This service supplies providers with historic data, going back to 2008, about an applicant’s school or college. This is in addition to postcode data through POLAR2, POLAR3, and the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD). The data can be used to assess an applicant’s achievement and potential, in light of their educational and socioeconomic background.
If you want to use the contextual data service, you need to register with us, make it clear to applicants that you’re accessing this, and how it is being used in the admissions process. For more information and to register, please contact contextualdata@ucas.ac.uk.
To continue to support you in widening participation in higher education, 2017 data is now available for the 2019 admissions cycle through UCAS’ link products. We've created this flyer to detail what data is available, and to help you understand our contextual data service.
We've also produced this factsheet in conjunction with the Fair Education Alliance (FEA), to explain what contextualised admissions might mean for students' applications.