It's not *just* about points, it is also about the subjects you take. UCAS applications have to be in well before you even take your exams, let alone before knowing results. Yeah, all a bit bonkers.
Applications have always had to be in before results are known for anybody applying for a place to start immediately after they have completed their 'A' levels. If applicants were to wait until they had got their results they would either have to start later (the following January at the earliest) or it would be complete carnage.
Imagine the scene in a single provincial ex-poly:
14th August 0830: results are out.
14th August 0831: 50 000 applicants chasing 5 000* places start to fill in online forms, phone to ask if they have been successful, e-mail extenuating circumstances or get their mothers to do it for them.
14th August 0831 and 30 seconds: BT put out a press release stating that they are trying to re-connect Provincialmouth but everybody needs to be patient.
Than there's the problem of getting academic references from school teachers in mid-August when they are already dealing with 'A' level result issues.
Meanwhile Student Housing has three weeks to get all housing applications in, processed and allocated, timetabling have less than a fortnight to allocate the rooms for the year as this can't be done until numbers are known, thus academics have no idea when they will be lecturing and course administrators have no idea what numbers they will have or even if courses will run.
At about 0846 on 14th August the UCAS system will go into meltdown, shortly followed by all University systems, nobody will get a place and there will be a mass zombie attack.
The current situation means that at this time of the year we have a good idea how many students we will have on each course so timetabling can begin and administrators and academics can plan. In March applicants with a conditional offer are able to apply for Halls places.
It is still mayhem in August.
*Edit: Apols, number changed to approx first year places from approx all places (my error).