Imperial College London
London
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You got accepted! but arent you annoyed...
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mmmm, but lots of people haven't heard of imperial.
Imperial College London
London
MrChem
Well, having applied and got an offer from both, I'm well aware of the differences between the application process. It was basically show up and show interest in the interview to get a place at Imperial. Whereas oxford was much more intense.
And if you mean wrong about people not knowing imperial, I'm saying from experience (i.e. when people asked me where i was applying and i said imperial) they said "oh right, where's that?" "oh, whats that?" "hang on, its a college?!" haha
people these days...
And if you mean wrong about people not knowing imperial, I'm saying from experience (i.e. when people asked me where i was applying and i said imperial) they said "oh right, where's that?" "oh, whats that?" "hang on, its a college?!" haha
people these days...By "wrong" I meant the part "it's much tougher to get into Oxbridge". They are equally tough, but in different ways. With Imperial, your application is considered purely on papers so to impress the admission tutor, you have to have an AMAZING academic result. While at Oxbridge, I'm sure a lot of people who had very average predicted grades got interviews where they have chances to "sell" themselves.
I know what you mean! When I tell people the unis I got into (all redbricks/russell groups) they're like ...meh... and wander off lol... and I'm like I worked seriously bloody hard for that! It's not that I want loooads of praise either..I think it's just the general attitude that if it's not Oxbridge it's 'easy'..
MrChem
Well, having applied and got an offer from both, I'm well aware of the differences between the application process. It was basically show up and show interest in the interview to get a place at Imperial. Whereas oxford was much more intense.
And if you mean wrong about people not knowing imperial, I'm saying from experience (i.e. when people asked me where i was applying and i said imperial) they said "oh right, where's that?" "oh, whats that?" "hang on, its a college?!" haha people these days...
And if you mean wrong about people not knowing imperial, I'm saying from experience (i.e. when people asked me where i was applying and i said imperial) they said "oh right, where's that?" "oh, whats that?" "hang on, its a college?!" haha
people these days...People are like that at UCL! Someone thought I meant UCLan, Central Lancashire or something.
MrChem
providing you've got the grades, good PS and don't have a horrendous interview you'll get an offer from imperial. It's actually relatively easy*. However its much tougher to get into oxbridge. People that get an offer no problem from imperial still get rejected from oxbridge, because its just much tougher
providing you've got the grades, good PS and don't have a horrendous interview you'll get an offer from imperial. It's actually relatively easy*. However its much tougher to get into oxbridge. People that get an offer no problem from imperial still get rejected from oxbridge, because its just much tougher
That is complete and utter tosh. You have no idea how hard it is to get into Imperial, if you did, you wouldn't be spouting such rubbish. It also happens the other way around where people get into Oxbridge but don't get into imperial. If anything, the ratios of applicants to places offered are worse for Imperial at times. 5-1 is the usual for Imperial but some Oxbridge colleges, it's about 3-1. Of course it's dependent on the calibre of the applicants but because the course requirements are so high for Imperial as well, if not higher, Oxford standard offers are AAA whilst Imperial can be really mean concerning resits and percentages, this means that people who apply must know there's no point if they aren't going to get those grades.
MrChem
Because 1. most people don't even know that imperial is a university (and of those who have heard the name, most thing its a college as in sixth form :s haha)
and 2. providing you've got the grades, good PS and don't have a horrendous interview you'll get an offer from imperial. It's actually relatively easy*. However its much tougher to get into oxbridge. People that get an offer no problem from imperial still get rejected from oxbridge, because its just much tougher (and a bit of luck is involved
)
*No offence meant to anyone that got a rejection from imperial : )
Edit: Why didn't you apply to oxford/cambridge, OP? You look like you've got the predicted grades for it?
and 2. providing you've got the grades, good PS and don't have a horrendous interview you'll get an offer from imperial. It's actually relatively easy*. However its much tougher to get into oxbridge. People that get an offer no problem from imperial still get rejected from oxbridge, because its just much tougher (and a bit of luck is involved
)*No offence meant to anyone that got a rejection from imperial : )
Edit: Why didn't you apply to oxford/cambridge, OP? You look like you've got the predicted grades for it?
Idiot... do you know anything?
josh_a_y
Idiot... do you know anything?
Having applied to both, yes thanks. Have you applied to either? No. Then how do you have any idea what the differences between the two are?
Yes in some cases it can be harder to get into oxbridge. But in general, its a much smoother admissions process to get into imperial than oxford.
MrChem
Well, having applied and got an offer from both, I'm well aware of the differences between the application process. It was basically show up and show interest in the interview to get a place at Imperial. Whereas oxford was much more intense.
And if you mean wrong about people not knowing imperial, I'm saying from experience (i.e. when people asked me where i was applying and i said imperial) they said "oh right, where's that?" "oh, whats that?" "hang on, its a college?!" haha people these days...
And if you mean wrong about people not knowing imperial, I'm saying from experience (i.e. when people asked me where i was applying and i said imperial) they said "oh right, where's that?" "oh, whats that?" "hang on, its a college?!" haha
people these days...I'm not sure how intense your particular interviews were but seriously, you were there for three days right? As was I, and you were preparing for two 20-30 minute interviews? I thought the whole situation was rather laid back, the only intensity was caused by one's own nerve. Also, just because the academic layman doesn't know Imperial counts for nothing. If you are basing how hard it is to get into these top universities by how normal people perceive them then that shows the weakness in your own argument.
Clarity Incognito
That is complete and utter tosh. You have no idea how hard it is to get into Imperial, if you did, you wouldn't be spouting such rubbish. It also happens the other way around where people get into Oxbridge but don't get into imperial. If anything, the ratios of applicants to places offered are worse for Imperial at times. 5-1 is the usual for Imperial but some Oxbridge colleges, it's about 3-1. Of course it's dependent on the calibre of the applicants but because the course requirements are so high for Imperial as well, if not higher, Oxford standard offers are AAA whilst Imperial can be really mean concerning resits and percentages, this means that people who apply must know there's no point if they aren't going to get those grades.
My point is, if you meet the criteria (including not having taken any particular resits) and you interview fairly well, show you enjoy your subject, you will generally get a place.
However at somewhere like oxford, most people do the above, yet a much greater proportion get rejected.
Clarity Incognito
I'm not sure how intense your particular interviews were but seriously, you were there for three days right? As was I, and you were preparing for two 20-30 minute interviews? I thought the whole situation was rather laid back, the only intensity was caused by one's own nerve. Also, just because the academic layman doesn't know Imperial counts for nothing. If you are basing how hard it is to get into these top universities by how normal people perceive them then that shows the weakness in one's own argument.
Yeah, I was there for three days and I had a great time in all honesty. I wasn't too nervous either.
And of course I'm not basing my argument on a layman's view of imperial. Like I said, I applied there, it was a breeze 20 minute interview compared to having questions fired at you in four seperate interviews at oxford.
Im not trying to belittle anyone's achievment of getting an imperial offer. Be proud, etc. Its a great achievment. But I personally (and others I talked to) believe that oxford was a much harder application process than any other uni we were interviewed at. In fact everyone I spoke to at oxford also, like me, believed their other interviews (including imperial and places like that) were pretty much turn up to your interview to guarantee yourself an offer.
Sorry if this makes me sound like an arrogant dick, thats just how it seemed. Oxford was much more of a test of the applicants abilities. At least for chemistry anyway.
You're gonna need waaay more posts to reach demigod status.
MrChem
Yeah, I was there for three days and I had a great time in all honesty. I wasn't too nervous either.
And of course I'm not basing my argument on a layman's view of imperial. Like I said, I applied there, it was a breeze 20 minute interview compared to having questions fired at you in four seperate interviews at oxford.
Im not trying to belittle anyone's achievment of getting an imperial offer. Be proud, etc. Its a great achievment. But I personally (and others I talked to) believe that oxford was a much harder application process than any other uni we were interviewed at. In fact everyone I spoke to at oxford also, like me, believed their other interviews (including imperial and places like that) were pretty much turn up to your interview to guarantee yourself an offer.
Sorry if this makes me sound like an arrogant dick, thats just how it seemed. Oxford was much more of a test of the applicants abilities. At least for chemistry anyway.
And of course I'm not basing my argument on a layman's view of imperial. Like I said, I applied there, it was a breeze 20 minute interview compared to having questions fired at you in four seperate interviews at oxford.
Im not trying to belittle anyone's achievment of getting an imperial offer. Be proud, etc. Its a great achievment. But I personally (and others I talked to) believe that oxford was a much harder application process than any other uni we were interviewed at. In fact everyone I spoke to at oxford also, like me, believed their other interviews (including imperial and places like that) were pretty much turn up to your interview to guarantee yourself an offer.
Sorry if this makes me sound like an arrogant dick, thats just how it seemed. Oxford was much more of a test of the applicants abilities. At least for chemistry anyway.
Haha, snide little last note, I went for maths anyway if you were implying I might have gone for a relatively easier subject compared to chemistry. Anyway, we might just be arguing two different parts of the same leaf here anyway. It just seemed like you were arguing that academically, one would have to be stronger to get in to Oxbridge than one would in getting into Imperial, which is what I disagree with. Concerning the process involved in actually receiving an offer, I agree that it is a longer process which inevitably precipitates the idea that it is more intense.
MrChem
Yeah, I was there for three days and I had a great time in all honesty. I wasn't too nervous either.
And of course I'm not basing my argument on a layman's view of imperial. Like I said, I applied there, it was a breeze 20 minute interview compared to having questions fired at you in four seperate interviews at oxford.
Im not trying to belittle anyone's achievment of getting an imperial offer. Be proud, etc. Its a great achievment. But I personally (and others I talked to) believe that oxford was a much harder application process than any other uni we were interviewed at. In fact everyone I spoke to at oxford also, like me, believed their other interviews (including imperial and places like that) were pretty much turn up to your interview to guarantee yourself an offer.
Sorry if this makes me sound like an arrogant dick, thats just how it seemed. Oxford was much more of a test of the applicants abilities. At least for chemistry anyway.
And of course I'm not basing my argument on a layman's view of imperial. Like I said, I applied there, it was a breeze 20 minute interview compared to having questions fired at you in four seperate interviews at oxford.
Im not trying to belittle anyone's achievment of getting an imperial offer. Be proud, etc. Its a great achievment. But I personally (and others I talked to) believe that oxford was a much harder application process than any other uni we were interviewed at. In fact everyone I spoke to at oxford also, like me, believed their other interviews (including imperial and places like that) were pretty much turn up to your interview to guarantee yourself an offer.
Sorry if this makes me sound like an arrogant dick, thats just how it seemed. Oxford was much more of a test of the applicants abilities. At least for chemistry anyway.
Well, from another chemist holding offers from both Imperial and Oxford, I feel adequately qualified to add my opinion here
.From my own experience, I'd say that the Imperial admissions process was a lot more intense - I don't know about the interviews of many other people, but mine was certainly more 'tense' than at Oxford. Ok, so Imperial only gave me one 20 minute interview, but the whole atmosphere was more competitive (at least, that's how it felt to me). During the interview I didn't feel particularly at ease, and I'd go as far as to say that they set out to trip me up, on occasion. In addition, Imperial are much more stringent with module grades, and it's already been mentioned that the majority of their courses have higher A-level requirements than the standard AAA at Oxford.
I think the reason why the Oxford applications process is perceived as being so much more 'challenging' is mainly down to a lot of hype; instead of the interviews being rapid-fire question sessions, mine felt a lot more relaxed, down-to-earth, interesting, and enjoyable than that at Imperial! Much of the difficulty with the Oxbridge thing comes from self-selection, at least, that's how I see it.
Not saying you're entirely wrong, MrChem, just that there are two sides to every story and it's probably a little unfair to generalise about how 'easy' it is to get an offer from Imperial. This is going to sound really arrogant, but from how the interview experience went, I'm more surprised to have been given my Imperial offer than the Oxford one!
MrChem
Having applied to both, yes thanks. Have you applied to either? No. Then how do you have any idea what the differences between the two are?
Yes in some cases it can be harder to get into oxbridge. But in general, its a much smoother admissions process to get into imperial than oxford.
Yes in some cases it can be harder to get into oxbridge. But in general, its a much smoother admissions process to get into imperial than oxford.
I have my reasons for not applying to them, but it doesnt mean I havent done my homework.
Do you know that ICL specialises in the sciences, and in those fields they are far more competitive and prestigious than any science degree obtained from oxbridge. I dont know what course you're applying to, but I have no idea why you feel ICL is in any way easier to get into than oxford, unless its one of those social subjects.. which leads me to wonder why your username is "mrchem".. Or maybe you were just lucky to have a nice interviewer.
You said that "most people don't even know that imperial is a university", I dont know what kind of idiot area you live in, but outside of Europe, ICL is higher ranked and just as well known if not more so than Oxford.
Clarity Incognito
Haha, snide little last note, I went for maths anyway if you were implying I might have gone for a relatively easier subject compared to chemistry. Anyway, we might just be arguing two different parts of the same leaf here anyway. It just seemed like you were arguing that academically, one would have to be stronger to get in to Oxbridge than one would in getting into Imperial, which is what I disagree with. Concerning the process involved in actually receiving an offer, I agree that it is a longer process which inevitably precipitates the idea that it is more intense.
Oh I'm not saying academically its harder for oxford, as Im aware that actually its not (for example my imperial offer is higher than my oxford one, with more 'terms and conditions' shall we say) but as far as the process goes... a tour and a quick 20 minute interview is much easier than 3 days with 3 or 4 interviews which were (from my experience) more intense (maybe not grueling, but they were certainly harder) , no?
And yeah it completely depends on the subject, it can be much different for other subjects I admit (e.g. at st johns I think, there were around 50 maths applicants for 8-9 places weren't there?) But the issue I have is being called a moron/idiot by people that have no apparent knowledge of applying to either uni, going purely based on stats like 5-1 or 3-1 applicants per place. Thats not what I was talking about whatsoever. I've got no issue talking about this with you, as we've both had the experience of at least oxford, and I assume imperial as well?
Personally, between the two, I just found the interview day at imperial much more easy-going and it seemed a guarantee that, unless you didn't know your stuff, you'd get a place. Whereas at oxford, people who knew their stuff still got rejected. Academically though, yes, imperial does give higher offers in some cases
Oh and, back on topic, I agree with you OP - when I got my Imperial offer, I was over the moon, but the congratulations nowhere near matched up to those when I got the Oxford offer. I know that if I'd been rejected from Oxford, I'd be a little annoyed at the difference in perceived success, even if it didn't make any difference to me personally.
As others have said, of course it doesn't matter what other people think. But in all honesty, it's just nice to be praised, and when one person's success is consistently placed above another's, it can get a little wearing.
As others have said, of course it doesn't matter what other people think. But in all honesty, it's just nice to be praised, and when one person's success is consistently placed above another's, it can get a little wearing.
You got an offer from Imperial for CS?! You should be over the moon, forget Oxbridge. You do know that Imperial CS grads are highly sought after right?
Lol no.
I WAS annoyed at the 'why didn't you apply to oxbridge' brigade though
I WAS annoyed at the 'why didn't you apply to oxbridge' brigade though
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