Oxbridge 2024 Entry Part 4

[Lightsabre]

New thread as our dc start the rollercoaster ride of interviews.

There will be loads more time spent in private schools on prepping for the Step and MAT and then interviews because they always stay behind after state school time for an extra hour or two for normal prep anyway and they go in during half term etc

DS had 30 mins interview prep at his college

MAT prep he did in his own time at home by going through past papers

Just imagine how much prep they get in a boarding school where pupils and teachers are there 24/7

Actually Im possibly mistaken I think DS might have had MAT / Step prep after school once a week for an hour

@Mirrormeback there must be enormous variance. At our local, but vm 3rd rate, PS, there was almost no Oxbridge prep. Nor, for that matter, any help with US college applications. Which, incidentally, are coing out today. DD is due to hear from Duke in 23 mins...

It is not necessary to spend lots of time preparing for aptitude tests. I am aware that my son's school has mathematics clubs that prepare for the MAT, but he did not participate in any due to his musical commitments. Instead, he independently attempted a few past papers to familiarise himself with the question formats.

@Mirrormeback You have the strangest ideas of how boarding schools work. You seem to think that because staff and boys live on site they spend every waking moment teaching and being taught. Boarding school staff teach in lessons on normal contracts - they aren't prowling the corridors at 10pm looking for passing children to grill on gerunds.

And why on earth would "private school" pupils regularly go in during half term? It's half term. A holiday. And no, they don't all stay on a for a few hours of supervised prep every day.

In which case he has had about the same specific entrance exam prep as my son did at his public school

@MommaZenZone same here on all points (diff school though); DC’s result release is 10pm UK time today

@Headingto18 Mistaken... 7pm EST. Good luck to yours!

There are algorithms pertaining to school type - no chuntering about unfairness here, it is what it is and I understand it, but to suggest otherwise is incorrect.

I thought results for Cambridge were out on the 24th is this correct? DS2 said the college he is applying to states they get informed on the 26th.

Sure but it’s not about school type per se it’s about attainment within that context. It’s all entirely fair.

That was to hunderground.

Obviously tutors interviewing know the educational background and that has to be factored in, again for equity and context. And that adjustment isn’t capable of being mathematically quantified nor is it reported. But I think the student in question whose parent was complaining about the selective grammar penalising their chances failed to get an invite to interview in the first place (I don’t remember the case but that’s what it said upthread).

In ds subject at O there are 205 places available approx. They said at the open day that they're aiming for 50% female intake, around 25 places go to international applicants. So competition is fief e for the remaining places. No whittling down via a test either which wasn't great for ds as he may have done well in that and it would have added weight to his application (not everything hinging on interviews).

I thought it was interesting that almost 45% of successful applicants are from the private sector. They possibly have more interview practice/exposure so are maybe able to impress more on the day? Who knows.

As I understand it, the GCSE contextualisation score features in the ranking and so is woven in at this stage…. School type is therefore irrelevant. Having say a FSM marker etc is flagged to the tutors on the candidates pdf application, but what they do with that info is then anyone’s guess.

I think the Polar and Acorn data are also used?

They are. They are part of ‘etc’ - no clarity on how they are used beyond being flagged to the assessing tutors on the pdf. The only clear thing is the cGCSE score in the ranking.

The thing is, school type is crude IME.

I have several friends teaching in private schools. Not the big names ones.

Teacher 1: run ragged by demands of school. This includes teaching PSHE, doing sports sessions and trips and covering boarding houses. None of this is related to what teacher teaches and all relates to school economising by stretching teaching staff to the max. Teacher has not run a single oxbridge entry class as teacher has no time/energy. 2 students applied though. Outcome unknown.

Teacher 2: has a teacher within the dept on maternity leave. School doesn't have enough money to employ a cover. All remaining teachers in that dept have extra work as a result and are burning out. Told students applying to oxbridge to work together, without a teacher, and interview each other.

These two schools are probably "algorthimed" as great schools. If the parents really knew the inner workings of them, they'd run a mile (and probably sue!)

There is plenty of unfairness, it's just a different kind of unfairness.

Overall there will be vastly more unfairness to those in state non selectives than to any applicant in the state selective or independent sector. I can’t see that that’s in any doubt.

I had 2 DC at small private school. Not had any successful Oxbridge students in last 5 years.
Dç3 at sixth form in deprived area but had 2 interview practices in school, Oxbridge person giving talk, previous students who went to oxbridge coming in etc etc.

But before asking why I sent 2 DC to private school, they had lots of extracurricular clubs, trips to china, USA etc.( not the reason I sent them😉)

@tiffinthebox. Sorry you find it confusing, some of us with DC applying this year have older DC already at oxbridge. Personally I find it helpful when posters give input from their previous experience, it doesn't detract from us going through the same thing with this year's DC.

On the private vs state debate, I had DD at a private sixth form, DS at a state. Zero difference in prepping them for interviews, in that both were pretty rubbish (one mock interview each). That said, I know of friends' kids who got a lot more support from their private schools, (and I'm sure there are some state schools that are also great). Tbh I think a lot of the difference between them are down to expectations, whether that's from parents or teachers I don't know. There is often an idea that oxbridge is for 'other' people, cleverer/posher/etc. So kids aren't encouraged enough to give it a go in the first place.

I think both universities have made great strides into widening access but generally attitudes we've encountered are like the one you describe @Ragdollcharlie . Even dh questioned whether ds would 'fit in' at Oxbridge - he had a bit of a stereotypical view of the universities. It didn't help that on one of the open days when we asked about sports, two students gushed on about rowing and the excitement of the races, balls and formals etc (probably the wrong expression). One of the parents asked 'what about normal sports'!

It has helped that other dc in ds's school applied in good numbers - he doesn't feel like he's an outlier or not good enough as he is exactly at the same level as others applying. Some will be lucky, others won't be.

I know this because I taught in a private school

And why on earth would "private school" pupils regularly go in during half term? It's half term. A holiday. And no, they don't all stay on a for a few hours of supervised prep every day.

They do actually