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Oxford Biology (Biological Sciences) Students and Applicants

Hey!
I just thought that every other subject under the sun (almost) had its own thread, so biological sciences deserved one too!
So... I've applied to St Hughs :eek3:

Anybody else? Colleges? Where else did you apply?
:smile:

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Reply 1

Selenaa

Thanks for creating this thread!
I'm an international applicant (Canadian, and from high school to be exact :wink:

)
I had an Open application

It will be nice to hear when people get acknowledged/interview letters :biggrin:

Reply 2

WindsorHL3

I applied for Brasenose
York
Durham
Edinburgh
St Andrews

Reply 3

Cirsium

Just thought I'd stick my head in, and say 'if any of you have somehow got this far without noticing me, I am the resident... now ex-biologist, so if you have questions then I'm a smart choice to PM or quote in threads :p:

Reply 4

LeChat

Bekaboo

Sounds like a good idea to me! I'm absolutely terrifed about the whole process... :s-smilie:

Reply 5

RedKitty

I'm a biology fresher, applied to Brasenose now at Balliol, so if anyone has any questions feel free to ask :smile:

Reply 6

kalabunga

I'm applying to wadham and:
Bristol
Imperial
Edinburgh
Sheffield

When do you find about whether you're called to interview or not?

Reply 7

Stigissimo

Good to see this thread; I was beginning to wonder if biology was really unpopular... Anyway, I'm applying for deferred entry, so do I still count? :P

I've applied to Lady Margaret Hall and Edinburgh, Warwick, York, and Bristol. I'm very nervous (can't stop checking e-mails, track, post...)

Reply 8

Cirsium

Stigissimo

Hehe I applied to those three as well as an undergrad :smile:

If I knew then what I know now... I might have changed my mind :ninja:

Yes, you still count! And Biology isn't massively popular no, but after a very successful outreach campaign numbers of applications are steadily climbing, way ahead of the university average. So that's nice :smile:

Reply 9

LeChat

Bekaboo

Hehe I applied to those three as well as an undergrad :smile:

If I knew then what I know now... I might have changed my mind :ninja:

Ummm... what do you mean by this???? :s-smilie:

I applied to Bristol as well (also Bath, Nottingham - OFFER!!! - and Durham)

Reply 10

WindsorHL3

I'm hoping it will be really unpopular this year if I'm lucky :biggrin:

Reply 11

LeChat

Haha don't we all? :biggrin:

Nah, I don't reckon I'll get in but it's worth a try, it's only one choice on my UCAS form :biggrin:

Reply 12

Cirsium

LeChat

Ummm... what do you mean by this???? :s-smilie:

I applied to Bristol as well (also Bath, Nottingham - OFFER!!! - and Durham)

Let's just say that in my time as an undergrad my ideas of what is important about a course have changed a lot, and I've also had more of a chance to find out how unis square up in terms of facilities, contact time etc (In particular the final year project - York is the only place that can come close to competing with Oxford on that; the tiny bit of "research" you get to do at some places is an absolute joke - but also the amount of work you do on a weekly basis. It's not until finals that you appreciate how much more you learn when grilled on it week by week!) It's amazing how an awful course can still have a good reputation based on the university as a whole. As geeky as it sounds, do your research!

Reply 13

LeChat

Bekaboo

So are you saying you wouldn't have applied to Oxford, or you wouldn't have applied to the others?
(Sorry to interrogate you like this!)

Reply 14

Cirsium

Oh others definitely. I mean, I'd probably still have picked the same ones (although after going back for PhD interviews I've concluded it wasn't just a bad day, I really do hate York :p:

Even if they are the best equipped department of pretty much anywhere I saw) but I'd have done a bit more research first (and actually, to find these things out you need to DIG. I checked the prospectuses one day out of idle curiosity, and unless you knew to ask these things there's no way to find out) and when it came to choosing my insurance I wouldn't have let the fact that I adored the Warwick campus turn me so much.

Without wishing to sound like a horrific snob, I knew that when researching PhDs people seemed very excited to have me apply even though I didn't have a very good first, and my research project was probably my worst mark. What I didn't realise fully until I started visiting those places and talking about tutoring and stuff was that the reason for that was that whereas at Oxford I wrote 3 * 8 * 3 * 2500 = 180 000 words before I even did my extended essay and dissertation; and did a real research project all on my own; at Bristol I'd have written 6 essays in the course of my degree, in a tutorial group of 6, which would never have been read by a specialist; and at Warwick I'd have picked a project from a list of 20 to share with 5 other people.

Now I'm sure that if you were very conscientious, and badgered lecturers, and read all the references on handouts, and went to departmental seminars of your own free will then it would be possible to achieve the same level of education. But I think for 90% of us, who are a bit lazy, and don't have much direction, and don't really know what a good essay is when we start, that level of support and the high standards set can only be a good thing.

Reply 15

LeChat

Bekaboo

Oh others definitely. I mean, I'd probably still have picked the same ones (although after going back for PhD interviews I've concluded it wasn't just a bad day, I really do hate York :p: