Applying to Oxbridge for 2023 intake

[riverpebbles]

Not sure if there is already a thread on this? My son is hoping to apply to Cambridge for Computer Science for October 2023 start.

@goodbyestranger apparently there is an A level in Classics (I didn't know that). DD1's bf is doing his PGCE and has a job lined up teaching Classics for September. He did Latin, German and I think History for A level then MML at DD's college specialising in Latin & German. However, Cambridge's PGCE in Modern Languages insists on either French or Spanish, so he has been studying in London & living back with his parents.

Sorry to derail the thread. If anyone has NatSci questions, feel free to tag me.

Thanks Malbecfan. I shall have to look up what Classics A level involves! Sounds odd!

Isn’t ‘Classics’ the A-level in Classical Civilisation? There is a GCSE in Classical Civilisation too.

@sulalu yes, sorry, didn't mean to derail or cause confusion. The school always refers to it as Classics but it is 'Classical Civilisation'

@juicy0 sounds very interesting, your son is lucky to go to a school where Latin and Ancient Greek are available. Our school does offer Latin at both gcse and A level, but unfortunately not Greek. He’ll be able to straight into the 3 year course hopefully if he gets accepted.
I know they say Classics has less applications, but that doesn’t make it any easier! My DS is looking at Physics and has already started his PAT prep in the hope he gets a high enough score to make it to automatic interview stage and avoid prior sifting.

@OnePlusOneEquals yes, hopefully he can do the three year course. I agree there is no such thing as an easy application but the odds are more in favour for some courses than others I think. As you said earlier in the thread, whatever the outcome I think the process will be beneficial, just need to make sure there are a couple of other options where he would also be happy and excited to go. Does your DS have anywhere else in mind?
Good luck to your DS with his preparation, I think as much practice as possible can only be a good thing.

Yes @juicy0 he’s looking at York, Warwick, Lancaster and Durham. He had considered St Andrew’s but the accommodation situation has really put him off. He just wants to have a very short commute and no big city university….so I think his other options are pretty good. How about your DS?

I'm not absolutely convinced by that juicy0, that the odds are genuinely more in favour for Classics. Classical languages are not a soft option at A level and that by definition narrows the pool and raises the bar. Opting to study those languages from scratch at speed is also emphatically not for the fainthearted. Numbers can be very deceptive, and in the case of Classics and MFL the idea that it's 'easier' to get an Oxford or Cambridge place for those subjects is given additional credence by that state schools have put up such a weak performance in those areas for so long. The 'chatty' subjects have more applicants for a reason - it's easier to blag (since three of mine have done chatty subjects, I have no axe to grind!)

@goodbyestranger how is your DD finding the course so far?
@OnePlusOneEquals DS also considered St Andrews but has ruled it out, he is keen to visit Exeter, UCL, KCL and Edinburgh to narrow down his other options. A large number from his sixth form usually go to Durham each year but he's not keen for that reason.

She's enjoying the content hugely juicy0 but there's no doubt that the volume of work for Oxford Classicists is far greater than it is for many other subjects. I think she'd prefer it wasn't that way! But she's managing and also managing to do plenty of other stuff too, it's just all quite high octane. The first phase of the Oxford course for those starting languages from scratch (which isn't a foundation year in the way it is at Cambridge) is especially tough, so hopefully things will be slightly less pressurised from now (she's just taken her Mods, so is now onto to the second phase of the course). Definitely the right choice of course for her though, she's clear on that.

@juicy0 a good range of choices there. DS likes the look of Exeter too, but it is a loooooong way from us with no direct route, so that put him off a bit. Edinburgh is great university and is like St A’s in that there are students from all over the UK and world attending. Transportation to there is good too. Are you going to visit them all before applying? My DS has decided not to bother with visiting some and will see if he gets offers and then will attend offer holder days instead. He spent a week at Lancaster doing a course a couple of years ago and will be doing something at York over the summer so will see that one too. Oxford he’ll visit with school so that just leaves Durham and Warwick (unless he changes his options) to visit if he gets offers.

@OnePlusOneEquals we are also a long way from Exeter and Scotland so I think maybe he will do virtual tours initially and then look to visit in person according to any offers he receives. It's so difficult though because I know from going through this with DD that you do get a feel for the right place which perhaps can only be gained by visiting in person. She thought Birmingham was her top choice but after visiting she really didn't see herself there at all.
@goodbyestranger volume of work is definitely something DS is conscious of but it's good to hear that although it's intense your daughter is finding time for other things.
How did she go about narrowing down college choices? There is so much advice about what should and shouldn't be taken into consideration.

My eldest (2020 start) got as far as interviews for physics at Oxford, so she did the PAT and all of that (if your DC wants to do a PAT test paper to work on, 2019 and 2012 is a tough one).
She also attended UNIQ summer school in 2019 at Oxford. She was very happy with all of the other unis choices which really helped when she didnt get in. Plus another visit to the uni she did pick also helped.
Ive seen students on the student room forum in the past who have picked Oxford, but other choices they couldnt care less about, so when it didnt work out, they had to drop out of the process entirely as they wasnt keen on the other 4 choice uni's.

@OnePlusOneEquals DD1 studies at Lancaster Particle physics and cosmology Mphys, and She also had York on the list back then Phys + astro (others were Oxford and Leicester).
Likewise she didnt want a big city uni either. She visited Leeds but felt overwhelmed.
I will say though Lancaster and York, you cannot go wrong with those unis. Yorks interview day was a lovely process, they made everyone feel so welcome and put the students minds at ease. Lancaster is the same, but won on the fact it had less expensive accommodation, and it looked so clean and nice and more modern (she was in a Grizedale Townhouse). Lancaster is perfect for students who want the city a short bus ride away, but not so huge. She is in 2nd year now and lives right in the middle of the city and loves it. And the teaching is excellent, even though it was online the first few months during restrictions back then, they still did labs and online teaching they made it lots of fun. Its now in person now, but it did show what a great physics department was and they looked after the students.

juicy0 DD4 wanted to be in the centre of Oxford at one of the older colleges. She knew Oxford pretty well having had elder siblings there who she visited from time to time, and they showed her around. She looked up numbers for Classics and confirmed that the college she liked the look of (literally liked the look of, in terms of appearance) took a high number of Classicists, that they weren't averse to Course II applicants (some colleges are not keen) after which it was a done deal (the choice of college I mean). None of my DC have wanted to go to the same college as any of their siblings, so it ticked that box too, although that was more important when several sisters and brothers were undergrads at the same time and now the older ones have moved on.

That’s really good to hear @sammyjoanne I’m glad things are working out well for your daughter and that she had such a positive experience throughout the whole process. I think of the choices DS has currently besides Oxford, York or Lancaster would suit him best in location, facilities and accessibility. Lancaster in particular with the Lakes being on the doorstep, he’d really love that.

@OnePlusOneEquals Thanks I'm glad it worked out well for her too :)
Sounds like your DS is very similar with location and facilities. Does he have any Oxford colleges in mind? On open day she couldnt make her mind up and ended up going round 6. We had sore feet that day lol.

May I join the thread? One of mine will be applying to Oxford for Physics and we are a little lost.

Hey @CoteDAzur welcome! Are you or your DC planning on doing the open day in June? There is a whole load of info on the Physics department website about the PAT with past papers and currently they can sign up to a free summer scheme specifically aimed at the exam.
@sammyjoanne DS has looked at a few colleges and done some online quizzes about which college is best, but he’s not got anywhere special in mind as yet. He’s hoping to view a few different ones when he goes in June from a rich, old one with lots of traditions to a newer one. He’s fully understanding of the fact that if he makes it to interview then he may be put in a pool and interviewed by other colleges, so wants to see if he feels comfortable and enthused by all that he sees.
It’s not the be all and end all for him and he’s more than happy with his other choices…..but just wants to give it a shot because you never know!

When is the open day in June? We are not in the UK and it might not be possible to come for the open day.

DC is registered for the PAT prep that starts in May. Is that the one you were referring to?

Our 2022 University-wide Open Days are Wednesday 29 June, Thursday 30 June and Friday 16 September.

www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/open-days-and-visits

These open days?

Yes @CoteDAzur that’s the prep available online

Which college in Oxford is more competitive for Math and/or Computer Science subjects? I understand that getting into Trinity in Cambridge for math is very difficult.