'Everything Must Go!' Clearing and first-year performance

Although the connection between clearing and student performance has not been extensively researched, some academic staff have been concerned that clearing students might be less well qualified and less committed to their programme of study than those who applied earlier in the year. Taking a cohort of 425 students who entered a social science programme at a new university, this article investigates the nature of student and institutional decision-taking during the 'clearing' period and considers the impact of late decision-taking upon student performance during the first year of their studies. Interviews with admissions staff investigated whether the pressures of the clearing period left sufficient time for careful decision-taking by the students and by the institution since it has been suggested that successful performance comes from students whose expectations match those of the programme of study. Whilst clearing students were similar to earlier applicants in terms of gender, age and 'A' level scores, their reasons for entering through clearing differed considerably and these different categories of clearing students experienced wide variations in their progression rates. Some clearing students achieved high progression rates, indicating that they were able to make effective choices even under pressure, and the article suggests that the policy implications of this finding should be carefully evaluated.