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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

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Original poster

Exeter conditional offer higher for insurance than firm?!

26 replies

Bonsoir · 19/01/2015 19:52

The DD of friends of ours has an offer from Exeter of 15/20 in her French bac if she firms the offer and 16/20 if she insures it.

Is this allowed?

OP posts:

titchy · 19/01/2015 20:04

Yes it is allowed! It's a tactic to try and persuade her to firm with them. If she wants them she should firm anyway. If she prefers somewhere else she should firm the other place.

Original poster

Bonsoir · 19/01/2015 20:07

Thanks!

I expect she'll get an offer at 15/20 from Bristol or 16/20 from Durham which she'll prefer so it's slightly academic.

OP posts:

uilen · 19/01/2015 20:15

The numbers are a bit fictional though because I doubt that Exeter would actually enforce 16/20 if she takes it as insurance. I.e. if she puts first a 15 or 16 offer from Bristol or Durham and puts Exeter second, Exeter would probably still take her with 14+ (depending on subject of course) while Bristol and Durham would be more likely to reject her if she misses her offer.

Original poster

Bonsoir · 19/01/2015 20:32

She's very unlikely to get under 16/20 in her bac. Looks like Exeter is trying to make itself look like a bigger hitter than it really is to the unsuspecting.

OP posts:

hattymattie · 20/01/2015 11:48

That's a very high offer Bonsoir - may I ask what course it's for?

Original poster

Bonsoir · 20/01/2015 13:14

Business Economics with International Study

OP posts:

GentlyBenevolent · 20/01/2015 13:16

According to the Time Higher Ed Exeter is the 9th 'best' university in the UK. Bristol is 15th. So I'm not sure what you mean by your 'big hitter' mark. Exeter has form for making very high offers, and lowering them if you firm - for some courses they are offering A A A dropped to A A A* if you firm. It's an ambitious university, it wants the top students, it wants to move up the table not down.

GentlyBenevolent · 20/01/2015 13:17

OK, for business and economics Exeter is definitely the best place of the 3 mentioned.

2rebecca · 20/01/2015 13:32

Do you move up the table by getting brighter students? You move up the table for asking for higher grades and spending more money and time on research and getting high student feedback but only the first one is related to having brighter students and offering lower grades will reduce that. The research mainly affects postgrads and maybe less bright students give higher satisfaction scores as they have lower expectations.
League tables are mysterious things, and self perpetuating. Once you are near the top you are seen as prestigious so can ask for higher grades so stay near the top

GentlyBenevolent · 20/01/2015 13:38

Better students have better outcomes. Better students attract better staff. I'd say 9th was pretty near the top, hence Exeter probably feel justified in asking for high grades.

But I do actually agree with you that it's all a bit...makey-uppy. I was just somewhat [hmmm] at the notion that Exeter would need to 'make itself looks like a bigger hitter than it really is to the unsuspecting' - and doubly so now we know what the subject in question is. Exeter has been a big hitter in that field for many years. Others perhaps not so much, until more recent times.

invisiblecrown · 20/01/2015 13:45

Exeter are fucking cheeky. DD applied to them in 2009, and even back they were doing this.

It is allowed. It is to get the high quality candidates to choose them over the Durhams, Warwicks, even Oxbridges. When she applied Lancaster offered her cash in the form of a 'bursary' if she got straight As and firmed them.

I doesn't work generally, only persuades a few. But those few make it worth doing.

invisiblecrown · 20/01/2015 13:47

Should have said - in 2009, Exeter were not offering courses of as high a quality as the other 'big hitters.' This may have changed now.

msminerva · 20/01/2015 13:47

DS has an AAB offer from Exeter for Comp Sci but York have made him the same offer and he is inclined to make that his firm choice as apparently the department was much more impressive. I'm not so sure about the York campus but realise it is the subject facilities that are more important. Any thoughts? He has two ABB offers to choose between for his insurance but was rejected by Bristol his top choice.

ImperialBlether · 20/01/2015 13:51

But it's always better for a university to have students who have the university and the course as their first choice. There's far more chance of students doing well and being happier on their courses.

GentlyBenevolent · 20/01/2015 13:59

They were in business and economics. :)

Original poster

Bonsoir · 20/01/2015 14:38

LSE has been giving out 16/20 offers for Economics.

OP posts:

GentlyBenevolent · 20/01/2015 14:46

And I'd guess that it's those 16/20 students Exeter would like to attract/poach/entice by offering them 15/20 if they will definitely go to Exeter. However they'd be mad if they are confident they will get 16/20 because LSE is clearly a better choice. But if they aren't totally confident...

mrsmootoo · 20/01/2015 16:07

Not quite the same discussion, but DD1 has identical offers from Bristol and Manchester (for languages) and can't decide. We've visited. Both seem like good departments. Both seem like great cities. Real dilemma. Everyone said she would 'just know' and she 'just doesn't!'

TheAwfulDaughter · 20/01/2015 16:11

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

2rebecca · 20/01/2015 16:12

Probably means it doesn't matter. I was very happy at the uni I went to but friends who did the same subject had a great time at different unis.
Think I'd have had a great time at 4 out of my 5 choices and ended up similarly employed

GentlyBenevolent · 20/01/2015 16:16

AwfulDaughter - most people know that now. Just not the ill informed. :)

Lilymaid · 20/01/2015 16:43

I'm an Exeter alumna and loved being there but feel the university has overhyped itself in recent years. Both my DSs are economists and Exeter isn't somewhere they would really consider to be established top rank as LSE, UCL, Cambridge, Warwick and some others are. I presume from the course choice that the DD isn't interested in being an economist but in business generally, so that may not matter.

GentlyBenevolent · 20/01/2015 17:35

Those 4 universities are all better reputed for straight economics (though UCL not for business and associated subjects such as accounting). But there aren't many others that are. Top 10 is pretty good, and clearly their ambition is to be higher. Exeter is definitely considered top rank in the City. LSE is obviously primus inter pares. My personal favourite is Warwick though - the students that come from there are always outstanding. I always regard Exeter with a pinch of salt having taught there myself and had relatives who have taught there - but its rise up the rankings has not been as a result of self hype or accident - it has been following a consciously formulated plan to raise the bar, this has clearly been successful.

Roseformeplease · 20/01/2015 17:40

And it is near the beach.....and I had an amazing time there.

Needmoresleep · 21/01/2015 12:50

It is worth looking closely at what you want. All four top ranking courses are very mathematical, and would absolutely be the wrong place for many. My impression based on looking round with DS was that Exeter had a stronger business bias. Even still a friend's DD dropped out because the maths became too much.

Horses for courses. Rankings only tell you so much.

No beach at Warwick as far as I could see.

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