Oxbridge 2020 (thread 10) - the path to the first term (just one slight hurdle to clear first)

[DadDadDad]

For better or worse, there is a bit of a bond of mutual experience between parents whose DC go through the Oxbridge application process. Thank you for your companionship so far - and thank you to others who started the earlier threads in this series.

This thread should take us to the start of the first term (whatever form that takes). All welcome here, but for many of us hopefully this will be the place for practical support as we help prepare these peculiar* young adults to spread their wings.

But the first item on the agenda appears to be the small matter of judgement...

*or for those who chose Oxford, very peculiar.

Fraught for my DD’s friends too @Hoghgyni. DD1 is at her best friend’s house now trying to help out with clearing so hasn’t taken a second to celebrate.

She was the only English Lit A* - a subject with 40+ students in because there were two classes. I can’t help feeling that must have been moderation due to it being a new sixth form + inner city comp.

Thanks for kind thoughts everyone. I'm gutted for everyone that is in a "computer says no" situation. Some of the moderation sounds ridiculously harsh.

We always knew that STEP was a high hurdle and it's a bitter pill to swallow at this late stage. But at least there is no uncertainty - the bottom line is she sat the exam and others did better.

When everything has settled and she's (hopefully) happy at St Andrews she'll have a story to tell about how it's perfectly possible to get four A*s and still not make it to Cambridge. Now we need to focus on explaining that to friends and relatives and trying to make sure they don't make an almighty fuss.

@AChickenCalledDaal
I can't believe how harsh that is, eurgh it makes me so mad!

Does anyone have experience of pooling? It's so awful this waiting game again mow... Waiting to see if anyone picks him!

AChickenCalledDaal - I went with DS to the St Andrew's open day (over a year ago - feels like a lifetime) and really liked it - it felt somewhere that was a really good place to be a student, and academically competes well with Oxbridge. DS rejected it for insurance only because they wanted the same grades as Oxford!

I hope your DD discovers what most people seem to say, that when you do end up with your insurance, once you are there you soon settle in and enjoy it.

Hi doadeer! ... 159 candidates were taken by colleges from the Summer Pool last year.

@JBX2013

Hi doadeer! ... 159 candidates were taken by colleges from the Summer Pool last year.

Thank you! That's positive. He had a wonderful reference from HT and surely 2A* and A is enough?!!

@ Doadeer, What is the Subject and what were the Offer conditions?

Law
He needed 2A and 1A but one of A star (formatting keeps going strange) was supposed to be maths. His school assessed him as A star but it was reduced by moderation

Let me try that again. This app hates the star icon!

Law
He needed 2A* and 1A but one of the A star (formatting keeps going strange) was supposed to be maths. His school assessed him as A star but it was reduced by moderation

@AChickenCalledDaal - DS loved St Andrews too. They didn't even make him an offer. Never heard back from them, so withdrew his application. It would have been his second choice, and he has friends who chose it over oxbridge,. Gorgeous place. He did a summer school there.

DS1 has straight A*s so he has his place at Oxford confirmed. And his twin got higher than needed for his London college (missed out on Cambridge at interview stage) so all happy here.

Congratulations, monkey. You were the one result from the Oxford roll call that we hadn't heard from, so good to complete the set.

There are a couple of Cambridge hopefuls who we've not heard from. If it's bad news, then I'm sorry.

@AChickenCalledDaal DD would probably be jealous of your DD’s St Andrew’s place! She has visited her close friend from the year above there twice and completely fallen in love with it. A fab university, and beautiful town. And with 4A* A levels it’s really not going to limit your DD in any way.

Congratulations on all the successes and sorry to these who have DC facing yet another lesson in resilience.
DS was awarded three A* and has his Cambridge place confirmed.

Well done to you DearPrudence - and your DS of course!

Waving to @HugoSpritz! Sorry, I hope I havent blown your cover.. I’m really thrilled for DS’s amazing results and glad to here he has a plan.

@HugoSpritz - I had an Aperol Spritz for lunch in your honour!

@AChickenCalledDaal - sorry to hear about the STEP result. It was a weird year to have to sit a single exam with such much resting on it. Normally speaking she'd have warmed up through her maths and FM papers.

DH is in his 2nd nap of the day. We're off work today and he got up early for results and went back to bed. Now he's having a 2nd nap after beer at lunch. Heaven knows if they'll be a third nap after champagne with the grandparents.

@hobbema - so sorry. I know very well the unbearable pain of having one twin thrive and succeed and the other strive and not quite make it. You feel caught, unable to give the successful one the hearty cheer and celebrations they deserve, and unable to comfort the twin who inevitably makes a comparison and feels they've fallen short, when you know how impressive their striving is in the first place.
I really hope things work out brilliantly for them both in the end.

@AChickenCalledDaal, St Andrew’s is an amazing alternative. DS absolutely loved it when we visited and would have been very tempted to firm it over Cambridge (for Economics and Sustainability) if they had made an offer.

Just for completion, DS achieved AAA. School are encouraging him to appeal the A but I don’t think he is bothered.

It clearly hasn’t been a fair process for all on this thread but hoping that every disappointed DC finds a way forward that works for them.

@monkeyonthetable, @Coleoptera, @PortusCale and everyone else who has been so kind to name check and sympathise; heartfelt thanks. I cant pretend our girls didnt get what, being brutally fair, they deserved out of this admittedly flawed algorithm. That doesnt make it any easier to negotiate of course. Both have been incredibly kind to each other today . I cant help but be sad we cant celebrate as fully as we’d like but there it is.
DD1 is having fun connecting on social media with other successful DC, she has been allocated the room next door to the girl whose interview she was wrongly sent to way back in January !
Ultimately, all will be well, they find their way. DD2 contemplating sitting Autumn exams.
I hope most of us will be celebrating tonight and grinning like Cheshire cats at our DC and I’ll be tipping my glass to those like me with harder news to digest too x

doadeer my son has been pooled too. His offer was AAA abd he got AAC. We are appealing the C which was for RE and the whole cohort have been marked down for this subject. So if you are in the pool what do we reckon are your chances?

@Cliff1975

This is a good article on it
www.varsity.co.uk/features/10571

Who knows it's just impossible to predict the conversations going on. Confusingly his own college could want him but they said they had to do this as he was one grade down even though this was moderated down.

How is your son feeling about his chances?

just hoping and praying!!!

Fingers crossed for you!!!

Wonder when we will hear?