Oxbridge 2024 Entry

[Lightsabre]

Thought I'd start a thread for parents of dc considering Oxbridge applications for entry in Oct 2024 (I don't think there's a current one)? Past threads have been so informative and supportive and hopefully this thread will offer that too. Please feel free to add to the thread if your dc have recently had experience of the process, good, bad or ugly!

I have a wry smile at the concern over 2 admissions tests on the same day.

DD has just completed her finals. She had 8 exams across 15 days with her last 3 exams on Monday afternoon, Tuesday morning, Tuesday afternoon/ evening. Her degree was based entirely on those exams. 25% of those in her college in their final term of her course rusticated (dropped out for a year) in their final term as the pressure was so intense.

In her first year she routinely had to write and submit 2 essays to be torn apart in her weekly tutorials along with 2 worksheets of economics and statistics. The interview process is a fair representation of the tutorial system which will often be 1 to 1 or 1 to 2 leaving you very exposed.

Please don't think that getting an offer is the goal. The next 3 or 4 years will be far harder than at most other universities. Would I recommend she did it with the benefit of hindsight? Possibly, but not definitely.

The pressure has always been that intense and if 25 per cent of students now can’t hack it then something has gone seriously wrong at some level

They finished school abruptly in March 2020. Their A level results were made up by an algorithm, then judged depending in which school they went to. They spent their first term predominantly in isolation, then the majority had to spend 5 months studying online at home. Their second year still had Covid restrictions in place.

Some hadn't taken in person exams since their GCSEs 5 years ago. Now their 3rd year has ended with a marking strike where many are graduating without their results and others have been told they can't graduate this year.

Is that good enough?

In all seriousness though, these threads naturally focus on the admissions process & minutiae of which college gives the best chance of success. You can get an offer without perfect A level PGs, prizes in essay competitions and work experience in the British Museum. However, it's a very different experience to those their friends will have at most other universities and the pace is relentless.

My comment meant as any kind of criticism of these kids. I was wondering how much had gone wrong for them as result of Covid/strikes etc. A lot obviously . But yes, the pace has always been relentless and it is definitely not as well rounded an experience as you might get elsewhere, really worth bearing in mind.

ChristinaAlber 25% of the undergrads on a particular course at a particular subject have rusticated. That's three students in this case. It's a tough course at a competitive college for that course and who knows what their individual circumstances were. Those numbers are not going to be representative across other courses and colleges: it's not the case that 25% of Oxford students rusticate. H20 is correct that those who went up in 2020 have had a pretty rough deal which very arguably made the usual intensity even more of a challenge (my youngest DD is that cohort too).

On the plus side, I can't sing the praises of my DD's college welfare team enough. They supported her through some difficult times & were always there with an open door to listen & provide advice. I know others were not as lucky.

Yes, I do understand. I think we’d have heard more widely if 25 per cent of all Oxford students had done this. It’s still very sad. And people still need to bear in mind how demanding the courses are, getting in is just the start.

The pressure has always been that intense and if 25 per cent of students now can’t hack it then something has gone seriously wrong at some level

Ah ok. Just that this strongly suggested that you thought the issue was more generalised.

That’s what happens when you write posts in a hurry. One quarter of students on a course may o ly amount to 3 students still 3 too many and that will have a knock on on next year’s intake

No it won't.

Was it a science or arts subject out of interest? What Covid did to schoolchildren and students is just so grim.

What do people (especially those with DC in the thick of it) think are the qualities that make a DC suited to an Oxbridge degree? There seems to be such a wide variety of experiences, from sailing through with plenty of time for sports and loving every minute etc, to not sure if they would do it if they had their time again, and then some who have a very difficult time with mh issues. I know it's not an exact science, but how might you figure out whether it's right for a DC?

PPE (I'm sure H20 won't mind my saying provided I don't mention the college, since her other posts frequently refer to PPE).

(Or I should have said, how might a DC figure out whether it's right for them?)

No I didn’t see how it could possibly be as generalised as 25% because that would be headlines. Sorry if I gave that impression. But as others say it’s sad. @singingstones I think robustness has always been vital to thriving at Oxbridge and these kind of anecdotes show more now than ever. That’s not to criticise those who are having a hard time but the workload and competition is brutal. Some will relish that, many won’t. Others will now obviously disagree.

@singingstones I think this is such an important question - what makes Oxbridge suited to your child, or not? Here are my thoughts, for what they are worth. As someone said above, the workload is brutal, and the pace is relentless.

My sense was that if someone has had to work really really hard to get straight 9s and 4 A stars etc etc, then they might actually find the pace too much, because they didn't have much "left to give", if you see what I mean. Whereas, if they had achieve those 9s and A stars without actually having to work particularly hard, then they still have the capacity to go up a gear when they reach Oxbridge.

This was certainly the case for my son. He is naturally on the lazy end of the spectrum(!), but was lucky enough throughout school and college to find things easy and breezed through with very good results. He arrived at C (NatSci) and it was a huge change for him, but he could still go up that gear when he needed to. The first year was a big adjustment for him and he failed a mock exam mid way through the year. (He had never failed anything in his life before, so this came as a bit of a shock!) He knuckled down and we realised that he can work hard, it was just that he had never needed to before. And there is no doubt he has thrived and is absolutely loving his time there.

So, in addition to natural flair, curiosity and love for a subject, I do think having some "spare capacity" is important. I hear of kids who work all hours that god gives them for their A levels, and because they want to get in to Oxbridge, and I really wonder how they will cope when they arrive. As @HewasH2O said earlier: "Please don't think that getting an offer is the goal. The next 3 or 4 years will be far harder than at most other universities."... So true!

Hope this is helpful!

@AndTheyFlyTheNest I read an article recently in the Times (I think) on this issue. The gist of it was that kids stretched at some 6th forms (beyond being taught the A level syllabus only) tended to adapt well at Oxbridge and were more confident in managing the workload. DD has a punishing workload during term time but they are all expected to rest in the hols (teachers included) at her school which has definitely taught her time management skills (eg not wasting time on TikTok etc).

I’m not sure I agree with @AndTheyFlyTheNest that only the exceptionally bright will thrive at Oxford. Being bright enough and knowing how to apply oneself is just as important. Also, not everyone finds the work super tough. As well as DD1 I do know a number of current Oxbridge students doing a variety of courses. I think PPE is particularly tough, not all courses are like that.

DD1 has just finished her first year at Oxford. All her lectures, classes and tutorials were fortunately in person this year (though a few missed because of strikes). She has certainly had to work pretty hard consistently, and indeed discovered that properly doing all the pre-reading through the vacs was the key to being on top of things through the very short, intense terms. She has though managed fine and enjoyed the year (despite having four exams on a single day!) - ending with a strong 2:1. Some essays went better than others, but she did not feel they got “torn apart” every week, but rather that she learnt from feedback what was expected and was able to improve. She also managed to have a great time socially and get very involved in a society of interest. I would describe her as very bright, but certainly not exceptional.

So I would say key qualities needed are the maturity and ability to study independently and resilience. I think if you’re a perfectionist who only focusses on the negatives you will find tutorials very tough, if you have more realistic expectations they are likely to go better.

These thoughts about Oxbridge suitability are so interesting, thank you.

Both I and DW were at Oxbridge many moons ago, so things might have changed. As a conscientious perfectionist, DW found the experience much tougher than I did.

To be completely honest I’m not sure that Oxford is the right place for DD. But she wants to give it a go so I’m there to support her. She does lack resilience and is a perfectionist but is improving a bit I think.

MirandaWest Oxford is bursting with perfectionists. It's not obvious that going to a different uni is a happier route for perfectionists.

I could have written this post.

Being bright enough and knowing how to apply oneself is just as important.

That's my DD. She had an asymmetrically mixed bag of GCSEs, wasn't always top of everything in her girls' GS. She figured out how to have a sensible work-life (and sleep!) balance. She was very engaged with her subject and thought carefully about Cambridge vs the other options, course content, assessment method (those exams!) and went into it with her eyes open, pretty sure she'd be looking at a 2:1 whereas very likely a first elsewhere. She wanted to go because it would be challenging, not in spite of that.

My DD is a ‘conscientious perfectionist’ but also a ‘party animal’ which does mediate things! 🤣