education courses in the UK.
When you apply through UCAS you are allowed up to 5 course choices across the UK.
Important dates: All applicants
If you're applying through UCAS, regardless of your fee status you should ensure that your application reaches UCAS by the deadline of 29 January 2025 6pm (UK time) in order to receive equal consideration. Equal consideration means that your application will be considered alongside other applicants who have also met the deadline.
- If you apply after 29 January 2025 after the 6pm deadline, you will be considered as a late applicant.
- Please note that you may only change your course choice within 14 days of submitting your application.
- Any course changes will not be permitted after this time. It should also be noted that any changes made to your application after 29 January 2025 will result in the application being marked as late.
- Once submitted, you can then follow the progress of your applications through UCAS Track. Your application is automatically sent to the institutions to which you have applied, so you do not need to check with them.
We'll make decisions on all on-time applications made through UCAS as soon as possible, but no later than 14 May 2025.
If you apply after 6pm on 29 January 2025, your application will not be reviewed until after those that met the 29 January deadline. The final deadline to submit an application via UCAS for a course that is still open is 30 June 2025.
Applying or transferring to a course in year 2 or 3
Most undergraduate students at UAL apply to begin their course in year 1. In some cases, students can apply for entry to year 2 or 3. Click the headings below to find out if you're eligible for advanced entry and how to apply:
Entry to year 2: Are you eligible?
We may be able to consider applications directly into year 2 of a UAL undergraduate course, with decisions made at the discretion of the admitting College (subject to space and compatibility).
We can consider applications from:
- Current UAL students who are applying to transfer from one undergraduate degree to another. Please read the UAL transfer policy for further information.
- External applicants who have studied and successfully completed (or who will successfully complete in time to meet the conditions of any offer) the first year of an undergraduate degree programme at UAL or elsewhere. Your course must be considered equivalent in level and volume to year 1 of a UAL degree.
- External applicants who have not studied at higher education level but who can demonstrate professional experience equivalent to year 1 of a UAL degree (APEL). The College you are applying to will decide whether your professional qualifications are equivalent to this level of study.
- Applicants who are applying for entry to year 2 of an undergraduate course at UAL under a valid articulation agreement with a partner university.
Entry to year 3: Are you eligible?
In most cases we don't accept applications to year 3 of a UAL undergraduate course. This is because students must complete two thirds of a UAL course to be eligible for the final award for that course.
At the discretion of the course and College you are applying to (and subject to space and compatibility), we may be able to consider applications from:
- Applicants who have already completed at UAL the first 2 years of the same undergraduate degree they are applying to.
- Applicants who have already completed at UAL the first 2 years of an undergraduate degree which is sufficiently closely related to the course they're applying to. The College you're applying to will decide whether the course is sufficiently closely related.
- Applicants who have completed (or who will complete in time to meet the conditions of any offer) a full year of study at UAL as a Study Abroad Student. You must be applying for entry to year 3 of the same undergraduate course or an undergraduate course which is sufficiently closely related. The College you are applying to will decide whether the course is sufficiently closely related.
- Applicants who are applying for entry to year 3 of an undergraduate course at UAL under a valid articulation agreement with a partner university.
If you've completed (or will complete) 2 or more years of an undergraduate course at a different university, you can only apply for entry to years 1 or 2 of a UAL undergraduate course. We will not consider you for entry to year 3. This is because you will not meet the institutional credit requirement to complete two thirds of a UAL degree.
Returning students
If you previously studied at UAL but did not finish your course, you can apply to return and complete your degree.
There are limits to how long you can wait before completing your degree. You may be considered beyond these time limits on a case-by-case basis.
How to apply for entry to year 2 or 3
If you're eligible, you should apply for your chosen course through UCAS. Select 'Point of Entry 2' (for year 2) or 'Point of Entry 3' (for year 3) when you apply.
When we receive your application, we’ll contact you for information about the studies you have completed. This includes your university study level if you studied outside of the UK. We may also ask about your immigration history.
We'll assess whether there are any spaces available in year 2 or 3 of your chosen course and if you appear to meet the Advanced Entry eligibility criteria. If so, you’ll be placed into the standard application process for that course, where your application and eligibility will be reviewed further.
The application process may include a request for a digital portfolio, written task or interview, depending on the course requirements.
If you're interested in applying for advanced or transfer entry, we recommend you apply as soon as possible for a better chance of finding an available place on your chosen course.
Personal statements
We operate a fair and transparent admissions process and as such would want to ensure that all information provided to us is honest and accurate.
UCAS submits all personal statements to their similarity detection software in order to ensure that an applicant's work does not contain the same or similar text to websites, another applicant's personal statement, or other documents. More information regarding the similarity detection process can be found on the UCAS website.
If you have submitted an application to us and you have been notified that UCAS has detected similarity in your personal statement, you can contact us directly to explain the similarity by emailing ucas.enquiries@arts.ac.uk.
If you are applying through UCAS and need help preparing your personal statement, visit the UCAS website.
UCAS Extra
UCAS Extra lets you make an additional course choice between 26 February and 4 July 2025, but only if you have used all 5 choices and you are not holding any offers. If you are eligible for UCAS Extra, UCAS will automatically send you information regarding this process.
Clearing
Clearing is the final opportunity for applicants not holding a place to apply for a course. Not all courses will have vacancies and those that do will be advertised on our website and on the UCAS website from June 2025. You can only receive an offer through Clearing if you already have your results.
Further information on applying through UCAS, including costs, deadlines and application stages, may be found on the UCAS website.