Model had to secure university place (7)
I believe the answer is:
situate
'place' is the definition.
(situate can mean to place or position)
'model had to secure university' is the wordplay.
'model' becomes 'sit' (e.g. for a painting).
'had' becomes 'ate' (e.g. I had an ice cream).
'to secure' is an insertion indicator (inserted letters are secured inside).
'university' becomes 'u' (abbreviation for university).
'sit'+'ate'='sitate'
'sitate' placed around 'u' is 'SITUATE'.
(Other definitions for situate that I've seen before include "Position" , "put in context" , "station" , "Locate" , "Place in a particular location" .)