Top Unis - am I missing something?

[OnTheRoll]

DD is in Year 13, predicted 3 A, already has an A from a language A Level she did last year, and 11 GCSEs all 8/9. Got a great work experience in her chosen field, lots of academic reading, etc., etc. Has been working very hard and aiming for a top uni.

The problem is, it seems that unless she gets into Oxbridge, there isn't a suitable option for her?

We are in SE so decided not to go for Durham/Edinburg as the travel is just too much, 5+ hours, and she would not be able to come home more than once a term. She would very much prefer a campus experience rather than a city uni which rules out LSE/UCL in London.

There are of course great options like Warwick, Bristol, Bath, Exeter. We visited and DD loved them and so did I.

But I cannot help thinking that if she were to go to one of those unis she didn't really need to spend that much time working, studying and sacrificing her free time. Does it make sense? Entry requirements in those unis in her subject are all quite lower than her current and predicted grades.

Would appreciate some perspective.

If she was that bothered she wouldn't have dismissed universities which are 5 hours away. We lived abroad and our children all came to university in the UK. They all survived. They weren't running home to Mummy every five minutes. It took a plane or a long car ride to get them there and back and would have been much more convenient to have gone locally. But it was what they wanted. You are also being unreasonable and snobbish by casually dismissing good universities like Warwick. Many pick that university over Oxbridge.

She is my child, not my young adult.

So basically it's not fair that there aren't more elite campus universities in the southeast that suit kids from the south east that don't want to travel too far - yes?

I went to Cambridge and my second choice was Bristol, which at the time was very good for politics (20 years ago). I really wanted to go to LSE but felt I wouldn’t be able to afford the accommodation costs and cost of living in London at the time. Birmingham and Warwick were also considered good choices for politics back then. As others have said put some down and then when the offers roll in go and see them with your daughter, you can get a feel for the campus and city better that way!

😂 Just about sums it up

AFAIK many if not all the Russell Group universities have pretty high entrance requirements - AAB is common, though it will probably depend to some extent on the popularity of the subject.

It seems like you’re concerned that not going to Oxbridge will not stretch her enough but she’s concerned it will stretch her too much.

I’m not convinced by the travel argument against Durham and Edinburgh - that’s what trains are for - I wonder if she’s actually concerned about being too far from home emotionally? I can’t say that getting back home from uni was a factor in my choice - I didn’t even consider it.

She sounds a good candidate for taking a year out and applying when she’s decided what she wants and where. Potentially another year of life will make her more sure about choices and less concerned about cutting ties with home.

Please not Bath or Exeter. Hopefully she will get into Oxbridge. It’s possible to fly from Edinburgh which is quicker, although I appreciate maybe a bit more expensive. Congrats on your daughters success.

This is one of the oddest posts ever on this topic IMO.

You're dismissing unis that are consistently in the Top 10.
That's really odd.

Also, a degree in politics is seen as a 'soft' subject and I'm wondering what career exactly your DD is hoping to enter?

That's why her offers from other excellent unis are low- it's the subject she's applying for. You don't need top grades to study politics compared to say economics, bio science, computer science, medicine.

Are you under the misapprehension that a degree from Oxbridge opens all kinds of doors regardless of the subject?

She seems a bit hesitant about joining in student life anyway if the north is too far.

If what you're saying is unless she goes to Oxbridge then uni is a waste of time, I'd think you need a touch of realism.

A degree is the first foot in her career. What she does with her degree is more to the point.

What does she want to do?

So at the risk of repeating other messages i would suggest the following:

1. Continue investigating unis she feels good about and continue letting her have her own opinions, however much you might like to steer.
2. Encourage her to add in a couple of outliers - one might be more distance or London, one might be lower grade boundaries but a place with a thriving politics/international relations department.
3. See what comes back offer wise
4. Go to the offer holder days for all those she gets offers for. They are quite a different atmosphere from the general open days and she will get more concentrated time with her potential lecturers and class mates. You would be surprised how differently this may make her feel.
5. Make sure she visits the accomodation stuff again. Many of the city unis actually have thriving student villages which will give her the campus experience as well. Manchester and Sheffield aren't as far as Durham and Edinburgh and both have amazing student village experiences and politics/IR depts.
6. Say yes to the offer she is happiest about and put it all in to the background for her exams.
7. Be open to deferring a year. There shouldn't be any issue with doing that on/around results day with most places except cambridge.
8. Politics is one of those subjects that will benefit from students with a bit more world experience. If she defers, she will have time to mature and to chill a bit following the intense school focus and maybe travel or get experience in the area. Doesn't really matter what. It will also give her the chance to apply with grades in hand which often also means getting her first choice accomodation guaranteed!
9. There are some great unis that on paper will have lower grade boundaries but in reality, will have top-scoring students applying and so the offers will inevitably go to those who will smash the grades on paper. Don't get too hung up on that. Research the departments and modules and research leads plus their employment records for graduates. More useful to be honest.
10. Don't dismiss cambridge as being overwhelmingly work focused if she gets an offer. It sounds like her work ethic is there already and there are so so many opportunities to play hard as well as work hard. It's a fantastic place, a super compact city and will give her very short terms so she will feel less homesick knowing she only has a max of 8 weeks a term before she's home again.

Good luck to her! Working hard is never a waste. Her work ethic will pay dividends when she's at uni and her competitive nature against herself will mean she will succeed wherever she goes.

You have quite a narrow view of university education I’m afraid! Your daughter will do perfectly well in a university that isn't Oxbridge. Yes she is very clever, but I assure you that even professors in even the most un prestigious ex polytechnic will have plenty to teach her.
Your daughter is more than her academic ability. I’m afraid that your attitude to her work life balance may be setting her up for a fall / burnout.

Hi OP. I arrived in the UK at 19 and applied to a random university (I didn’t know any better at the time). I was a hardworking student with grades equivalent to As and A*s at A-level in my country. The university I chose was ranked around 180 in the UK. I achieved a first in my first year, which didn’t count toward my final grade, but it helped me secure a competitive placement year. This placement experience, in turn, allowed me to apply directly for a PhD after finishing my BSc, and I was accepted into a fully funded program at Oxbridge.

Now, five years after completing my PhD, I’m very successful in my field and earn just under six figures. However, this success isn’t necessarily because of my Oxbridge degree—most employers don’t focus on that. Instead, they consistently commend my work ethic, intelligence, and skills.

What I’m trying to say is that if she’s a hardworking and capable student, she will ultimately do well, regardless of where she studies. In fact, I found that the lesser-known university provided better supervision, mentorship, and more opportunities than Oxbridge.

That explains the conundrum. Your dd is determined and hard working so will do amazingly whichever uni she choses. However, as pp said, if she had to work her socks off she may struggle at Oxbridge - if she gets in. Is she going from private school or state? It's easier to achieve these grades at private and could be unfavourable for her application.

So she can just go to Cambridge then, surely, if she's that smart and has all the super curriculars, etc?
And she doesn't get in, gap year and reapply next year with grades in hand.

You should be more concerned about studying politics.
It's not regarded as a tough course and isn't vocational in the same way that sciences are.

A degree in politics doesn't automatically open a door in politics if that's her aim(which seems unlikely if she's a bit shy and a home-bird.)

Most parents would be delighted if their child got into a Top 10 Russell Group uni.

You're coming across as very snobbish and also very uninformed about what employers want.

It's also her interests outside of uni that employers will look at. Charity work, personal goals and achievements, etc.

Companies like investment banks look at those, not just an Oxbridge degree.

I don't understand this post. The universities you mentioned are good universities. Student should work to the best of the ability and choose a university based on their needs and preference.

Megabus OP
Get an overnight one, she gets on pops some headphones in has a sleep and wakes up in London. Also very cheap. I was also able to fly home sometimes when flights were cheap. Don't let being a homebody restrict her it's time to stretch her wings. Terms at unis like Durham are so short and there's so much going on, she's unlikely to want to come home in between anyway. She can also use the A1M to practice her driving, get her passed before she goes she wouldn't need a car, my dad used to drive up and I'd drive his car back at the beginning and end of year when you have loads of stuff to transport.

ETA the reason the entry grades aren't the highest is because politics isn't the hardest subject to get into. PPE at Durham is A* AA

I went to Cambridge and I think you are being ridiculous. There are loads of good universities outside of Oxford and Cambridge. That doesn’t stop being true if she decides she doesn’t like any of them.

It’s your job to guide her towards more mature decision-making. Start with trying to work out what she actually wants to study - SPS at Cambridge and PPE at Oxford are totally different courses, and depending on her interests within them, not necessarily top-tier.

My DD is studying politics at Exeter. She needed to get 3 As. Entry requirements for 2025 are also 3 As. I'm not sure what your point is?

My daughter is predicted 4 A Stars

You come across asa university snob.

Of course Oxbridge opens doors, but her approach is very inconsistent. If she sees that as the only reward for working hard - it's, and it's fantastic. It can feel very high pressure ans of course she will sometimes feel a bit stupid when the comparison point is the 99th centile of achievement. That's kind of the whole pointe people you meet are absolutely fascinating.

And yet she not only doesn't want that, but doesn't want a city, doesn't want too much travel, and doesn't want too much work? That makes Warwick absolutely perfect. It has a good reputation for politics. Tbh I'd be telling her there are tradeoffs for everything in life.

This is a good point. I think if she has had to work so hard then she might fare better outside Oxbridge. I'm not saying that getting 4 A stars isn't a great achievement but plenty of people can achieve this while still having a full social life and not having to give everything up for it.

My stepsister was one of these, she literally worked every hour she had and managed to get 3 As (A stars didn't exist then) and got into medical school, she was entirely unsuited to this as the volume of work was 3x what she had for A level and she totally floundered. She had no social life, just worked all the time. It was miserable.

What does she want to do after getting her degree?

Has she a career path in mind?

Also, is she having support for the interviews for Oxbridge?
It's not just about grades.

Does she have a great CV showing she's a 'rounded person' not just a 'swot'?

If not, even her 4*s may not be enough.

Blimey 😳.

I'm starting to become embarrassed for you.

Many people with 4 A *'s will be on courses with entry requirements of 3 A's.

There are very few courses, including most Oxford courses, with higher entry requirements than 3 As. I think the exceptions to this might be courses like computer science or other science/ economics courses which are more competitive than politics.