International Relations/Politics 2024

[Calmmumnot]

Has anyone applied and received offers in International Relations/Politics? where are the offers from? Thanks

STILL waiting on Edinburgh and Bristol! Starting to worry that DD won't get the accommodation she wants if she delays applying much longer... I understand Bath and Bristol don't work on a first come first serve basis, but what about the others?

Was that this weekend @marnie9 . Hope your DC is OK? Where's first choice?

I think no news is good news @Joolseye - where is her 1st choice? Don't know about Edinburgh re accommodation.

Thanks @Tenpastseven . It’s just weird how they stagger acceptances and rejections, I don’t get it as cut off application date has been a while ago now. She’s not sure yet about her first choice - luckily Bath is up there for which she’s been offered a place. Although she also really liked Bristol so I guess we just wait some more!

I think by now it's likely a one out (as in if an offer holder chooses not to firm or insure) then one in situation? DS was always a bit close to the wire - he's been predicted 2 x As and 1 x A and hasn't done an EPQ. I think his rejection may mean they are only looking at 2 x A and 1 x A* candidates now, with a bit of wiggle room for EPQs but that is a very poorly informed guess based on anecdotal evidence from one applicant!

From past experience last year (Edinburgh comp sci for my son) and learning about friends' experiences over the years, (his Scottish school sends quite a few to Edinburgh) I think at this stage it means that the YP is on a wait list to see who accepts and rejects. The department is waiting to find out how many places are still available.

Although the bulk of offers have been released, more offers will come dribbling out over the next few weeks, followed by mostly en masse rejections in May.

Good luck!!!

@Joolseye It’s surely because some DC are an instant yes. Others are instant rejection and others are maybes. So they get closer inspection. Then they seem really slow!

That makes more sense to me now, thanks @Tenpastseven @Aurea and @TizerorFizz . DD got an email back last December from Bristol saying they were putting her on hold until all applications were in so I guess that's actually what they were doing, and it's still what's happening!

Sounds like Edinburgh is the same. She's got predicted above the mimimum IB points required (41 vs 39) but I know the course didn't offer any UK home students places under 43 predicted last year (admissions told me). Different story for international students (many more offers made to 39 pointers). So not expecting to get any offers and actually surprised we're still on hold.

So we wait! tbh I think she should just go for Bath which seems awesome but I guess it's not my decision #pushyparent 😂

We are also waiting on Bristol here @Joolseye , DD also over the predicted grades. Thinking of withdrawing now so that she can get the process finished (for the time being). Fortunately Bath is the favourite.

@GuestWW Looks like we're in the same boat!

Very excited here today. DD had applied for a masters in IR & Global Ethics at York in October. They made her an offer the next day as she had graduated last year, so she accepted immediately. Accommodation opened a few weeks ago and she applied believing she wouldn't hear any more until August. They offered her a room she is very happy with earlier today which she has accepted before the offer runs out. It suddenly seems a little closer.

Exciting news @Numbersaremything 🙂She must be counting down the weeks.

Yes and no. Every extra week she can work helps as the fees and rent come in at £21k for the year. You can only borrow a total of £12k towards them from SFE so there's such a big funding gap. She'll be living on 1 tin of beans each week! Such a shame they don't do Integrated Masters for humanities like they all do for STEM.

The rejection from Bristol arrived on Friday, YP is fine but I am a bit nonplussed, over grade requirements and accepted at the others. Importantly, DD has an offer from her first choice so we can get that all done before the exams start.

@GuestWW When it gets this late it’s very small margins between yes and no. Different opinions at different universities.

Sorry to hear that @GuestWW - so where is 1st choice? Sorry if you've already said.

DS has begun to process of requesting deferral of his offers to 25 entry. A levels feel very close now.

@Tenpastseven Bath :-) good luck with the deferrals.

Three weeks until the exams kick off

@GuestWW sorry to hear about Bristol, we're still waiting for ours, as nonplussed as you are... IB exams beginning on Friday and I would rather we got it before she started!

Double whammy DD just got rejections from Edinburgh and Bristol!

Bristol did say they wanted to consider her for Social Policy though... I guess they haven't got enough applicants there. Actually if they consider her for another one we've just seen called International Social and Public Policy, could be interesting, even though that's not what they were pushing for. But I suppose that means delaying decision again...

Has anyone else had experience of being offered another course than the one applied for?

Sorry to hear that @Joolseye

I’ve never heard of them being offered another course. Hopefully that can be flexible for the one you suggested.

When an applicant is qualified for a School but a particularly competitive course has a surfeit of stronger applicants, they are frequently offered an alternative degree programme within the School that is struggling for high quality applicants.

The question for the applicant becomes, am I sufficiently interested in attending this university to modify my choice of programme?

I am a former Russell Group admissions tutor. I must admit that during my term we got a new degree programme approved and had to use this strategy to fill it during the first couple of years. But why not? The uni has an excellent reputation and the new programme self evidently leads to good employment. If people freely choose that combination they are taking a good opportunity. However I am certainly not suggesting that the offer of an alternative degree programme always leads to an easy decision. Best wishes to DD

@poetryandwine thank you so much that is really insightful! I'm not sure Social Policy is new, I guess we'll dig into it a little more. Regardless if it hasn't got 'international' in it and include a year abroad it won't be interesting to my DD.

More likely it's Warwick v Bath, decision time! I think it'll boil down to third year study abroad options but it's actually quite opaque for both unis (since Brexit options in Europe have become more limited it seems)

Durham used to do this. A couple of years ago they sent a flurry of offers out for Anthropology when people had applied for PPE or History.

Arch and Anth are the go to subjects if you cannot get in for another subject. Plus sociology. I did a HNC in Business and Social Policy in the 80s. Could have gone on to a degree. That was at a poly.

Bristol might be able to offer the year abroad though. Year abroad isn’t just for linguists. A friend’s DC did a masters abroad so there’s always that option.

They also offer Social Policy with year abroad. Is a transfer possible? At any stage?