Oxbridge 2020 (8th thread)

[DadDadDad]

A thread to continue discussing entry to Oxbridge in October 2020 (less than nine months away ). All welcome, although this obviously will be of most interest to those with DS or DD holding an offer, and wanting to find a bit of support.

All too soon, 13 August will come over the horizon. Until then, ask questions... share experiences... discuss news and stats... write a poem... (we did briefly have some poetry on a previous thread).

With huge thanks to @HugoSpritz and predecessors for previous threads.

I think there will be a lot of encouragement to the universities to start the new first years in Sept/Oct.

As another pp says, the universities need the fees (I too don't see how current students can be expected to take on the debt to pay an extra year's fees and maintenance).

And then there is the question of what the school leavers would do if they didn't go to university - unless the economy has bounced back it may not be easy to find work for that gap year, and - even for those who could afford it - , overseas travel may still not have got back to normal. That leaves volunteering - but it may be difficult for many families to find the funds to support their dc at home while they do that.

The universities can plan for a normal Sept/Oct start but the reality is no one can be certain what will happen.
The universities are currently trying to figure out how to deliver Trinity term across current year groups with all the complexities of exams, labs, external and internal projects, overseas students who can’t get back and a myriad of other issues.
DD1 has lecturers tied up with vaccine related work so they won’t be available to teach their modules ....her overseas field work is cancelled (that’s another module) and these issues are multiplied across subjects and year groups......

@Halloween73 DS was still waiting for Durham (Chemistry) but he withdrew a few days ago so he could firmly accept his Cambridge offer. He had another offer from elsewhere but he really doesn't want to go anywhere else so he has no insurance place.

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At the moment, DS needs to believe that there is a high chance of him starting university this autumn. So he is going to work towards that goal.

Likewise Ironoaks. After being told by Cambridge that gap years are discouraged for Maths applicants, it would send DD into a tailspin if she thought she was going to be forced to take a break against her will. She's already nervous about six months without much structure.

If it happens, it happens, but she's carrying on working as if the timescale hasn't changed. In terms of maths and physics, I'm impressed with her focus. Although I don't think she's touched a German book since school closed!

DD4 and indeed DS3 and DS4 also assuming Oxford and Cambridge will go ahead in October until told otherwise. Seems the only and best option.

DS is now working at a more relaxed pace towards September exams in case he is not happy with the grades he is given in July.

DD did badly in one of her mocks, so I'm expecting her to lose her Oxbridge place because of that. She was predicted the grade she needs, but predictions are only part of what they're looking at. I'm hoping that they won't be so strict that she loses her insurance choice too.

Nicerainyweather, she may be ok. Apparently strict guidelines are being issued to teachers next week and it seems mocks are only part of what they will be asked to judge on. Fingers crossed for your DD.

nicerainyweather So far we've been told the grades will be based on a combination of GCSEs, NEAs and predicted grades as well as mock grades. More information due this week.

NEAs?

Non-Examined Assessment

Non examined assessment. D1 had NEAs in English and History, already completed. Would have been 20% of the marks.

Thank you both.

I'm finding the uncertainty about grades very stressful. DS did mocks straight after Cambridge interviews, so didn't do very well. He has only eight GCSEs, all top grades apart from English and Religious Studies... if that is deemed to be the criterion of how he will do in Further Maths A-level, I despair!

You are not alone @PantTwizzler. This might be more of a worry for Cam offer holders due to over offering and typically tougher offers. Also some DC “pull the grades out of the bag” under the pressure of “real” exams.

Oh terrific. Dd has an offer from Cambridge. Her gcses are weak for a Cambridge applicant. She got a C in her mocks in one of her subjects. Has to get an A to get into Cambridge. It's looking bad. She's really desperate to go to Cambridge. Her insurance choice requires a B in her 3rd subject.

@PantTwizzler - I feel your anxiety. DS1 had appendicitis the week before his mocks in January. I don't think mocks are the key thing though, they're just part of the mix of evidence for teachers to consider.

DS1's school is notorious for running harsh mocks but producing strong final results. I'm guessing they'll take into account how previous cohorts have progressed from mock to final results.

@nicerainyweather - feel for you. But if her school gave evidence very of strong performance (they must have if they predicted her grades suitable for Cambridge entry) she's still in a strong position.

I think it’s going to be harder for teachers to mark down a student who has a conditional offer for Oxbridge, or any student who has had to go through an interview process. I mean, if a 17 year -old has had the resilience to put themselves through that extra process (presumably with the support of the school) and earned themselves a conditional offer only a couple of months ago, how the hell can some teacher just step in now and pull the rug from under their feet? If they didn’t feel the student was capable of earning the grades for Oxbridge, then they shouldn’t have let these students put themselves through the process in the first place. Fair enough, if a year had passed and you had evidence to suggest the student was going off track, but the interviews etc were only in December!
I suspect Oxbridge will be full to the absolute max this year and will have to take on a lot of extras.

Solara But how would the individual subject teachers know which students had sat interviews, outside of Oxbridge? Her school is amazing but I doubt all of DD’s teachers know she successfully got through her Imperial interview.

I’ve heard rumours that students might be “bribed” (eg by waiving a term’s fees) to take a gap year to cope with possible higher numbers. Many students manage to pull their grades up between mocks and the real thing. I can’t see how teachers would mark students down from predictions. They don’t have a crystal ball.

Surely it will need to be done by evidence based criteria providing evidence of their performance.
You would hope doing this it would provide a similar picture across the cohort, to the exams where not all offers are achieved. There is no indication that it will be as simple as just predicted grades.

My DD's class in the particular subject were specifically told by the teacher that they shouldn't spend much time revising for the mock, because it was more important to finish a particular piece of work. That's come back to bite them.