Do I need to do anything to access the lower offer?

If you are assessed as eligible for a contextual offer and offered a place at the University then you don’t need to do anything, the contextual offer will be automatically be applied to your application. You should also receive an email from our Undergraduate Admissions Team informing you that you have received a contextual offer. If you do not receive a contextual offer, but, after assessing your eligibility on our website believe you should have received one, please contact us at contextualdata@warwick.ac.uk with full details of your query and UCAS ID.

When will my new offer appear on UCAS Hub?

If you are assessed as eligible for a contextual offer and offered a place at the University then your contextual offer will show up on UCAS Hub once your offer is made by the University. You should also receive an email from our Undergraduate Admissions Team informing you that you have received a contextual offer.

Do I have to accept Warwick as my firm choice to get the lower offer?

No, you don’t have to accept Warwick as your firm or insurance choice to receive the contextual offer.

Someone else from my school has been given a contextual offer but I haven’t. Why is there a difference?

While we do take school data into account when considering contextual offers, school data is not the only criteria we use. Other information on your application is also taken into account. Therefore people attending your school may (for example) live in a different postcode area, which could entitle them to a contextual offer, or have other personal criteria which you are not aware of.

I believe my school or postcode meets the criteria for a contextual offer but I haven’t received a contextual offer.

If you have checked your school and postcode eligibility but believe that the information we have is incorrect, please contact us at contextualdata@warwick.ac.uk with evidence of your school’s eligibility and your UCAS ID and we will investigate. Please note that we use the most up to date government statistics at the start of each academic cycle. Our schools data is updated annually, therefore those schools which are new or which have changed name may not always be captured in the dataset.

If I do get a contextual offer, what will my new offer be?

Contextual offers vary by department and by course. Your new offer will have reduced academic conditions compared with the standard entry requirements. The Contextual Offer will will be up to 2 grades lower than the Standard Offer (e.g. AAB rather than AAA) and/or may remove an additional requirement such as an admissions test. Contextual offers are set by Departments to ensure that the offer takes into account the educational disadvantage experienced by an applicant while also retaining the standard required to successfully undertake the course. Therefore the applicant does not choose the subjects in which the grade reduction is made.

We cannot advise you what your new offer will be as this is set by individual departments and offers are made by undergraduate admissions. Please contact ugadmissions@warwick.ac.ukLink opens in a new window with any queries related to offers.

I have changed schools between KS4 and KS5 and my new school isn’t on the list, could I still be eligible for a contextual offer?

Yes, you could still be eligible for a contextual offer. If your first school meets both the KS4 and Free School Meals criteria then you would be eligible for a contextual offer.

I attend a sixth form college, could I still be eligible for a contextual offer?

Yes, you could still be eligible for a contextual offer. We look at the performance of your school i.e. KS4 performance and Free School Meals data and KS5 performance at your sixth form college to assess eligibility.

Am I eligible for a contextual offer based on Free School Meals?

Starting with the 2024/25 admissions cycle, we are using individual Free School Meal eligibility as one of our criteria for contextual offers.

This flag is generated based on Free School Meals data that UCAS obtains directly from the National Pupil Database. Eligibility for this flag requires that you were registered for Free School Meals at least once on any census day during the six years leading up to and including the census day of your final Key Stage 4 year—essentially, during the school year when you were aged 15-16.

It's important to note that this contextual offer criterion is solely based on your Free School Meals eligibility and does not consider parental employment status or household income.

Am I eligible for a contextual offer due to my disability or medical condition?

Our contextual offer policy is primarily aimed at addressing socioeconomic barriers within education. As such, we do not consider medical conditions or disabilities as part of our contextual offer criteria. If your recent education, academic progress, and/or attainment has been negatively impacted by circumstances beyond your control we would encourage you to notify us of this via our Extenuating Circumstances form. However, please note that we will not generally consider a disability or long-term health condition as extenuating circumstances unless there were no appropriate adjustments made for your studies or exam performance, and/or you had an acute episode of illness which had a particular impact on a period of study or your exam performance.

I meet one of the eligibility criteria but also attended an independent school on a scholarship or bursary, am I eligible for a contextual offer?

Applicants who attended an independent school during Key Stage 4 or 5 are not eligible for a contextual offer at Warwick, even if they attended on a bursary or scholarship, with the exception of those who meet our criteria based on care experience, estrangement or refugee status.

Am I eligible for a contextual offer if... I have unpaid caring responsibilities, I have parenting responsibilities for a child aged 17 or under, I am in the UK armed forces, or I have a parent or carer who currently or previously served in the UK Armed Forces?

Applicants from these groups are not currently considered for contextual offers at Warwick. If one or more of these situations apply to you and has affected your recent education, academic progress, and/or attainment we would encourage you to notify us of this via our Extenuating Circumstances form.