Thank you to everyone who managed to join us for the CAVA Higher Education Fair, we had a fantastic time and hope that you all enjoyed the presentations and the opportunity to speak with student ambassadors. Below we have put together some recordings of the presentations for those who missed the Fair or those who want to rewatch.
We’re excited to launch our first CAVA Higher Education Fair for CAVA Access to HE students!
The Higher Education Fair will give students the opportunity to hear from and speak directly with representatives from UCAS, Student Finance England, universities, and former Access to HE students now studying at university. Some of the topics which will be covered will range from: course specific considerations, student support provisions, and financial advice. The Fair will prepare and support students in making thoughtful decisions about the future of their studies.
The Higher Education Fair will take place over three days at the start of the new 2021-22 academic year, during the week beginning 4 October 2021.
More information about each day can be found on the Hopin registration pages linked below.
In order to attend these free events, you must register for each event using the links below:
If you have any questions or need any help accessing your free tickets, please contact CAVA at website@cava.ac.uk.
We have developed a short guide for CAVA students to better understand the 2021-22 arrangements for Access to HE Diplomas. The guide contains an overview of:
You can download this guide by clicking on the image below:
For further guidance, the QAA have also released a full guide for students on the arrangements. You can view the guide via this link. You can also find all the most up-to-date FAQ information for students via the QAA website.
On behalf of everyone at CAVA we would like to congratulate all those who have completed their Access to Higher Education Diploma. CAVA will be issuing your certificates and transcripts to your colleges on 26 July, which will then be forwarded to you. CAVA will also share your final grades with UCAS to support your progression into higher education. We wish you the very best with your next steps.
Below you will find more information about how to share your feedback, how to appeal, the UCAS tariff, and how to stay in touch.
CAVA strives to ensure that our Access to HE courses meet student needs, which is why we are seeking feedback from all those who have completed their course this year. When you receive your certificate and transcript, you will also receive a letter which will include a link to complete our student survey. Your input will inform our work with our colleges to improve the student experience. Everyone who completes the survey and leaves their contact details will be entered into a draw for a prize of £50.
When you receive your grades, if you believe that you have grounds for an appeal then please contact your course leader. They will support you in identifying the grounds for your appeal, gathering the relevant information and they can submit an appeals form to CAVA on your behalf. This will be considered by a CAVA appeals panel and your college will inform you of the outcome.
The grounds for appeal about grades are restricted to:
CAVA will hold four grade appeals boards as follows:
There is a tariff calculator on the UCAS website to enable students to calculate any combination of Access to HE grades: https://www.ucas.com/ucas/tariff-calculator
UCAS have a useful video which explains how the tariff works on their website: https://www.ucas.com/ucas/undergraduate/getting-started/entry-requirements/ucas-undergraduate-tariff-points
The table below gives a few examples of grade combinations achievable on the Access to HE Diploma and the equivalent UCAS points. The full table for all qualifications is available for download on the UCAS website. The Access to HE table is on page 153.
| Pass
credits |
Merit credits | Distinction credits | Tariff points | A Level tariff point example |
| 45 | 0 | 0 | 48 | EEE (or single A grade A-level) |
| 30 | 15 | 0 | 64 | DDE (or two grade C A-levels) |
| 15 | 15 | 15 | 96 | CCC |
| 0 | 45 | 0 | 96 | CCC |
| 0 | 30 | 15 | 112 | BBC |
| 0 | 15 | 30 | 128 | ABB |
| 0 | 0 | 45 | 144 | AAA |
We have a CAVA alumni group on LinkedIn <https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13884871/> where you can keep in touch with classmates and network with other CAVA Access to HE Diploma students. We really encourage you to use this space to share stories about your progression to higher education, and your career aspirations.
