Oxbridge Applicants 2019

[evenstrangerthings]

The 2018 Oxbridge Applicants Thread was started at the end of August last year, but with many students now sitting internal school exams rather than public AS exams, many will have Year 12 results in hand and some will be starting to prepare for applications to Oxford or Cambridge University.

Let's support each other in supporting our kids through this process, which may involve extra exams, multi-day interviews and extra application statements.

Do feel free to join the thread, even if your DC is on the fence about making an Oxbridge application. It would also be great to hear from those who have been through the Oxbridge process before!

Just noticed this thread... if anyone turns up whose DC are interested in Cambridge general engineering feel free to give me a PM or alert me with an @

One comment on specific colleges wanting more A* or not... I've no idea if that's correct, but don't forget that (for Cambridge anyway) they can make an open admission if they don't know which college to pick, or if they apply to one which thinks they're a worthy applicant but for whatever reason doesn't want to give them an offer (could just be they got too many good applicants for that particular subject), then there's the pool. My DD was pooled and given an offer from a college she'd never have applied to - a year later, she's loving it.

However, they're now doing the subjects they're good at and are at last amongst the top of a strong cohort for those

My DDs GCSEs were a game of two halves... she wasn't really considering Cambridge as a realistic possibility until she got her AS grades.

There is nothing to be lost by doing the relevant aptitude test if there is one. There's nothing to be lost by getting their personal statements largely done (though the school will doubtless help refine them). There's really nothing to be lost by applying, given they have 4 other ucas choices. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

We have the same 'give it a go' attitude.

DD did the UNIQ summer school at Oxford in July. I know this is for state school students only, where contextual grades, polar rate and post code etc are considered in addition to their PS and actual grades (which still need to be very high!). But, they were given the very firm message that if they had managed to be successful in this application, then they were very much worthy of a real application.

It's given her the belief enough to have a go, but we've liked all the universities we've visited on open days so far. We know there's incredible competition so need to be realistic but no harm in trying, if you don't you'll never know.

Personal statement has been drafted and vetted by her tutor at school for the first draft, it's with a friend now who was successful in her application to Oxbridge this year.

Dd wants to crack on with her school work for the rest of the holiday, hence we are at this stage.

Urgh. Why can good schools be so crap? We’ve all read the stories about students with 13 A* who get rejected from Oxbridge, so the mind boggles why the school is taking it upon itself to weed out potential applicants with such a ludicrous attitude. The teachers should only have two criteria in recommending someone for Oxbridge: is this applicant academically capable in their desired subject? And will this applicant thrive in the Oxbridge system? The rest is just noise. The beauty of the tutorial system is that when you are interviewed the tutor is assessing ‘if I have to teach this student for 3/4 years, will we both benefit from this?’ Lots of high grades does not ipso facto mean an engaging student.

Anyway. I’m with Errol. Nothing to be lost by making the application. Every stage can be seen as a bonus if the school is that pessimistic... hey, I applied! Hey, I got an interview! Hey, I got an offer! Hey, I got the grades! It’ll be easier to manage expectations along the way if your school thinks you’re wasting your time.

Hi
May I join too?

We are Scottish and I have a 16 nearly 17 year old son who is applying for Law (Jurisprudence) for entry 2019. He will only just be 18 if he starts.

He took his Nat 5s (like GCSE) last year and got all As. There are no A* grades in Scotland.

He has just got his results for his Highers in which he attained 5 As and a B. Only 2000 students in Scotland take 6 Highers as normally the maximum number is 5, so he is one of a few.

He goes to a non selective state school in the Highlands where at most, one applicant a year will achieve a place at Oxbridge. I understand this makes him Target area 1. I don't know if anyone else knows about this?

He is planning on applying to Trinity or Brasenose.

His Personal Statement is complete and he's been practising the LNAT (Law test) and seems reasonably competent at it so we shall see.

Good luck to all your DCs.

Hi Aurea and well done to your son. We are similar, DD is a summer baby, so will be one of the youngest, however she is pretty mature. Also, our state school get few into Oxbridge, just one this year.

I'm not sure of the answer to your question but DD stayed at Brasenose during her summer school (UNIQ), and said it was absolutely lovely. The room was nice, and the small kitchen modern she said. She can't apply there as they don't offer her course, but did like it very much.

Thanks @fifthtimelucky, that's really helpful. He's going to go for it, so fingers crossed!

@Couchpotato3: good for him. It sounds as if he has lots of experience and I imagine his sight-reading will be excellent, which will be important. Has he decided which of the three colleges to make his first choice?

New - he met the academic tutor for his course there and really liked her, so that's what swung it for him.

Coleoptera my DD is at Oxford studying English. I know when she applied they ideally wanted essays that had been produced for the A Level course (so not specially written) of about 1500-2000 words. Preferably it should be marked, as this allows them to see the standard of teaching they’ve had.

DD sent 2 essays she was pleased with, and which she’d have been happy to discuss at interview.

Dds teacher wants her to resit the English paper that dragged her scores Dow to a B. She got an A in the other one, so the teacher clearly thinks she can do better. Hope that's indicative of a higher predicted grade. Who knows.

There's clear guidance on the Oxford website about written work. The work has to be marked by a teacher, that's not optional.

Here's the cover sheet:
www.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/oxford/field/field_document/Written%20Work%20Cover%20Sheet.pdf

Yes, I was going to post that it's very clear on the Oxford site with regard to written work and any additional work (and subject) needed for the specific course, in what context the written work can be submitted etc. Relevant in DD's case as she has no entrance exam but has to produce a further essay in addition to the two.

To be honest, she's far more aware of what she needs to do than I am, even though I've read the information thoroughly. At this stage I would hope so!

Each subject would have their requirements published on the site I'm sure.

General query here - as i have seen reference to UNIQ courses and wonder if anyone has done a Sutton Trust one recently?

DD may want to do a Sutton trust summer course. However, as her parents are graduates, and her school is good and leafy (though state, comprehensive, and with a low Oxbridge success rate relative to its size & results), the only 'tick' she would get in their selection criteria is the 'good grades' one. Is it worth applying? UNIQ doesn't do the relevant subject.

(She's obviously not a 2019 applicant, so I am gatecrashing the thread! Apologies)

Ah, I see, apologies.

In that case then how about The Student Room? There's a wealth of information on there and sections about Oxbridge. Searching is pretty easy too for a topic.

Or, your school seems extremely clued up, would they know perhaps?

cant, my DD did UNIQ not Sutton trust and so I don't know their criteria. You are right though, parental education, post code, Acorn and Polar scores will apply, if it's a similar selection method, in addition to grades as you rightly suggest. That being said, what's to lose by applying? Absolutely nothing, and quite possibly a lot to gain by having a go!

Alternatively, she could apply for a similar course for UNIQ. The course that DD was on this summer was excellent, but she's applying for a very slightly different one for her actual application. This decision was made because of her experience in the summer if you understand me?

@Coleoptera

DD1 studied English at Cambridge (well, it was a different course but she had to go through the English entrance procedure and fit the English entrance criteria for her college.)

She handed in an essay that she had done in lower sixth. It was one that she was reasonably proud of and had been marked. She may have added in an extra paragraph on something relevant that she'd come across in AS revision but it was otherwise unchanged. It was around 2-3 sides of A4 and wasn't perfect by any means. I think she just looked through all her marked essays and chose the most interesting.

It wasn't mentioned in the interviews at all.

Dd applied for Sutton Trust summer school at Cambridge and did not get a place. Presumably due to my degree and our postcode. Interestingly despite housing being rated at the poorer end of the scale it rated highly in terms of educational attainment of the local population.
However my point is that she was offered a couple of masterclasses in her chosen subject. There were 2 days about a month apart and they had to do some project work in between. As we didn't live close enough to be able to get there on public transport early enough, they paid her rail fares and gave her accommodation the night before.
So I think worth applying for the consolation prize.

Thanks Neater! It's for Architecture, so not a 'school subject', nor even very closely related to one (and not something Oxford offers at all), so masterclasses and work in between would be just as useful.

My dd has met the A’level grade requirement for the course she is interested in at Oxford, but is taking a gap year to work for a charity. If she applies to Oxford this autumn where would she take the exam she needs to do as part of the selection process. Does she need to get back in touch with her school?

@bevelino Which subject? I know the Oxford MAT for Maths is sat at the student's school. If the school is not a registered test taking centre then they can take it at an Open Centre. The details should be available via the subject page of the Oxford Uni website.