Oxbridge Aspirants 2022 part 3....Will they or won't they make it to interview? Our Mum nerves are in tatters!

[TangoWhiskyAlphaTango]

New thread for us, lots of lovely support whilst we wait. Some of our lovely DC now have interview dates whilst the rest of us hold our breath and try not to hassle our teens into checking their SPAM folders at least several times per day .

Thanks @SandyBayley. Nice of you to say :)

A huge THANK YOU for all of your lovely messages you are a lovely bunch I think you can only understand the stress of this process when you are in the thick of it and it is lovely to have others to share it with. We are still waiting for a date which I believe will be emailed out by Clare early next week, DD is full on revising now.

I am very sorry to hear of the rejections we all know it is such a long shot and many of us will be here in January with the same news I hope all of your DC are ok, it sounds like the popular courses have been super tough this year.

[quote Horace123]**@TangoWhiskyAlphaTango* the best bit of your news was the UPPER CASE LETTERS and lots of !!!!!!!. Exactly how I would feel. Congrats to TWAT Jnr*.[/quote]
Love TWAT Jnr

Well done to all the Cambridge interviewees!
Sage advice from parents of DC not short listed and thank you for sharing.

@TangoWhiskyAlphaTango Sorry! I keep forgetting that it isn’t a synonym for twit (which I thought it was for ages rather embarrassingly!)

[quote Horace123]@TangoWhiskyAlphaTango Sorry! I keep forgetting that it isn’t a synonym for twit (which I thought it was for ages rather embarrassingly!)[/quote]
It's my favourite word as it seems to sum up so many people I know 😂😂😂

I’ve lurked for ages, unable to bring myself to post for fear of jinxing my lovely DD but today she got offered an interview at St. John’s for HSPS and we are all beyond deliriously happy.

Very philosophical re the next stage (been here before with DS with Oxford) but so utterly delighted she has the chance to interview at the very least.
To those who have received rejections, it is horrid, you have my sympathy and it is fine to feel aggrieved and down hearted considering the enormous effort that an Oxbridge application entails but having been through this before when my (in my opinion) quite brilliant son was rejected from Oxford, a different path can and does work out brilliantly as he has had the most amazing experience at another Russell group Uni, getting a First, now doing his Masters and already lining up to do a phd. He’s had a complete blast whilst still doing the necessary work. It hasn’t been a hardship for him not going to Oxbridge.

Good luck for all those going forwards to interview and I hope all those still waiting to hear get word soon as it really is an anxious wait.

Congratulations to those who've been invited for interviews and commiserations for those who haven't been invited... it does seem to be a tough year for certain subjects. A school friend of DD's hasn't got an interview for Cambridge engineering and he is apparently absolutely brilliant.

Hello Motherstongue, well done to your DD

Virtual handhold here for anyone still waiting .. trying very hard to not demonstrate any body or verbal cues asking: any news ? The truth is if any of our DCs are in with a shout of a consideration this bodes well for their final uni place wherever they end up as they must have a fairly decent scoresheet till now to be in with a chance.
Right back on the waiting for Cambridge bench today after a break ! Come on now let this please draw to a close one way or the other!

@motherstongue Welcome to our friendly thread. Huge congratulations to your DD, mine is also a HSPS applicant and we were also so very happy yesterday she thought she would be rejected as her GCSEs were good but not the straight 9s I keep reading. Absolutely hear what you have written about your DS and I know without a doubt if DD ends up at Bath she will still have the best of education and experience.

@doubleshotcappuccino Lets today is the day you hear, the not knowing is the hardest part its so bloody stressful

For those who have interview invitations for Oxford, do they come via UCAS or as a direct email from the university or college? If I can work out the address or domain of the email, I can make sure DS applies a "Never send to spam" filter (gmail's equivalent of a Safe Sender list).

I"ve had some issues recently with Gmail bouncing emails (from my bank, and school systems) without even sending them to spam. I only know it happens because my bank is sending me letters every month telling me they're getting bounce messages so are obliged to send me paper statements.

I think all interview emails come from the individual colleges, nothing from UCAS until offer day.

I am feeling a bit sad today, as DS brought up the stat of 70% of applicants being called for an interview ( is that true?) and wondered why he did not make the cut.

I am not saying DS deserves an interview, but at the risk of outing myself ( don't care all that much) in the last 2 years he has:
Moved from India to the UK leaving behind everything he knows in the pursuit of a UK education at age 16
Taken his grades from a C in Further Maths at the beginning of IGCSE's to an A* by the end
Achieved 9 A in IGCSE ( only 9 subjects allowed) and predicted 4 A in A levels.
Second in his class in economics ( a v high achieving school)

I really hope some other uni recognises his effort. :(

DH won't allow me to wallow, so I hope I can wallow a tiny bit here just for today.

Thank you @TangoWhiskyAlphaTango .. Very much appreciated...
@TomelettewithGreggs you've come to the right place for a supportive group that are walking the same path with you. That is a serious or impressive academic record .. it is clear from lot of posts elsewhere that those with such an incredible record of achievement such as this will do well wherever they go. Any rejection, though, will bring and a moment to wonder what might have been - allow yourself this, it is bound to give you pause to question as to why he didn't get an interview. We are all here because we are supporting our DCs.. we would all be the same. As for the stats to who gets an interview - I think it's hard to pull one stat as depends on course etc..

Should have said seriously impressive record @TomelettewithGreggs

@Chapter - my DS has also applied to Worcester college for maths - still waiting!

Congrats to all who have interviews

Hi Darbs76, I believe interviews for Maths are being held 13th - 16th December and for Maths and Computer Science 13th - 14th December. We are not expecting to hear anything for a while. Good luck to your DS.

Hi Tomlette. I’m just de-lurking to say please don’t take the lack of an interview too badly. It’s very hard, but if he is in a very high-achieving school, his grades and performance will have been contextualised against that cohort. From that kind of school, they would expect not only top grades, but also evidence of essays / research / something significant and tangible over and above the curriculum. Most of them applying will have top predictions this year, so they are probably having to use the entrance exams to differentiate more than ever. It’s really tough but the vast majority will still be rejected in January and it’s no easier then. In fact, it feels more personal then because they have actually met you! In a way, it easier to blame a bad day in the admissions test!

Have a look at the Cambridge admissions stats for Economics (if you haven’t already) and you will see how super-competitive it is.

Applicant numbers are up again this year by the look of it, but I guess they have to keep the numbers they interview fairly stable. So even if it is 75% interviewed normally or in recent years, it might not be this year in proportion to applicants.

This is never an exact science - far far from it! Your son will come out on top, I’m sure. Plus, if he’s that hung up on Oxbridge he can always reapply, I think I read a high proportion of those accepted are post- A-level applicants. But no need to think about that now. Just see what else comes through and he’ll know what he wants to do. Good luck to him!

Coffeecats-Are numbers up? What evidence is there,the only official numbers that Im aware that have been released were for medicine,cant remember if it was O or C and they were down.

Has anyone heard re: Engineering at Cambridge yet? We don't appear to have had an email. Not sure if this is a good or bad thing! Thanks.

Popping in from last year's thread to say DS (maths at O) didn't get an interview invite until late on November 30. I remember he came in waving his phone at me because I'd already taken myself off to bed to try to escape the stress!

Thanks @doubleshotcappuccino and @coffeecats for your kind words. Sorry if my post sounded like bragging. I am over it now. Onwards and upwards!

Good luck to those who have interviews.

@printmeanicephoto yes, some engineering invitations/rejections have arrived but it depends on the college I presume.