Original post by A-10
How much of a chance would a person have getting intoo engineering at a top uni like Cambridge or imperial etc- without further maths? Are there any alternatives to FM which would help an application?
..there is only one a10 and that's me bro!
Original post by A-10
How much of a chance would a person have getting intoo engineering at a top uni like Cambridge or imperial etc- without further maths? Are there any alternatives to FM which would help an application?
Maybe not those places (although check with the website), but you do realise that there are dozens of other universities that offer engineering?
Not to mention there's hardly any difference in the quality of the top 10ish engineering schools...
Be ambitious! If you're at AS, go take up AS Further Maths or even the full A2, Looks very impressive. Not doing further maths doesn't mean end all. I know a few people who got into engineering at Imperial without FM. But a majority have it to an AS at most, where they take it up in A2.
Physics is more important than Further maths. You may not get into Cambridge, but you'll certainly get into a decent university for Engineering. Incidentally, I couldn't tell you if anyone on my course did further maths or not as to my knowledge it wasn't used at all. Except the one guy who dropped out after two months who couldn't do basic integration...no idea how he passed Maths/Further Maths.
Original post by Elivercury
Incidentally, I couldn't tell you if anyone on my course did further maths or not as to my knowledge it wasn't used at all..
I think that some of the content it teaches comes up in the maths modules, does it not? I'm not entirely sure as I didn't do the A-level syllabus myself, but I've thought that having further maths will provide you with a bit of a leg-up when it comes to the maths modules.
Original post by Smack
I think that some of the content it teaches comes up in the maths modules, does it not? I'm not entirely sure as I didn't do the A-level syllabus myself, but I've thought that having further maths will provide you with a bit of a leg-up when it comes to the maths modules.
It probably did, as I had to learn laplase transforms and complex numbers from scratch. But you cover all this in first year typically when they are getting people up to the same level, so the leg up is pretty limited given first year is ungraded.
I can't say for certain it didn't give some people a boost, but ultimately the maths and applications of it which you will learn will go much deeper and it has limited value beyond entry requirements.
I would note that my experience is of course specific only to my course. I know that for example electrical engineering requires a lot of complex numbers and matrices, which my degree (chemical engineering) did not. So further maths may be more valuable on those courses.
Ultimately though the key point is that it's totally doable without it, so don't give up
Original post by A-10
How much of a chance would a person have getting intoo engineering at a top uni like Cambridge or imperial etc- without further maths? Are there any alternatives to FM which would help an application?
I too want to study engineering; I don't do Further Maths (due to some unfortunate circumstances), but I want to apply to Cambridge. Obviously there are students who go to Oxbridge and Imperial that don't do Further Maths (I think a third of the engineering students at Cambridge don't have Further Maths), but the majority will at least have AS Further Maths. Don't let this discourage you! You could easily teach yourself Further Maths, if you are determined and motivated enough. There are plenty of resources to aid you, plus you can ask your maths teacher for help.
I went to an Oxbridge conference early this year and attended the engineering talk. The Cambridge lecturer said that if you don't have Further Maths, it's not the end of the world. They want to see if you have a high mathematical ability to cope with the intensity of their course, so doing things like maths challenges will help you look good. He also said that if they give you an offer they tend to ask for STEP as well. If you want to, you can do these papers. Practice and prepare using the past papers. STEP is said to be hard af though, so practice is definitely needed.
Anyway, I'm probably just rambling now, so I just want to say one last thing. Oxbridge and Imperial aren't the only top universities for engineering. Bath, Bristol and UCL are amazing for engineering as well! A degree from these universities will be as competitive as a degree from Oxbridge/Imperial for jobs etc. Finally consider that getting a 1st or 2:1 from another university will look a lot better than a regular pass from Oxbridge/Imperial.
Hope this helped!
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by Chris_98
Bath, Bristol and UCL are amazing for engineering as well!
...UCL's engineering programs are renowned for being horrendous, especially their mechanical engineering program
Original post by Helloworld_95
...UCL's engineering programs are renowned for being horrendous, especially their mechanical engineering program
Really? I've heard great things about it from what I've read. Anyway, thanks for letting me know! I'm not considering UCL anyway. I don't think they do aerospace engineering.
I was offered a place on MSc Geotechnical Engineering from Birmingham and I didn't even do mathematics at A Level let alone Further Maths (I did physics), if you can prove your ability you won't need to have done Further Maths. Cambridge and Imperial etc have incredibly high workloads and you must prove that you can handle the workload in addition to the level of mathematics involved; consider tutoring AS students in your A2 year or volunteering at STEM events to prove your commitment and mathematical ability instead.
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