The DfE is seeking views on potential changes to higher education admissions to incorporate a system of post-qualification admissions (PQA).

The PQA consultation follows earlier recommendations from the University UK’s Fair Admissions Review for students to receive HE offers after results are known in order to reduce reliance on predicted grades and address the practice of unconditional offers.

The PQA consultation document sets out the rationale for reform with two potential models for a PQA system:

Model 1: Post-qualification applications and offers with a longer application window created by bringing results dates forward to the end of July and moving HE term dates back to the first week of October.

Model 2: Pre-qualification applications with post-qualification offers with applications made during term-time (as now) but offers made after a slightly earlier than usual results day.

The proposals rule out a PQA model where applications and offers take place after the usual August results dates and with the HE term starting anytime between November and January based on the considerable gap between the end of school/college and the start of university, and either a shortened HE first term prior to Christmas or an out-of-sync academic year from January.

International students are not currently in scope for the proposed changes.

The deadline for responses to the consultation is 13 May 2021.