Amber Kalejaiye

Amber Kalejaiye accepted a place on a Foundation Year at Sussex through Clearing. She said she would recommend studying at Sussex because of the support available and the friendly atmosphere.

• Video transcript

  I had a feeling that I hadn’t done that well in my A-levels.

  It is quite an emotional day because some people are so happy and it was quite upsetting.

  So, I made the call to Sussex.

  Did you call them first?

  Yes, and straight away I sorted it out.

  And then, that same day I came to Sussex looked around the campus because I had not been before, absolutely loved it and just felt so welcome.

  When you go to a campus and you get a good vibe and feel like you fit in...that’s what I felt at Sussex.

  Two weeks before results day I decided I needed to start doing my research.

  How does Clearing work? Which universities are offering clearing spaces?

  So, I was looking through individual university websites, UCAS as well. Who offers Philosophy?

  I knew Sussex was a good university. Some of my friends had been there the year before.

  And they had a really good experience.

  I looked at their Philosophy course and it was really good.

  Then on results day I saw I hadn’t got into my first choice, cried for about five minutes, then I thought, “OK, cool. I’m over it now.”

  I couldn’t get through for the first ten minutes because it was so busy but I didn’t panic.

  I just waited a bit, left it for 15 minutes and then called back, got through and the lady was really lovely.

  She explained to me that I couldn’t get on to my chosen course with the grades I had but I could get on to the foundation course.

  So, I just said, “Yeah, let’s do it!” That was it!

  I literally prepared myself for it to be so hard...it was so easy.

  What do you think your life would have been like if you didn’t go to Sussex and hadn’t taken that step to go through Clearing?

  I honestly have no idea. I couldn’t imagine not going to Sussex and not living in Brighton.

  Brighton has become my favourite place in the UK, hands down.

  It’s got the sea. It’s got the countryside; just past Sussex and you’ve also got city life.

  And great teaching as well, what more could you want?

  I feel like I’ve grown massively. Having gone through that process you have to grow up quite quickly when you go through Clearing as you have to make decisions and you need to know what you want.

  At the time it seems like such a big deal, so scary, but everything works out.

Clearing: Amber's experience

"When it came to Clearing I’d already been researching for the past two weeks because I wanted to be prepared, I didn’t want to be floundering.

"Some people were saying that sometimes you get interviewed, so I’d even prepared interview questions. I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t going to freak out. I still had palpitations that morning, my body woke me up at about 5am because I was so anxious, so I was waiting for about three hours for my results.

"When I got my results I rang Sussex and they offered me a place on the Foundation Year.

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Sussex is a wonderful university, people really go out of their way for you, they make the effort to make sure you're ok.” amber Kalejaiye
Arts and Humanities (with a Foundation Year)

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"From what I’ve seen of my friends’ universities I’d say that Sussex is one of the most progressive ones. It’s very forward thinking and there’s just an attitude that I really like and which I don’t think my friends have experienced. I just feel like it’s got a bit of everything.

"Would I recommend Sussex to anyone else thinking of applying? Oh god, yeah! I think it’s good for pretty much everyone.

"You have the chance to be away from a busy scene, you also have the chance to go to a very busy scene, you’re also right by the seaside – lovely. 

"Also, Sussex is a wonderful university, people really go out of their way for you, they really make the effort to make sure you’re ok. It’s just got a really good atmosphere."

You might also be interested in:

• Clearing 
• Foundation Years
• accommodation.