With university applications reported to be up 11 per cent this year, a lot of would-be undergraduates are not going to get their first-choice course or college when A-level results are announced in England and Wales on August 20. That doesn't mean their university aspirations are finished, but it does mean they need to know how to work the UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) clearing system, which matches up students seeking courses with courses that still need students. Here are Weekend's top 10 tips on how to cope.

1 Go back to school (for the morning)

If you get your required grades, all you'll need to do at your former school is to pose for the obligatory photo of you beaming. But if you've not got the grades you need, there will be staff on hand to help you, advise you and even feed you. "We lay on a breakfast and set aside a clearing action room, with banks of phones and laptops," says Alex Hutchinson, of Central Newcastle High School for Girls.

2 Some mistake, surely?

It's a long shot, but if you've only just missed out on your first-choice university, you could give them a call to see if they might reconsider. "This year, though, because they are heavily oversubscribed and under pressure to make savings, they are less likely to be generous," says Vicky Tuck, head of Cheltenham Ladies College.

3 Go direct to clearing

Once you've been "released" (rejected) by your first-choice university, you are allocated your own individual clearing number, via the UCAS online tracking system. Once you've got it, visit the UCAS clearing pages, to see which courses still have space and at what colleges. Remember, though, once you've keyed in your clearing number and clicked "accept" you can't change your mind.

4 Act quickly

If you find out at 8am you've not got your grades, you need to be inside the clearing system by noon. Don't worry whether the universities will be too busy to take your call; they'll all be geared up, with admissions tutors tethered to their phones. Most spaces will go long before the Sept 21 deadline.

5 Have a plan B

Dig out the scribbled notes and that stack of university prospectuses on which you based your original college shortlist and take them in with you to your old school. If you get your grades, you can dump them in the bin; if not, it'll give you some clues as to where to start looking on the clearing site.

6 Keep parents informed

Although you may be legally an adult and have officially left school, it's wise to talk your new university choice through with your parents first. You may not have a firm grasp of distance between UK towns; they on the other hand will probably have a clearer idea of how long it takes to drive to Dundee or Plymouth.

7 Worth more?

If your results are better than you expected, you can (for the first time ever) try to get into a better university or onto a more sought-after course. It's called "adjustment" and works on the same principle as clearing, only you're upgrading, rather than downgrading.

8 Don't grab

Don't just take the first offer that comes along. If you're not sure, tell the university in question that you'd like to think about it, or that you'd like to visit them before you decide. Ask them how long you've got before they need a definite yes or no. Remember, too, that the situation is fluid; some courses are unavailable one day and available the next. If you do accept an offer, find out if it comes with accommodation attached (sometimes places acquired through clearing don't).

9 Get a railcard

Make a quick visit to the university or universities of your choice. Check out the position on first-year accommodation (halls of residence or digs), and work out whether you prefer an out-of-town, campus-based university (Sussex, East Anglia), or one that's more integrated with the host city (Newcastle, Leeds).

10 Think the unthinkable

Do you really want to go for three years to a university you weren't intending to choose, just because they're prepared to take you? Why not do an A-level resit, perhaps at a sixth form college, rather than your old school? It might be worth it in the long run.

(www.eduwo.com, Jainlyn&Charlotte)