Oxbridge 2015 #3

[Grammar]

Continuing Roisin and Molio's thread, just wanted a space in the last week before results for people to post their anxieties, and hopefully, come 13th August, also post their good news about their DDs and DSs. A place for celebration and commiseration.

Fantastic news cathyandclaire! You were mega cool about it too!

Oh yes, I was totally relaxed!!!

Brilliant news cathyandclaire! You must be so relieved!

Can I ask a Cambridge (or maybe even college) specific question?

I know the college bill comes termly and that food eaten at college is paid in arrears but are the rent/gyp fees/wifi etc paid in advance at the beginning of each term, or is that in arrears too?

DH said battles were paid in arrears at Oxford but obviously that's a whole other place! We're just trying to work out cashflow for DD.

Hmm, think you're right that the details will be college-specific. Would imagine that rent and other core essentials (Wi-Fi!) will be paid in advance, and then other stuff may get added during the term to be paid next term.

My dd's college information says that each term's battels includes rent, subscriptions, and £160 credit for food, but doesn't say whether getting more food credit involves paying upfront or sticking on next term's battels - I think that's something she'll need to find out! She'll probably roll her eyes if I suggest that though ...

cathyandclaire - at my dd's Cambridge college the rent and kitchen fixed charge is paid in advance, and (as you say) food/excess electricity/other extras in arrears, at the beginning of the following term. The very first bill did not have to be paid until her student finance had come in.

One thing that caught her out though - since the first two terms' hall bills were paid in arrears she and her friends assumed that the third term's would not have to be paid until the following October, but the college suddenly demanded it by the end of July - which caused some cash-flow issues! (Made sense to me that it should be paid within the correct academic year, but not, apparently, to the students!)

May be different at other colleges of course.

DD got a shock yesterday, she received her first written assignment that has to be emailed to her director of studies in September...her face was a picture

Forgot to add brilliant news cathyandcllaire

First assignment Sassy?!

Yes it has been titled "Summer writing task" but looks quite like a supervision task. She has to read a supreme court case that has been emailed to her and then answer 10 questions about it. They don't hang about do they?

DS got his reading list in June....

Yikes, sassy!

cathyandclaire - dd's college (Emmanuel) have said that bills are due in January for the first term's "rent and charges" so we are not expecting to pay anything else other than the £1600 deposit we have just paid! The bill for the summer term is due in October so it clearly varies from college to college. Which college is your dd going to?

We have not heard anything yet about deposits and bills. I guess we will look forward to that pleasure soon. MrsBartlet that £1600 deposit made me wince a little .
I know DD has to pre pay for 36 dinners per term, but I have no clue about anything else.

She's going to Clare. She thinks it's paid after but not absolutely sure and my Dparents are kindly helping out with her living expenses so I'm trying to create a spreadsheet. It's a little lacking in concrete information at the moment!!!

I know sassy - made me wince, too! We do get it taken off her final bill in the third year!

I have been trying to work out living expenses here too, cathy. We are going to pay for accommodation and dd will have the minimum loan to live on. I have asked her to keep £700 of that aside to go towards her food bills as I figured that lots of students live on the minimum loan and have to buy all their food out of it and I didn't want her to be too rich! That would leave her about £3000 which we talked about and decided she could have £70 a week during term-time and £40 a week for holidays. She will get some work in the holidays but she will also have loads of reading to do so thought it best to allocate some money to holidays. She can dip into that if necessary. She wants to try and get a shift in the college library as the girl who showed us round at open day did that and said she was able to work whilst sitting there and got paid for it. Do you think that will be enough or am I being mean expecting her to keep some money aside for her college food bill?

Like others DS' college accommodation bill due mid way through each term. Food, assuming he chooses to eat in college, is on a pay as you go basis / or load up a pre-pay card. That said the college food seems to be pretty good quality and very heavily subsidised. No gyp or kitchen costs at his college. Gas & Electric charged in arrears but amounted to next to nothing; broadband charged over a certain usage level which where he is must be set pretty high as he has yet to breach it. £1600 deposit sounds very high, his caution money last year was £300.

boys3 - looking on the student room it looks like Emma's deposit is way higher than other colleges. Not a problem for us but I can imagine for student's trying to fund their own way it could be an issue. However, they did say it is working capital as bills are paid substantially in arrears, with the first rent & college bill not due until 12th Jan, so fair enough really.

Mrs B - yes sounds like swings and roundabout, plus the college will no doubt have plenty of bursaries / other financial support for those for whom it could present a cash flow challenge. Talking of which worth DCs keeping an eye out for the seeming plethora of overseas travel bursaries etc(that can be linked to their subject, not just any old jolly :) ) that can be applied for and seem to be open to all.

DS spoke very highly of the food at Emma when he went there on a formal swap.

Fresher's 1/2 week is of course hugely less of a financial outlay than the two week festival of excess that many Unis seem to have. And much better for our DC's livers :)

MrsB - don't think you're being mean - as I said above, dd1's rent includes £160 food credit, and I just said to her that she had to pay for that bit! Dh thought I was being a bit harsh But I reckon whatever we don't spend on her this year puts us in a better financial position next year

Thanks, Atia . Until we get the first college bill we don't really know how much all the food and extras will come to. I said to dd that we will revisit it at that point and see if we need to adjust what we are paying and what she is paying. Dd is going to set up a student account and then do a weekly standing order from that to her existing account and use that one for day to day use so that she can clearly see how much money she has.

I will tell dd about the food boys3 - she will be delighted! She is also glad that freshers' week doesn't drag on as she is not a party animal and doesn't really drink much. The Emma's Freshers' week looks very well planned to cater for all tastes though. They have structured it very well so that you spend time with your college family, your subject family and the people on your staircase and so introducing you easily into at least 3 different groups.

DD has had her history remark back and her grade went up to an A*, she is over the moon. Even though Cambridge had accepted her with lower grades she really felt disappointed she hadn't officially achieved her academic offer and didn't feel she deserved her place.
DP is also over the moon that he gets his £46 remark fee back

That's great sassy, on both counts! Mad marking though - it should be vastly better quality and more reliable.

That's brilliant sassy - very pleased for her!

Hi
Brand new into this thread with a Dd just starting 6th year (Scotland). She managed straight As for her Highers and will be sitting 4 Advanced Highers. She wants to study a Humanities subject.

She was so excited by her results that she started talking about Cambridge! Crazy talk obviously, since she's at a state school in Smalltown Scotland. Roll on a week and she's having a crisis of confidence and doesn't think it's worth even applying. She has a very good chance of unconditional offers for St Andrews and Edinburgh which would obviously be fee-free for us.

Is Cambridge really likely to worth trying for? I have read back threads on here and the whole process sounds stressful. Is a Cambridge degree worth the extra stress, and potentially another 27k in fee loans?

Thanks Molio and MrsBartlet the school want her to get her Politics and English Lit remarked but DD has had enough stress. The stange marking practices seems to be an ongoing issue more and more each year

dotdot It isnt "crazy talk" at all! I would advise getting your DD to look at the course content at each university as they can vary widely. Then request a prospectus and if at all possible try to visit each one.

My DD was surprised at how much she hated Kings College London when she visited but many people love it.