Oxbridge 2024 Entry Part 4

[Lightsabre]

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

Good luck Oxford hopefuls!
My daughter met up with a school friend from Sixth Form who is now at uni in the States (she has dual citizenship). She finally told someone she's applied to Cambridge! There are several O candidates this year (current y13s), but she's the only one from her year or this current one applying to Cambridge (no idea why that is but might be that any oxbridge teachers at the school went to Oxford).

@Headingto18 I don’t think it’s altered school or friends’ expectations - maybe DD managed to make it clear!

Did discover last night though that DH didn’t really have a realistic view of the whole process as he said he’d be surprised if she didn’t get it (only said this to me luckily) - was trying to explain to him that yes DD is clever but so is everyone who’s applied and whilst it’s not exactly a lottery there is no way anyone can be sure of anything..

@MirandaWest My DH has the same expectations and I’ve pretty said what you have. Where as DS realises he’s up against extremely competent peers who may all have performed as well as he feels he did in his interview. DS is taking a pragmatic approach and is happy with his other offers. C is the only one he is waiting on now!

If DD gets rejected tomorrow I am going to show her some of the responses that @catmomof3 got on the current Oxbridge thread when she asked about a trip to Japan over Christmas. Posters saying their DC studied all day every day except Christmas Day etc, and the same over Easter hols. I'm not sure DD realises what life as an Oxford student might be like 😬

My DC didn’t find it necessary to work every day in the Christmas vac. They did normal stuff like seeing friends, travelling/skiing and sleeping. DD did a week of prep at the end of the vac for collections which was enough to get a college prize. DS worked intensively in his final year Christmas vac on dissertation stats. Not having a break wasn’t such a great idea as he was exhausted by Easter and succumbed to a bad case of shingles.

I second that ofteninaspin. There are as many different ways of working to meet the workload as there are students at Oxford. The most successful recipe seems to be play hard and work hard but every student has their own formula, although for some it takes a while to work out what it is. The one thing that is unarguable is that it needn't be all work and no play. I don't think any tutor would advocate that as a healthy approach.

Best of luck to all on this thread.

A couple of quick questions from my DH (who has suddenly become invested with 24 hours to go 🙄 )to the experienced parents of offer day…

1. Are rejections sent tomorrow also? Or is it the case that if you don’t hear tomorrow, that’s it?
2. Are the DC most likely to hear from the college or UCAS regarding their status?

Thank you to anyone who can help!

I think those stories about having to work through the hols might be a useful antidote to the disappointment of a rejection. Needless to say, they won't get a mention if she gets an offer tomorrow morning 😂

TOMORROW MORNING 😱

Hi everyone, we have been trying our best to not think about DS's C application over the xmas break, and quite successfully too.

I totally forgot that O decisions are tomorrow. Best of luck to your DC and at least you will know one way or another soon. I hope you all get some sleep tonight.

Today my DS received an email from C asking him to complete a Fee Status Questionnaire and a request for him to send in a scan of his passport. He was born overseas (in my home country, where we lived at the time) and we came here when he was starting year 7 and he has a UK Passport / citizenship from my DH (his Dad).

TBH I wish they'd leave us alone as we were happily chugging away getting excited about his other CS offers and not really thinking about C at all. Now suddenly I am looking at the college Instagram again etc counting chickens that haven't hatched ha ha!!

As I understand it @RIPMatthewperry they will hear either way tomorrow. I think UCAS updates first and then an email from the college? But maybe parents from last year can confirm how it works.

The Oxford website does say decisions will be released via UCAS in the morning and that will be followed by "direct communication from the college". So the first notification will probably be an email from UCAS to say there's been a change. Unless they are sitting with the UCAS hub open, refreshing it madly.
@RIPMatthewperry

There are always a few blips ime RIPMatthewPerry but the general rule is that rejections and offers are both sent on the same day. I know that rejections for DS3's college were sent an hour ahead of offers (rejections 9am offers 10am - that was Queen's/ History) so there's evidently no fixed pattern of which comes first.

I think the UCAS thing has changed since my youngest applied so I can't answer that one.

I hope your DH is proved correct!

@RIPMatthewperry Snork at the sudden belated husband interest - I recognise that!

Completely get the antidote stuff stoneysongs. DD4's college also has a resident colony of rats if that helps. Hoping your DD is successful; if so, go big on parties and fun!

The End of Year message email my DS got said "Decisions for this admissions round will be communicated via UCAS and by colleges on 9 January 2024. Decisions will be released via UCAS Track early in the morning. This will be followed by direct communications from the college considering your application." Obviously, I am now noodling on what sort of time they deem to be "early".....

Thanks all! Now nervous for a 9am notification 😭

Thank you goodbye, I will keep the rats up my sleeve, so to speak.

Also recognise the clueless DHs, mine had no idea decision day was tomorrow until I told him last night.

The emails must be a bit disconcerting - why would they care about his fee status if they weren't making an offer @PandaPacer ...

And why have some but not all had emails asking for feedback about the interviews? Do some colleges do that and not others, or some courses, or are people chosen randomly, or.... are they only asking people with or without offers 😬

All will be revealed in a few hours...
(DD hasn't been asked for feedback fwiw.)

I think all applicants are asked for interview feedback at some point, but different colleges or subjects do it at different times. I wouldn't read anything into that.

On Cambridge admissions asking for the DC passport - hmm, perhaps this could possibly be a positive indication at this point? I think C make all decisions in the first week of Jan (including pooling)? Unless it's changed in the last couple of years?

Btw, it's not necessary to work all holidays. I find reading this a bit alarming. Who are these students?! 😀DC went on the Varsity ski trip, did nothing all Xmas bar see friends and sleep and only started doing a bit of work yesterday (going back next weekend). Never worked through a holiday and at uni has loads of time to socialise and is involved in about 5 societies. I think that's more normal for most of them, from what I hear anyway. They have an essay a week or thereabouts, but that's it. Terms are short. They are catered for (food wise), beds changed and everything close by. It's not as if they're working part time jobs on top which is common at other unis.

Very best of luck to everyone.

My DD is still adamant whatever uni she gets into we are going Japan at Christmas 😅 I tried to show her the responses and she said she knows herself best and 2 weeks for a holiday is hardly gonna ruin her 1st year at Oxford or any other uni and that she refuses to wait any longer.🤷🏻‍♀️

@astraq I think the experience is very course and student dependent. DC1 has certainly done plenty of socialising over the holidays, but also quite a lot of work. They have a lot of reading to do for the course and the one term last year they didn’t get enough done in the holidays was super stressful, so they want to avoid that. They have also had many weeks where they needed to submitted 2 essays plus other coursework, so the pre-reading in the breaks is essential.

Most of DC1’s college friends have similarly worked quite a lot over the holidays. And the friend doing physics (which is what DC2 has applied for) works long hours all term plus most of the holidays. So not having an enormous workload will definitely be a big consolation if she doesn’t get in.

With my two it's not that they worked loads in the Christmas holidays it's the fact that they needed R&R rather than a big trip. They had worked and partied quite hard and were fit to drop. DD spent several days in bed on her return. Medicine and Chemistry.

My DD said she can sleep on the flight 🤣 she has an answer for everything lol. Let's see what the future holds tomorrow and go from there.

Good for her @catmomof3! 🇯🇵

DD does like a break - I think she will be quite shocked that some courses need a lot of work done over the Christmas and Easter holidays. I think she thinks it's high pressure and hard work but only for 8 weeks and then you get a nice long break until the next term 😬

Anyway, all useful stuff to persuade her that it's probably for the best and she has dodged a bullet if she gets rejected tomorrow. Whether she has actually dodged a bullet or not doesn't really matter.

My kid (natsci) was relieved not to do the varsity ski trip. They were just shattered and needed to come home and do absolutely nothing.

DS is very stressed, tired and grumpy waiting for tomorrow's outcome. It has been such a drawn out process and I'm glad it will be decided either way! Good luck to everyone waiting on an outcome tomorrow x