Oxbridge applicants 2018 part 3

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

Looks like we need a new thread.

Thank you MrsB.
Is there anything else we should be thinking about this summer?

Hi OhYouBadBadKitten. Just asked dd what you should be thinking about this summer and she said students should try and get some of the reading done in advance as when they first get there they will be doing a lot of socialising to help them make friends but very quickly they will be having to produce essays etc. Other than that the preparation is really not any different to going anywhere else. Also to add her collection of little black dresses are not in anyway expensive. Most are from bohoo; asos or H&M!

Thank you so much for asking :) That's good to know!

As far as I can gather from my DD, 'formals' aren't really dressy - she has some fairly simple dresses (no LBDs) but then the gown goes over anyway.

Well, DD has had her nose in her Biology text book all weekend, interspersed with Chemistry past papers ‘for a rest’. Whatever her grades at the end of this ordeal (and if she reads this, I’m sure she’ll be fine!), I’m incredibly proud of her effort and dedication. And also increasingly sad that we inflict this whole brutal thing on our 16 and 18 year olds. I managed to have a potter about in the garden this afternoon, enjoying a bit of sunshine and felt really sad about the thousands of kids sat inside in anxiety and revision boredom. Hats off to all of them. Feeling a bit sentimental tonight, strung out and tired of the whole thing, and I’m just on snack and support duty

Hi Errol - the colleges may differ in their rules on what to wear to formals. At dd's college they have to wear black although you are right that the gown covers most of it anyway. Dd has also worn smart black trousers and a black top to formal so it is not all little black dresses!

Good luck to everyone taking STEP I tomorrow! Hope it all goes well .

Please note the info about the changes to the STEP booklet here www.admissionstesting.org/for-test-takers/step/about-step/ (if you have not already done so). Basically write everything in the booklet and cross out the bits that you don't want to be marked. Don't cross out a whole question unless you have 6 other answers to be marked!

Thanks for the information Pallando I'll pass it on to DS

DS has emerged complaining that the STEP exam is being held in room 11 and he doesn't know where it is. I can't help him with that - and I meantersay - he's been at the school for 15 years. If he doesn't know where it is by now, there's no helping him. Perhaps it's like the Room of Requirements in Harry Potter .... If he just stands somewhere in the school grounds it will magically appear.

loving the idea of your DS with pencil case and calculator in hand roaming the corridors of his school waiting for a magical door to appear!!

I

Pearls -That made me smile. It's good to know that other supposedly intelligent students are equally as lacking in common sense as my own DS can be! Good luck to anyone taking STEP1. DS isn't doing that one so has to wait til next week for STEP 2 and 3. He's got maths and physics this week and still seems relaxed 😊

Good luck to all the STEP candidates tomorrow! And thanks for the reminder, Pallando. I will remind DS though he's not very receptive at the moment. I think the stress is getting to him.

Good luck STEP 1 people tomorrow :)

Pearls, that's a very funny image!

Good luck all you STEP-ERS - sending every positive wish in your DCs direction.

xxx

Good luck STEPers! No STEP here, but Biology seemed to go well today and gearing up for Chemistry tomorrow. Hope your DS is OK Kaisers, it’s tough for them to keep going.

Huge good luck to the STEP dc!
I can't believe how brutal this part of the admissions process is for them - I'll be rooting for them all 🍀🍀🍀

Well the Room of Requirements turned up in the nick of time and DS managed to complete his STEP paper. It went brilliantly and DS thinks he got top marks. Which is great, no? Unfortunately it doesn't count at all because it doesn't form part of his offer.

Unlike Chemistry, which according to DS had lots of pitfalls.

It's good for his confidence though Pearls :)

Oh Pearls that’s just typical! Do you think they just tell a version of events most likely to torment us?! DD thought was Chemistry was OK, but definitely trickier than the first paper.

Another DD here who thought the Chemistry paper was trickier than the first - AND she knows she made at least a couple of stupid careless errors (luckily for low-mark questions, but still frustrating..). She'll be reassured to know she wasn't the only one finding it so!

Good luck to all taking exams today xx

I hope the chemistry grade boundaries are kind to all.

Maths S2 here today, so hopefully fairly chilled.

DS just texted to say maths S2 was "somewhere between alright and quite good" but not great.

dds S2 had far more explain type questions than previous papers and stuff that didn't seem to be on the curriculum. It was workable out though.

Well done to all the S2s :)

I think tomorrow brings Physics. I might be wrong though because I've totally lost track. The best thing that happened today is that DD came back from University and I get to have her all summer :)

Good luck to everyone for tomorrow

awww, that's nice Pearls :)
Yes physics today. dd is celebrating no more practicals ever!