A new consultation on a post-qualification admissions system is being planned by Universities UK in response to the Local Government Authority's call earlier this month for the school year to be reformed into six terms.
Under the plans, students would take public exams in the fifth term and could get their results in June before applying to university for entry in autumn.
UUK will decide whether to launch the consultation at its annual meeting in Aberystwyth on September 11-12.