Oxbridge 2024 Entry Part 2

[Lightsabre]

Continuation thread (when old one is full) for those supporting dc through Oxbridge applications. All welcome as we enter the next phase.

Just out of interest, does anyone know if ethnicity is taken as a contextual marker for Oxbridge (even if there are no other contextual markers)? I know there are various initiatives to attract applications from under represented groups such as those of Afro Caribbean heritage and the Ucas form captures this info. Just wondering if it is used contextually.

Try the Adobe Scan App. Very user friendly App. You can combine scanned pages /documents into a single document. I use it daily. Best of luck!

Lightsabre This is Oxfords info on contextual data - I think they won't use ethnicity alone to give a lower offer but may take it into account when considering between candidates.

https://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/applying-to-oxford/decisions/contextual-data

Great, thanks @Silkiefloof.

@hampsteadmum thanks for the tip. DD managed to scan the cover sheet and essay at college and it created one pdf document for each so all good. She just needs to rename with the correct naming convention and upload them when she gets home. That’s all her Cambridge tasks done then which is a relief. Now the waiting game to see if she gets an interview and sits the online test.

Good luck for those still to do their entrance exams.

Did anyone else’s child experience the shitshow that was the ELAT today? Wrong theme (last years), no texts at times etc.

@Rollergirl11 wish I could get mine to send the forms off! She now has added to the extra PS but is rethinking it; she has decided to ask fir extra time for written assessment (like she got fir her A levels as she has MS, which made her hand numb and very tired when writing). Doing that means extra info from school who are on a two week half term!
She had the date of her assessment towards end of November.
@Dafrty heard there was a (country wide) delay? What else happened? How stressful!

@Dafrty there are some posts on this on the Student room (a muddle between the moon and sleep as a topic is reported). Also from the Student Room, there were issues this morning for candidates doing other exams too with the system crashing for some. My DS did the MAT this morning and I haven't heard back from him yet whether he was affected.

If there are issues with a test they can apply for special consideration -

School should help - from the Oxford Website

It is not possible to re-sit a test. If you feel you did badly due to extenuating circumstances, for example: if you were ill on the day of the test, your test centre can submit a special considerations form for you; or if there was some form of disruption at the test centre you can submit the form yourself.

Yes my daughter sat the ELAT today. The exam was 35 minutes late starting because the portal kept crashing, then last year's theme was given and candidates had to read on and play "guess the theme" before being able to make a coherent start. Pretty sure the correct answer to guess the question was "moon". (No extra time given for this!)

Anyone's DC applying to chemistry in Oxford? Was wondering if the offers for chemistry from other universities started to arrive? )

Any MAT feedback:from any DC???!!!

Yep. Had to play guess the theme here too. DC guessed it was the moon and wrote on this but this basically went against the wrongly stated theme (last years). Just chaotic at best.

ELAT also restarted after 30 mins for some reason partly involving white screens.

DC said there was one weird question. Overall it's OK. The exam started 40 minutes late.

Sounds like a lot of issues with the tests today.

Chaos at DS2's school too. The wrong topic on the ELAT was heinous - does no one proof this stuff. Most of them played spot the topic, but one candidate stuck with the instruction. Started late but once started theirs kept going. The classic people had a torrid time - it took 4 hours to get it done. They got 3 mins in and then it froze for about 2 hours. As the exam had started, they all had to sit there in silence waiting with nothing to distract them, and no talking. The invigilators must have had a horrid time...

My son gets extra time and is still in the MAT, which was supposed to start at 9am. Absolutely disgraceful.

I haven't seen my DD yet, but from her messaging it sounds like her MAT may have taken 4.5 hours to run 🤷‍♀️. She said there were so many technical issues. The school is going to ask for consideration.

That sounds chaotic today - DD has a friend sitting today who its their 18th birthday, hope they've not been caught in that. Yesterdays ones appeared fine. DD said lots were saying yesterday's test was hard but would expect that.

My son had a nightmare with the MAT this morning. The system kept crashing every 5 to 10 mins. Teacher had to continually reset the system. He said it totally disrupted his flow and he thinks he's done terribly 😔

@reegee I don't see how they're going to mark it fairly if some people had minimal disruption and others have been massively disrupted.

@mynameisnotmichaelcaine I don't know either. My son said there was only 1 student at his school that didn't experience technical disruption. I dont know how they can fairly account for the different experiences.

Exactly. I've just spoken to my son - he's only just left the exam room. He got there at 8:40am. I'm really, really annoyed at this - this was such a big deal for these kids.

Oh my goodness the tests sound awful! So stressful for the poor kids.

We've got the PAT tomorrow, I'm thinking I might warn my DS so he's prepared if there is chaos 😬