Leicester wasn't on Rosie's list a week before she had a place here 

Rosie Lane had never looked at the University of Leicester. A week later, she was a Leicester law student.

Rosie, who has just finished the first year of her law degree with a first, had spent a long time applying for apprenticeships. University slipped down her list while she waited to hear back.

"I put a lot of energy into applying for apprenticeships, and they are really rare to get. It meant that university went on the back burner a little bit," she said.

"I'd applied to Birmingham, I'd applied to Southampton, and maybe one other. But Leicester I'd never even looked at."

Two days before results day, her boyfriend asked the question she had been avoiding. What if Birmingham did not come through?

"I was like, I don't know. I really don't know. And he was like, well, let's look at Leicester. It's closer."

So the day before results day, they drove over from Peterborough to look round Oadby Student Village and the city.

"If nothing else, we visited a new city," she said. "I had a look around campus, had a look at the accommodation, the village very much stood out to me, and the University is quite good for living costs in general. And I loved it. I really, really loved it."

Birmingham did not come through. Rosie went straight to Leicester's Clearing line.

"I just went onto the website, there was the Clearing line, it was really easy to find," she said.

By then the nerves had caught up with her, as she says they catch up with everyone.

"The emotions of results day, when there are so many people in one place, it gets you, no matter how chill you try and be."

She took her dad's phone into a quiet teacher's office and rang.

"They asked my name, my school, my results, and what course I wanted to do. Just very easy questions, and really quite reassuring. There were definitely no complex questions, nothing I had to delve into my brain to answer.

"It literally wasn't very long on the phone before they told me I had a place. My dad was even more glad than me. He cried, and I've only ever seen my dad cry a couple of times in my life.

"An hour after I opened those results, or perhaps less, I knew where I was going for uni."

A year on, Rosie says the thing she would complement the University on first is not academic.

"It's the way they take their students and make them feel at home. Res Life, the wellbeing check-ins, the lecturers. Every staff member seems really geared towards making sure you're okay. I went to almost every single one of the Res Life events, especially when everyone goes home in the holidays and they still put events on to make sure the students are okay."

She had not studied law at A-level, so a mock trial in her first year was her first taste of the courtroom. "Me and my best friend went in and did it together. I absolutely loved it." She is the law student rep for the coming year, and this August she will be answering the Clearing phones herself.

Her advice to students opening their results this month is simple.

"Don't be worried about picking up the phone, even if you're not sure, even if you just need to talk to somebody about what Leicester could offer. When you pick up the phone, the people are really friendly, and you never know what door you're opening."

She is just as clear that the results themselves matter less than students fear.

"No matter what you get as a result, whether it's what you want or whether it's not, be proud of it. Pick up the phone and say, this is what I've got.

"You could be sat in a cohort where people got results that were two grades higher than you. It literally doesn't matter when you get to university, as long as you can then jump into the course that you want to do."

All courses available via Clearing are on the website. The website includes links to live information events, an ultimate guide to Clearing, answers to frequently asked questions, information for parents and more. 

Students who have their grades can call 0116 373 6000 or where staff can chat through the options or contact us on WhatsApp by clicking the link on our website.  

Our Clearing hotline is open Monday to Friday 9.00am to 5.00pm and Saturday 10.00am to 3.00pm and our WhatsApp team can answer your messages Monday to Friday 9.00am to 4.30pm and Saturday 9.00am to 2.30pm 

Those waiting for results, can call or use WhatsApp between 7am and 9pm on results day (Thursday 13 August). On Friday 14 August lines are open 8am to 6pm. 

The University offers guaranteed University-managed accommodation if applicants apply before Tuesday 1 September 2026.