Oxbridge Aspirants: Sep 2021

[funkysatsuma]

Not sure if it's too early to start this thread in Nov 2019 :)

DS would like Cambridge Economics as the first choice. Would like to know where can we get some help to prepare for the ECAA test - appreciate any pointers/links. Thanks in advance

[chitchattery]

@JustRichmal the ones in John Lewis in Grand Arcade are a good shout but don’t -just don’t- use the ones on Parker’s Piece. You have been warned - top notch they are not!

[quest1on]

Irma - the more I think about it, I will just call Durham tomorrow and say that I have a DS who is filling out his UCAS right now and he’s worried about applying to Durham if places for his course in 2021 will be significantly reduced because he only has 5 options. I won’t give my name Just see what they say.... I think it’s a fair question, given all the news and recent chaos. DS is back to school tomorrow - exams and then UCAS due, so they need to know what’s what.

[HuaShan]

Irma I can only speak for Oxford, DS is an offer holder who met his grades before the changes. Most of the Oxford colleges have made huge efforts to accommodate everyone this year - I know DS's college have no deferrals for next year and I believe many other colleges are the same. Oxford do not over offer, so they had a smaller pool of people to accommodate. So there should not be a huge problem next year. Good Luck!

[bendmeoverbackwards]

How much work/revision have your dc all done over the summer? Dd is starting to panic about Year 13 and thinks she hasn't consolidated Year 12 work.

Her (state) school didn't do any online teaching as such so she had to get on with it herself. Her essays were submitted to teachers and came back marked with feedback and she seemed to be doing very well. But she's a worrier and thinks she's lazy for not revising over the summer.

[JustRichmal]

IrmaFayLear & chitchattery thanks.

[IrmaFayLear]

huaShan, I don’t mean offer holders deferring, but people having a second bash who weren’t successful in January, and those who now have better than expected grades who are thinking they now stand a chance. I would normally say good luck to them... but not this year!!

[PortusCale]

I think worries about lots of deferrals could be unnecessary. My DS who is going to Cambridge (applied last year with grades achieved) has had a letter telling him how many there will be in his subject cohort - and it is more than usual. So I would think there will be minimal deferrals. However, I do know of a few students who have achieved great A level results this time round who are taking a year out and will apply to Oxbridge in the coming year - so maybe that might be more of an issue than deferrals.

[sammyjoanne]

[quote mikeandike]@sammyjoanne Thanks, that would be really helpful . She’s planning on applying to Durham and Bristol as well as a couple of other non-LNAT choices. She’s incredibly efficient with her research and has somehow managed to unearth seemingly every last detail about each of the courses she’s applying for, but is struggling a little bit with getting a sense for what each of the cities and campuses are like. Virtual campus tours and Google Maps aren’t really any substitute for visiting.[/quote]
I have not been to Bristol or Durham, but there might be parents that have been. I've been to Leeds, York, Lancaster, Oxford, and Leicester open days.
From what I have heard about Durham, its a really nice place and quite picturesque. Even though it's covid times, you can still walk round the campus and get a feel for the place. I've just come back from walking round Lancaster again as DD starts there this year. And we also checked out the town and stayed at the cities Travelodge. There was a couple of security guys and a few international students that decided to stay so it was quiet, but got round the place pretty well.
You can do a weekend, or do a day trip by going to uni in the morning, and city in the afternoon (or vice versa).


Oxford, Ive been to:
Lady Margaret Hall - super big college, and the rooms are really big. The grounds are absolutely gorgeous, and although I love this place, I felt that it is a bit of a trek to walk back from a club in the city, so if DD was to stay there, then I would have been happier if she came back with friends or a taxi. Its right next to this park as well which is a great place to unwind.
St Annes - a modern college which was combined with slightly older buildings. The room shown came with a fridge and St annes had this quirky bar which students could write poems on the walls and beams. The library is brilliant, its one of the best ones, and its got a rooftop garden area where you chill. Its about 10 mins walk from the center of oxford.
Somerville College= This was another big college. the quad is huge. The first year accommodation block looked very 1960's and I wasn't a fan, but it made up with it being very big and you can stay for all 4 years. The other buildings there super pretty. Again 10 mins walk from the center of Oxford. And library is quirky with nooks and crannies and winding staircases.
Magdalen College= This college kind of reminded me of pride and prejudice lol. Its very very grand, and has its own deer park. The quads are lovely and the library is also good. I did like Magdalen, but was worried its super competitive to get in as on open day, it was popular with student visiting.
Merton College= This was the one DD applied for. Its very old and traditional college and there is wifi on the rear garden area which you are allowed to walk on. Rose lane accommodation there had enormous rooms and just outside Merton is where the examinations center is and they get 'trashed' on their last exam. I thought it had quite a romantic feel to Merton. Mertons library was also on multi levels too which I liked.
Balliol College- Beautiful and gorgeous college. Daughter did UNIQ summer school here. The hall is situated up some stairs and daughter said the food is lovely. Library was pretty decent, and the rooms are of a decent size. Best thing about Balliol was the JCR and bar area which is of decent size. Right in the center of the city.
Jesus College- This is where daughter had her interview back in December. Small college but right in the center. Its got the covered market next to it which is quirky. Again, a big JCR, and the room she stayed in on ship street was modern with a fridge and had great security by a key fob. Its an old college like Merton and Balliol.
So we covered both modern and old colleges. All of them seemed to have great security with the porters and I felt daughter would be safe.
I know you can get pooled into another college, my daughter did. But what ever college you end up in at Oxford, they are all really nice and they do make you feel welcome :)

[quest1on]

LSE state on their homepage that they have managed to fit all offer-holders in for 2020 (just in case anyone’s DC also applying there for 2021). Credit to them for confirming this on their website.

Can’t get through to Durham admissions so have emailed them. It says they may take 5 days to respond to enquiries.

[GreyBow]

DD heard about her choral audition this morning.

Is every applicant getting an audition this year? Not sure.

[ChazsBrilliantAttitude]

Reading with interest. DS1 is considering Oxbridge for Biochemistry / NatSci or similar. He is Yr13 and has exams in next couple of weeks to get his predicted grades. He has already done an EPQ but we don’t have the grade yet.
I am interested in the comments on Durham as he was seeing that as one of his alternatives but it may not be a good use of an application.

[CoolKittens]

Tweet from Cambridge: We are pleased to be welcoming a record number of new undergraduates in October, including highest ever number of state school students. No student has been required to defer entry to 2021.

[Baaaahhhhh]

Well we definitely won't be applying to Durham, very much against the grain of Oxbridge applicants. Too far North, too grey, too cold (although I am sure very lovely in other ways). For perspective, we find Nottingham bloody cold every time we visit the rellies, you always need an extra sweater, even in Summer .

[bendmeoverbackwards]

That's good news @CoolKittens I hope it's the same for Oxford

[bendmeoverbackwards]

Thank you @sammyjoanne for your helpful post. My dd has her heart set on Balliol.

[quest1on]

Great news from Cambridge and I’m sure Oxford must also have managed as they don’t over-offer so much.

Baaaahhh - you know, DS is London born and bred and thinks “north” starts anything upward of the North Circular, but his dad got him hiking in Scotland this summer and they stopped in Durham on the way back. I had an excited phone call - “mum you should see this place - it’s amazing like Cambridge - maybe nicer.” So that’s it, he liked the vibe and now he’s applying. But he wouldn’t have if he hadn’t visited. He knows it would be freezing but he says he’ll deal with it

[quest1on]

Exeter, on the other hand, he was non-plussed about.

He’s keen on LSE and UCL but it would be a very different student experience. We haven’t seen any other unis. Everywhere has obviously been shut anyway.

Bristol he doesn’t fancy as he says if its just a city and accommodation blocks and departments all spread out he might as well stay in London. Same with Birmingham and Manchester. Doesn’t fancy Scotland and the 4-year degrees, as if he did 4 years, he would want a year overseas which many unis offer for his course.

[CoolKittens]

Any thoughts on Lancaster??

[FlyingSquid]

@IrmaFayLear

huaShan, I don’t mean offer holders deferring, but people having a second bash who weren’t successful in January, and those who now have better than expected grades who are thinking they now stand a chance. I would normally say good luck to them... but not this year!!

DD falls into your second category. I hope you’d wish her luck anyway!

[sammyjoanne]

@bendmeoverbackwards

Thank you *@sammyjoanne* for your helpful post. My dd has her heart set on Balliol.

I loved Balliol. The perks of Balliol is that its right in the center of it all, and the Christmas market is literally on its doorstep. Its got a side entrance for cars, and we was told when its move in day, you can park on the grounds for a short amount of time. Just outside there's a shop called the fudge kitchen which is amazing, and down the road from the train station :)

[sammyjoanne]

@CoolKittens

Any thoughts on Lancaster??

I'm kind of biased Coolkittens to Lancaster. My daughter applied to Oxford and Lancaster and loved them both. She got to interview stage of Oxford. The early application for Oxford, also means she got an early interview slot for Lancaster. 15th of November it was, and all the students there that day were Oxbridge applicants. She got an unconditional at Lancaster which she accepted one week after she was rejected from Oxford.
Similarities for Lancaster to Oxford:
They are a collegiate uni with 9 colleges.
They have inter collegiate sports from the smallest thing like dominoes or pool, to rugby and netball.
They all have porters lodges and students have their own pidges.
Each college has their own bursaries.
The colleges have their own JCR and own bars, and study rooms

The city itself is brilliant. Its not big, and all the buildings are grey large stone brick in theme which I think is lovely.
Its got Williamson park which is well worth the views (and the exercise as its up a steep hill) And Lancaster Castle. and Morecambe seafront is 15 mins in the car. (and you can catch the bus from uni to morecambe)
You can apply for halls for subsequent years, but not guaranteed, however they have lots of private halls which are pretty reasonable in price.
Library is superb, one of the biggest ive seen, and its having an extension adding a 1/3 more onto the vast largeness of the building already.
Its nearing completion of a 400 seat lecture theater. Its got many eateries on campus from a couple of chinese places, to burrito bar, burger place, and healthy options, to costa and greggs. Im going to post a link if it allows me. it starts from County College and goes as far as Pendle College and back again. Taken during June in the lockdown period. You can go and visit and walkaround. We did just this weekend to have another nosy :) Couldnt go in the academic buildings, apart from furness college foyet for a toilet break, but you can eat at some of the eateries there like Sultans (they do great chicken wraps)

[CoolKittens]

Wow thank you so much @sammyjoanne !! That is so helpful. Lancaster really wasn't on DDs radar as she was only looking down the Russell Group list. I think it looks fantastic and would suit her very well. She is not after a 'big city' vibe at all. We will definitely visit very soon. Thank you again!

[IrmaFayLear]

Nothing personal, FlyingSquid! In the spirit of full disclosure, ds was a post A-Level applicant. I'm just railing against the increased numbers this year which is a blow for everyone: pre and post A Level.

[ChimneyPot]

SammyJoanne that’s really helpful about Lancaster.
We can’t even visit any UK college cities at the moment because of college restrictions in Ireland. DD visited UCL, Oxford, Durham and St Andrews last year. She definitely doesn’t want to go to London so with Oxford, Durham and St Andrews she only has 3.

[FlyingSquid]

@IrmaFayLear

Nothing personal, FlyingSquid! In the spirit of full disclosure, ds was a post A-Level applicant. I'm just railing against the increased numbers this year which is a blow for everyone: pre and post A Level.

And in the same spirit, I see your point! DD was awarded two A* and an A.

She was pretty sure of A/A* in the subject she wants to take and one other, but her third subject was shaky this time last year - hence the post-results application.