Help! Don't like any of my university choices

Hey! Firstly, Exeter offers are absolutely not as high as Cambridge's, and if you've made it as far as to get an offer from Cambridge then you should definitely give Exeter a go through clearing (extra is closed, i think?)
ALSO I have heard of a girl who didn't get the grades for Cambridge, went to Kings instead and went through the transfer process (although you should know that she was absolutely crazy about cambridge, did all the research on the transfer and was met with excellent staff at kings who was more than willing to help her). She was attending cambridge by the end of the semester!
So that's another option. Have you visited any other unis? Personally my first is exeter and my insurance is loughborough, based on location, study abroad options, ratings/league tables and curriculum, as i never had the chance to visit them beforehand (failed art last year and had only visited unis for graphic design... had to start over). so if you do deep research into some other good places you may end up liking them as well (though never as much - i wanted cambridge as well, i can understand that. it does fade with time, though)

Extremely rare, if it happened at all. And not a realistic option.

Hey, sorry I'm being quite slow - I don't understand. How did she transfer from Kings to Cambridge?

Can you apply through UCAS extra to another uni you like the look of better

...er
wow?
Look, I'm saying that unis do tend to give second chances. Granted, the story sounds a bit far-fetched, but a) I heard it from someone I trust and b) it's 100% possible : first, see this FAQ on this very website : http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1781424
And what Cam says here : " Cambridge Colleges will only, as a matter of principle, consider applications from students enrolled in a degree course at other UK universities in very exceptional circumstances." Granted; BUT"Any application to study at Cambridge would need strong support from your Course Director or other academic tutor at your current university. A reference or letter of recommendation from that person to the Cambridge College would be required, and only then can a Cambridge College consider an application. All such applications are still subject to the same academic assessment as any other application to the University." link : http://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/find-out-more/faq

So : if a student comes through with excellent recommendations from an excellent uni - even if they failed to meet their a-level requirements by only a bit (as Platopus says they are only worried about one specific A*) - then it's absolutely plausible that they could make it through if they did brilliantly at the start of the semester and fulfilled all further requirements.
Lastly, you really don't need to imply that I'm lying.

The circumstances have to be "very exceptional" and your example had already failed to achieve their Cambridge offer on results day. This would make a transfer in the first semester even less likely I'm afraid.

A truly exceptional circumstance is not a likely option to suggest to other candidates. The OP is MUCH more likely to meet their offer in the first place (Plan A) than to be successful via an exceptional transfer.


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Did you read my entire answer? I literally put "exceptional circumstances" in bold and then said "granted; but". I've read the quote I gave you. You don't need to feed it back to me.

Also, sometimes things happen that can't be put into the "extenuating circumstances" category and I'm fairly sure that Cambridge is aware of that. There is, once again, no need to imply that I'm lying.

There are contingency plans to be explored, limited and narrow though they may be, and the fact that they're hard to achieve is no reason to ignore them.

X

X

GL on your Cambridge application.

Congratulations on your offers.

Durham and St. Andrews are the most similar to Cambridge (in terms of academia, tradition, prestige), as well as being the next most prestigious after Oxbridge in the country. So I'd definitely recommend putting Durham or St. Andrews as your insurance.

Good luck!

Thank you!



Thank you - I've decided to choose Durham as my insurance for now. I would have picked St Andrews but the fact it is a 4 year course and you have to study modules from other subjects put me off.

Oh dear, I feel as though I've started an argument here; that wasn't my intention! I do think you are agreeing on the fundamentals and have both been very helpful, so thank you. I am also touched that you think I've in with a good chance of meeting the Cambridge offer. But, clearly I will need to prepare for the worst (while still hoping for the best) so I think I will probably insure Durham for now. If August rolls around and I decide I don't want to go there, I can always take a year out and apply somewhere else next year.