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My Access Diary (Inspired by TomU :P)

Well, after reading TomUs access diary a couple of months ago, feeling really chuffed for him and having gained a place on an access course to start this monday(!), I feel like I should follow in his stead and create a diary to serve as future reference to anyone else in search of real life experiences of people on Access as I attempt to navigate the perils of an oxbridge application as a mature student doing an access course and two A2 levels :eek::biggrin::eek:

A little about me; Through parents moving about and bullying I'd been to six schools by the time of GCSE; I had pretty big issues to say the least but I managed to get an A*, 5As, 3Bs and 2Cs. I then went on to have a crack at a level, but I caught a pretty bad case of appendicitis which left me hospitalised for a bit, messing up the flow of my a levels. I cracked on and made it to the following year, but then my father's bankruptcy, combined with us having to move again, meant that I flunked out with two E grades.

I then moved house again this time to another city, and spent a year out looking for a job in vain, and then managed to get a place at a sixth form college to try and do some retakes in one year plus do an extra a level, but a combination of issues due to medication I was taking, in addition to undiagnosed depression and the death of a close family member led to me not reaching the potential that I could have done (I was actually predicted AAAB in christmas of that year...and then it all went to nothing :frown:)

So I managed to find a job at the end of that year, and worked for five months as a salesperson, but was then "let go" despite the fact I was the highest selling salesman in the company. I then sank into a very deep depression which I couldn't shake for five months or so, but in the last three months everything changed. I came out of the depressive state, applied for access, went back to doing sport and changed my diet, in the process losing three stone in weight, and proved to myself in a sense that that I could change myself if I wanted to. And it is with this spirit in mind that I'm going to smash this course and get 100% distinctions (hopefully) :smile:

But in any case, yesterday I had my induction day, where my tutor rushed through all the paperwork and gave us a brief breakdown of what the course was, how it was structured etc. My course is 45 credits at L3 and 15 at Level 2, but they said if we got through the work quick enough we could theoretically do more level 3 modules in case we needed certain merit or distinction levels for University. Also, I am released from English and Maths equivalency (yay :biggrin:) but in space of those blocks I have A2 maths so to be honest, not much relief :s-smilie:

They also gave us our first assignment! Which is...a study skills one but oh well...cracking on with it now as we speak :P First draft is due in Wednesday, but I'll try to get it in to her on monday so that I can get it done, handed in and marked as soon as possible.

Any questions, please don't hesitate to ask , and there is definitely more to come :smile:
(edited 12 years ago)

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Reply 1
Well, it's the beginning of my second week of tuition, things are starting to come thick and fast!

Last week was quite straight forward to be honest...I started A2 maths on monday which was a bit of a doozy seeing as I hadn't done maths for over a year...but everything is flooding back slowly but surely :smile: I think it is most likely that I will have to get a tutor at some point but its mostly revision at present which I should be able to do at home. My only issue is with the predicted grade that I need for my UCAS app which needs to be sent off in exactly 25 days time...starting to stress haha :biggrin:

As for Access, well where do I start...I had my first barrage of lessons last week and all my tutors seem to be lovely...particularly looking forward to English Literature with my English tutors as they all seem to be very nice and I haven't done English Lit for 5 years haha...good thing I kept my reading skills in check :biggrin:

Yesterday I trundled along to the Cambridge Mature students Application day at Wolfson College...I got a very different vibe to Cambridge from Oxford. The city centre felt a lot more old world and in general Cambridge's attitude towards mature students is a lot more welcoming than Oxford's :smile: I met some lovely people there, who if are on this forum should give a shout :wink: But in general they drilled into us how prepared we needed to be if we wanted to apply to Cambridge, but stressed that they did value our individuality and extenuating circumstances in our lives. I managed to get a one on one with the admissions tutors for Wolfson and St. Hughs which was quite helpful. They advised me to pick up AS level French as they said it would be useful for History (which is what I want to study), so it's quite handy that my mum's a French teacher...now to find a centre to sit it at...haha. I also made up my mind that it would be best to apply to a mature college, as before I was wavering a bit, but now I know I want to be with people the same age or a little older than me :smile:

Also, not even an hour ago I submitted my first assignment! I was told I was on a merit when I handed in a draft of it, so I hope I did enough to it to bump it up to a distinction...fingers crossed :smile:
Reply 2
How's it going?
Reply 3
Original post by Peregrine

Yesterday I trundled along to the Cambridge Mature students Application day at Wolfson College...I got a very different vibe to Cambridge from Oxford. The city centre felt a lot more old world and in general Cambridge's attitude towards mature students is a lot more welcoming than Oxford's :smile: I met some lovely people there, who if are on this forum should give a shout :wink: But in general they drilled into us how prepared we needed to be if we wanted to apply to Cambridge, but stressed that they did value our individuality and extenuating circumstances in our lives. I managed to get a one on one with the admissions tutors for Wolfson and St. Hughs which was quite helpful. They advised me to pick up AS level French as they said it would be useful for History (which is what I want to study), so it's quite handy that my mum's a French teacher...now to find a centre to sit it at...haha. I also made up my mind that it would be best to apply to a mature college, as before I was wavering a bit, but now I know I want to be with people the same age or a little older than me :smile:


This is so good to read! I'm applying to Hughes Hall, it really is a bit of a wild card choice, but that's not to say i'm not going to give it everything I have to try and get a place! With the 'drilling' of how prepared you need to be, I don't suppose you can elaborate a little? I'm really trying get myself as prepared as possible for interview but am not really sure what that means! lol
Reply 4
Original post by Elle408
This is so good to read! I'm applying to Hughes Hall, it really is a bit of a wild card choice, but that's not to say i'm not going to give it everything I have to try and get a place! With the 'drilling' of how prepared you need to be, I don't suppose you can elaborate a little? I'm really trying get myself as prepared as possible for interview but am not really sure what that means! lol


Hughes is a good choice! I've been here for about 4 days now and I'm loving it :smile:

Will have to update my Access diary when I get a chance but things are already hectic (from a social point of view!) and I'm off out again now.

Best of luck with your application to Hughes Hall - any questions you have, feel free to ask!
Reply 5
Hey guys, sorry about the delay...I've had such a hectic week it's unbelievable :smile:

Original post by Elle408
This is so good to read! I'm applying to Hughes Hall, it really is a bit of a wild card choice, but that's not to say i'm not going to give it everything I have to try and get a place! With the 'drilling' of how prepared you need to be, I don't suppose you can elaborate a little? I'm really trying get myself as prepared as possible for interview but am not really sure what that means! lol


Basically they were impressing on us the extent to which one has to be prepared for an application to Cambridge...as in get your grades sorted, prior evidence of academic study, Cambridge is the best university in the world so understand that you compete against students of the highest calibre, that sort of thing...honestly, as long as you have everything sorted with your predicted grades and reference, and I would email them to check whether it's okay for your tutor to send an updated reference in a months time if you're doing intensive a level or the like, rather then to apply for the march round which is a bit of hassle, then you should be okay. To be honest, personally I'm leaning towards Wolfson rather than Hughes hall at the minute because the History tutor/admission tutor is quite a character, and I'm not sure if I impressed him when I had a one to one with him on the day :s-smilie:

On another note, what have I been up to...I got my first assignment back for which I got...a nice shiny distinction :smile: I know it's the first one and only study skills, but it starts the year off on a good note, so fingers crossed it continues :smile: Apart from that, started and continuing my history assignment which is in the form of workbook on identifying and utilising sources...which is a bit of a pain in the arse because all the teacher is willing to tell us to do in it is to "write" and answer the questions, but hey...I should be able to figure it out.

I also attended a production of an inspector calls, which is the text we're studying in the play section of the English Lit modules that we're doing...was really interesting and I gleaned a lot of stuff that should help a lot in the assessment :smile:

Apart from that, I've been madly dashing around at work in addition to trying to revise for a maths test that I needed to nail for a predicted grade...which I did today so hopefully I did well...although I know for sure I got one question wrong that I rushed :frown:

What else...yes, this weekend is personal statement time...critically assassinating my previous version and rewriting it to submit to my tutor on Tuesday...and I'm handing it for definite a week Monday. I still need to sort out where I'm going to sit my French (waiting on some schools to contact me again) which has to be done and paid by the end of the week) and to input my final uni choices/course modules into UCAS, but I should get it all done :smile:

Well, off to bed I shall go...night all :smile:
Reply 6
Original post by Peregrine

Basically they were impressing on us the extent to which one has to be prepared for an application to Cambridge...as in get your grades sorted, prior evidence of academic study, Cambridge is the best university in the world so understand that you compete against students of the highest calibre, that sort of thing...honestly, as long as you have everything sorted with your predicted grades and reference, and I would email them to check whether it's okay for your tutor to send an updated reference in a months time if you're doing intensive a level or the like, rather then to apply for the march round which is a bit of hassle, then you should be okay. To be honest, personally I'm leaning towards Wolfson rather than Hughes hall at the minute because the History tutor/admission tutor is quite a character, and I'm not sure if I impressed him when I had a one to one with him on the day :s-smilie:


Thank you for this! I'm leaning towards Hughes as they seem more inclusive, with a more understanding attitude towards non-traditional applicants. Which, considering I wasn't allowed to sit an additional A-level, I think I will need as I'll only have my current Access in terms of academic requirements.

What else...yes, this weekend is personal statement time...critically assassinating my previous version and rewriting it to submit to my tutor on Tuesday...and I'm handing it for definite a week Monday. I still need to sort out where I'm going to sit my French (waiting on some schools to contact me again) which has to be done and paid by the end of the week) and to input my final uni choices/course modules into UCAS, but I should get it all done :smile:


Also, this. Have largely rewritten my personal statement, already had one read through from my tutor who is as we speak writing my reference. He said he would submit it to UCAS for me to read through so that I could assess whether there are any areas that I think need to be included, but I don't see any where on UCAS where I can see if he has submitted it? There doesn't seem to be an option. Anyway, I personally can't wait to get this out of the way. I should imagine i'll have it fully sent off by Thursday so that I can then focus on LNAT prep.

Your history assignment sounds very much like ours! He's yet to set it though and insists we wait until he's gone through it during our lecture so other than re-reading all of our handouts I don't feel there's much that I can do!

You sound like you're having a good start to the Access! I'm so glad i've found this forum, you all seem to be on the same page regarding Access and uni choices unlike my class mates who are, on the whole, applying for the local ex-poly and aiming for a mere pass at Access as opposed to needing to fulfil a certain amount of distinction credits.
Reply 7
Just to say it is great that you are doing A level as well as Access as it is something to single you out from the crowd. In my opinion Access on its own is quite lame for Oxbridge.
Just a word of advice for Oxbridge don't tell them about your previous E grades at A level, no matter how strong the mitigating circumstances were. I know you are supposed to but it will go against you.

As for Oxbridge I can tell you it is one hell of a nut to crack - if you crack it let me know! I am currently doing my 3rd degree with a 2.1 and 1st background, however I still can't get into Oxford for an undergrad course. I have been advised by admission tutors to apply to a mature student college, however it is not something I want to do. I know it sounds crazy but I want to run the same race as all the other students. I don't want to be singled out for special treatment because of my age. I really want to go to Worcester college as that is where my sister studied. I guess I will have to keep plugging away and one day I may get there, however it is really frustrating when you are on your 3rd degree and keep getting rejected. It is not as though I have proved beyond all reasonable doubt that I am capable of studying at degree standard. Sorry for the moan!

Good luck
Reply 8
Original post by marada
Just to say it is great that you are doing A level as well as Access as it is something to single you out from the crowd. In my opinion Access on its own is quite lame for Oxbridge.
Just a word of advice for Oxbridge don't tell them about your previous E grades at A level, no matter how strong the mitigating circumstances were. I know you are supposed to but it will go against you.


So you are telling the OP to lie on the UCAS form http://www.ucas.com/students/applying/howtoapply/education/ , that is not very good advice. Lying by omission can go against you too. You say this because despite applying to Oxbridge several times, you have not secured a place. Oxbridge sight your A' level results as a reason for not giving you a place because it is the easiest reason to give. If they really wanted you and thought your mere presence would enchance the university, they could offer you matriculation ( which is effectively 2 Es at A' level). A matriculation offer is not a myth, someone I know got this offer and yes they did much better than matriculation, but it meant that Oxbridge were their firm offer. In the same application cycle I knew people who had great academic performance, good extra curricula participation and a great reference, who after interview got an offer of 3 As (this was pre A*) and 2 S 1s. From what you have posted before, you did not do Access, have not applied to a university course with an Access qualification, so stop degnigrating the qualification that others have used to sucessfully achieve their goals. Yes I know that for some universities that Access qualifcations may not be enough, but that applies to A' levels too (some are accepted as academic and others are not). In all cases people have to research the entrance requirements before applying, to avoid disappointment.


Original post by marada

As for Oxbridge I can tell you it is one hell of a nut to crack - if you crack it let me know! I am currently doing my 3rd degree with a 2.1 and 1st background, however I still can't get into Oxford for an undergrad course. I have been advised by admission tutors to apply to a mature student college, however it is not something I want to do. I know it sounds crazy but I want to run the same race as all the other students. I don't want to be singled out for special treatment because of my age. I really want to go to Worcester college as that is where my sister studied. I guess I will have to keep plugging away and one day I may get there, however it is really frustrating when you are on your 3rd degree and keep getting rejected. It is not as though I have proved beyond all reasonable doubt that I am capable of studying at degree standard. Sorry for the moan!

Good luck


Marada it is unlikely that you age is the reason for your lack of success at Oxbridge. It is more likely that you keep applying for courses that show no progression from your existing qualifications and have too much in common study with current qualifications. By not applying to colleges which specialise in mature/non traditional students, you want to be compared with the prospective students who have yet to take their A' levels, where the admissions tutor is looking at potential at undergraduate level. With you, they are looking at actual results, not just at A' level but at undergraduate level. You have already "run the same race as all the other students" and completed it, but for whatever reason it hasn't been enough becuase you were not wearing the Oxbridge shirt.

When I had to give feedback to someone I decided not to offer a job too, I would look for the most appropriate believable reason rather than say "I don't like you, I am not hiring you". Being able to point to something in an educational or work history which did not meet requirements is a more acceptable reasons for rejection and reduces any counter challenge.

So Oxbridge don't seem to want you Marada, that maybe their loss, but it is their choice to make. Progressing to a Masters (as you are now doing) is a better move than yet another undergraduate degree, but you need to do something else rather than just study, unless you want to pursue an academic career.

To the original OP, sorry for digressing, good luck with your personal statement. I hope you get all the distinctions that you need to progress. :smile:
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 9
Original post by edjunkie
So you are telling the OP to lie on the UCAS form http://www.ucas.com/students/applying/howtoapply/education/ , that is not very good advice. Lying by omission can go against you too. You say this because despite applying to Oxbridge several times, you have not secured a place. Oxbridge sight your A' level results as a reason for not giving you a place because it is the easiest reason to give. If they really wanted you and thought your mere presence would enchance the university, they could offer you matriculation ( which is effectively 2 Es at A' level). A matriculation offer is not a myth, someone I know got this offer and yes they did much better than matriculation, but it meant that Oxbridge were their firm offer. In the same application cycle I knew people who had great academic performance, good extra curricula participation and a great reference, who after interview got an offer of 3 As (this was pre A*) and 2 S 1s. From what you have posted before, you did not do Access, have not applied to a university course with an Access qualification, so stop degnigrating the qualification that others have used to sucessfully achieve their goals. Yes I know that for some universities that Access qualifcations may not be enough, but that applies to A' levels too (some are accepted as academic and others are not). In all cases people have to research the entrance requirements before applying, to avoid disappointment.




Marada it is unlikely that you age is the reason for your lack of success at Oxbridge. It is more likely that you keep applying for courses that show no progression from your existing qualifications and have too much in common study with current qualifications. By not applying to colleges which specialise in mature/non traditional students, you want to be compared with the prospective students who have yet to take their A' levels, where the admissions tutor is looking at potential at undergraduate level. With you, they are looking at actual results, not just at A' level but at undergraduate level. You have already "run the same race as all the other students" and completed it, but for whatever reason it hasn't been enough becuase you were not wearing the Oxbridge shirt.

When I had to give feedback to someone I decided not to offer a job too, I would look for the most appropriate believable reason rather than say "I don't like you, I am not hiring you". Being able to point to something in an educational or work history which did not meet requirements is a more acceptable reasons for rejection and reduces any counter challenge.

So Oxbridge don't seem to want you Marada, that maybe their loss, but it is their choice to make. Progressing to a Masters (as you are now doing) is a better move than yet another undergraduate degree, but you need to do something else rather than just study, unless you want to pursue an academic career.

To the original OP, sorry for digressing, good luck with your personal statement. I hope you get all the distinctions that you need to progress. :smile:


I couldn't agree more, well said :smile:
Reply 10
Hey guys, another update :smile:

Stuff is starting to come thick and fast now...My History assignment's a huge pain in my backside and I really need to crack on with it :frown: On the plus, after a little drama involving my predicted grade for maths (my teacher didn't want to predict me an A even after I scored 92% in a test they gave us, so I was forced to go above him to the head of maths) I was able to secure a predicted grade of an A :smile: Apart from that, we've started reading wuthering heights and analysing it which I need to get on with as I was ill for the previous lesson, and I've got some psychology work I need to catch up on. But all in all I should have everything up to date by the end of the weekend, so all is good :smile:

Oh yes, I also finished my second to last draft of my personal statement and have been circulating it to all sorts of people from my tutor to friends and the like...hopefully they think its good! But all in all, things are going okay :smile:
Reply 11
A little tidbit for you all...putting the finishing touches to the third re-write of my personal statement for submission to UCAS tomorrow morning :eek: and a big update is coming this weekend :smile:
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 12
Hey guys!, Well first things first...my UCAS was sent at 11.53 Friday morning :smile: Apparently my tutor said that my tutors have said all sorts of nice things in my reference but she won't let me see it, which is perturbing me a little bit :s-smilie: added with the fact that they said they won't give any cast iron guarantees, and offering another reference further down the line...worried a little bit :s-smilie:

However I have had a bit of a spanner thrown in the works over my Cambridge application :s-smilie: I called Wolfson, the college I've applied to yesterday to double check on the fact that they require a course syllabus for my access course to be sent to them, and to check on the deadline, and was informed that their deadline for it was the same as the SAQs, the 22nd, which wasn't mentioned on their website, and the transcript sheet that I'm supposed to send with it said 30th of October....stressed! Frantically emailed my tutor...

It's been a very hectic week...lessons hitting thick and fast, coupled with being given four assignments to do over the coming week (Two study skills, one history and one psychology) and the large amount of maths revision I have to do...a lot of stuff :smile: I will get through it over half term however, so all is good :smile:

Just had confirmations from York and Cambridge this morning :smile: Now for the dreaded SAQ...
Reply 13
The SAQ's not too bad for us! We have very little to fill out, I think it took me roughly an hour and I wrote things in all the additional info sections!

Good luck with Wolfson, they won't accept Access for Law so I couldn't even apply, but great college! I received acknowledgments for the SAQ this morning and one from UCL, so despite the fact that they are automated, it's starting to feel a bit more real!
Reply 14
Great, another spanner just thrown in the works. Just rechecked my emails from York and Cambridge, and the UCAS personal id mentioned in the emails is not the one from my current application, but one from an application I did two years ago! Which is now raising the spectre in my mind that UCAS has messed up and sent them the wrong application, and now has me pretty bloody worried to be honest. Plus I have to send through the syllabus stuff for Wolfson, and the access form for York which ask for personal IDs so which one do I put? Really, really pissed, I do not need the stress...
Reply 15
Phew. Sorted :smile:
Original post by Peregrine
Phew. Sorted :smile:


best of luck with your ucas application Peregrine,enjoying reading your Access Diary keep it up ^_^
Original post by Peregrine
Well, after reading TomUs access diary a couple of months ago, feeling really chuffed for him and having gained a place on an access course to start this monday(!), I feel like I should follow in his stead and create a diary to serve as future reference to anyone else in search of real life experiences of people on Access as I attempt to navigate the perils of an oxbridge application as a mature student doing an access course and two A2 levels :eek::biggrin::eek:

A little about me; Through parents moving about and bullying I'd been to six schools by the time of GCSE; I had pretty big issues to say the least but I managed to get an A*, 5As, 3Bs and 2Cs. I then went on to have a crack at a level, but I caught a pretty bad case of appendicitis which left me hospitalised for a bit, messing up the flow of my a levels. I cracked on and made it to the following year, but then my father's bankruptcy, combined with us having to move again, meant that I flunked out with two E grades.

I then moved house again this time to another city, and spent a year out looking for a job in vain, and then managed to get a place at a sixth form college to try and do some retakes in one year plus do an extra a level, but a combination of issues due to medication I was taking, in addition to undiagnosed depression and the death of a close family member led to me not reaching the potential that I could have done (I was actually predicted AAAB in christmas of that year...and then it all went to nothing :frown:)

So I managed to find a job at the end of that year, and worked for five months as a salesperson, but was then "let go" despite the fact I was the highest selling salesman in the company. I then sank into a very deep depression which I couldn't shake for five months or so, but in the last three months everything changed. I came out of the depressive state, applied for access, went back to doing sport and changed my diet, in the process losing three stone in weight, and proved to myself in a sense that that I could change myself if I wanted to. And it is with this spirit in mind that I'm going to smash this course and get 100% distinctions (hopefully) :smile:

But in any case, yesterday I had my induction day, where my tutor rushed through all the paperwork and gave us a brief breakdown of what the course was, how it was structured etc. My course is 45 credits at L3 and 15 at Level 2, but they said if we got through the work quick enough we could theoretically do more level 3 modules in case we needed certain merit or distinction levels for University. Also, I am released from English and Maths equivalency (yay :biggrin:) but in space of those blocks I have A2 maths so to be honest, not much relief :s-smilie:

They also gave us our first assignment! Which is...a study skills one but oh well...cracking on with it now as we speak :P First draft is due in Wednesday, but I'll try to get it in to her on monday so that I can get it done, handed in and marked as soon as possible.

Any questions, please don't hesitate to ask , and there is definitely more to come :smile:


yopu ever thought of posting it on a blog or vlog or a website? make money at thesame time
Reply 18
Hey hey guys...I know, two weeks without an update...but this'll be a bumper one :smile:

Well first things first...100% distinctions thus far! So far I've completed four assignments - one history, one psychology and two study skills (Return to study and Learning Styles - and I'm just waiting on the results for the history, so fingers crossed on that account!

Day to day life is very hectic to be honest haha...I've had to pull at least three all nighters thus far since the start of the year just to juggle my study with work and family responsibilities...but I'm sure I'll manage :smile: Half term was a bit of a waste to be fair...I fell ill half way through so I wasn't able to do anywhere near as much work as I needed to get done, which has had me scrambling for the last week or so...but I'm just about getting through it! The past week has been quite busy actually...I've been set three new assignments - one group discussion for english literature, an essay for english literature and an essay for Psychology...which I have to juggle with A level maths hotting up! Tis a trial to make sure I don't fall behind...but I've got to keep going as there's no settling for second best for me.

Speaking of Cambridge...my SAQ was sent off two weeks ago, but there was a bit of a shaky moment when, filling it in I discovered I didn't have some of my exam certificates from the past, which meant I couldn't put down some of my scores...and then when I called the exam board, they wouldn't give them to me! They suggested I call my school...which just so happened to have half term that week, so I wasn't able to get the scores until this week, which stressed me out a little...but I got the letter from them yesterday, and having called them on monday emailed them a explanatory email, so hopefully everything should be okay :s-smilie:

Apart from that, I've got a lot of homework this weekend...I've got to go through my two english literature texts and make detail notes on them for the assignments I've got to do...I've also got about five maths homeworks to do which I've been putting off because of all the other assignments I've been doing, but they're quite short , so shouldn't take me too much time. I'm quite lucky in that the local university library lets members of the public use their facilities for an affordable fee, so I can literally go there and use the facilities 24 hours five days a week, which is really helpful :smile: Also if I find some time a night out is in order, as I really need some R&R :biggrin:

Adios amigos :wink:
Reply 19
I wish I'd done something like this! I started an access course in September and finding it pretty hard, but absolutely loving every minute of it!
Keep up the good work and good luck!
Lou :smile:

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