You can normally apply for up to 6 courses and the forms will be sent by UCAS to the relevant universities or colleges.

You will need to complete an application form and write a personal statement describing your experience, your interest in the course you are applying for, etc. You will also need to ask someone to provide a reference for you. If you are currently a student at a college, adult education centre, etc., your lecturer or tutor should be able to help with this. If you are not a student at present, you will need to ask a responsible person such as an employer, careers adviser, training officer or senior colleague to fill in the reference for you.

All applications are now made on line. The UCAS website (www.ucas.ac.uk) has detailed guidelines on how to apply.

Applications are normally made between September 1 and Jan 15 for courses beginning the following September.

Additional choices can be made between March and June through UCAS Extra if you have not received any offers.

The Clearing Vacancy Information service operates in July to offer any remaining places on courses to people who have not received any offers or who have not got the exam grades they needed.

timetable (for most full time courses)
Before you start – send for prospectuses, look at university and college websites (see back of this leaflet), visit open days (details will be on websites).

Jan 15
Deadline for applications

Jan - March
Universities make decisions. You may be invited for interviews. You will (hopefully) receive offers. They will be Unconditional if you already have the necessary entry requirements or Conditional if you are taking exams later in the year

Late March
if you don’t have any offers, you can make choices through UCAS Extra.

April - June
When you have heard from all your chosen institutions, you will need to make your choices. (You can hold up to 2 conditional offers).

August
Exam results are announced and decisions made about conditional offers. If you don’t have any offers, you can make more choices through Clearing.

source: aimhigher "time to think about higher education" leaflet series