Our Widening Access Offer Criteria Explained

In the majority of cases, a "Plus Flag" applicant will be guaranteed an offer at the minimum entry requirement. "Plus Flag" applicants need to be predicted to meet - or have already met -those grades, and have any required subject.

Unfortunately, we can’t make this absolute guarantee in every situation. For degrees where we assess more than academic grades, an offer cannot be guaranteed for all "Plus Flag" applicants and in those cases, extra credit will be given in the overall selection process. Also, in applying the University’s contextual admissions policy, each year we will take account of the number of places available and the nature and scale of demand within subject areas. In a very small number of degrees, we may have more "Plus Flag" applicants than we have places available, and we would not be able to make offers to every one of those applicants in that situation.

You are eligible for a Plus Flag if you are permanently resident in the UK and you fulfil one or more of the following criteria.

• You are care experienced
• You are a refugee or an asylum seeker
• Your home postcode is within the lowest quintile of the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (“SIMD20”)
• Your home postcode is within the second lowest quintile of the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (“SIMD40”) AND you attend a school of low attainment at Higher within Scotland
• Your home postcode is within the lowest or second lowest quintile of the Acorn measure of socio-economic disadvantage (“Acorn 5” or “Acorn 4”) AND you attend a school of low attainment at Higher within Scotland
• Your home postcode is within the lowest or second lowest quintile of the Acorn measure of socio-economic disadvantage (“Acorn 5” or “Acorn 4”) AND you attend a state school in England, Wales or Northern Ireland
• Your home postcode is within the lowest or second lowest quintile of the POLAR measure of socio-economic disadvantage (“POLAR 1” or “POLAR 2”) AND you attend a state school in England, Wales or Northern Ireland
• You attend one of our identified Scottish “low progression” schools (these are selected based on low progression to Higher Education, high proportion of free school meal entitlement and high proportion of SIMD20 postcodes and are reviewed every three years, with the next review due to be summer 2025)
• You attend a LEAPS (Lothians Equal Access Programme for Schools) Group 1 or Group 1 Plus School
• You are undertaking a course with SWAP (Scottish Wider Access Programme)
• You are undertaking the University of Edinburgh’s Access Programme
• You have completed one of our recognised bridging programmes* and are either estranged from your family or a carer

If you are assigned a “Flag”, you’ll be prioritised for a place in degree programmes where competition for places is high. Offers are usually made to people who have achieved, or are predicted to achieve, the top of our standard entry requirement range. However, if competition for places is higher than expected, you may need grades above that level to receive an offer. Applicants with a “Flag” are given an offer ahead of others with the same grades.

You are eligible for a Flag if you are permanently resident in the UK and you fulfil one or more of the following criteria:

• Your home postcode is in Scotland and is within the second lowest quintile of the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (“SIMD40”)
• Your home postcode is in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and is within the lowest or second lowest quintile of the POLAR measure of socio-economic disadvantage (“POLAR 1” or “POLAR 2”)
• Your home postcode is in any part of the UK and within the lowest or second lowest quintile of the Acorn measure of socio-economic disadvantage (“Acorn 5” or “Acorn 4”)
• You attend a state school of low attainment at Higher or A-level
• You attend a LEAPS (Lothians Equal Access Programme for Schools) Group 2 School and are confirmed as eligible for support from LEAPS