Cambridge Human, Social and Political Sciences (HSPS) Students and Applicants

Hi, I have an interview next week and I've been informed that I'll be given an unseen passage to study half an hour before my first interview. I know people applying for English/History at some colleges have to do something similar.

Does anyone have any tips for how to approach this? Will there be questions accompanying the passage or should I just highlight and make brief notes on key ideas etc.?

Hi, I had a passage and a test based on the passage for my interview this year; so I guess you'll get something similar. I don't want to put you off, but I very much struggled with what my passage was saying as I just didn't understand the language. My best advice is to just try, even if you end up only really understanding a few paragraphs of it, its better than having a shallow interpretation of the whole thing. What part of HSPS interests you the most, just out of curiosity? Good luck with everything :smile:

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Reply 781

Renee8100

5

Original post by Amanda096

Hi, I had a passage and a test based on the passage for my interview this year; so I guess you'll get something similar. I don't want to put you off, but I very much struggled with what my passage was saying as I just didn't understand the language. My best advice is to just try, even if you end up only really understanding a few paragraphs of it, its better than having a shallow interpretation of the whole thing. What part of HSPS interests you the most, just out of curiosity? Good luck with everything :smile:

.

Yeah I thought that might be the case, I've heard there's a lot to read for such a short amount of time too but I guess I'll just have to do my best. Politics and IR are really my main interests. Thank you! :smile:

Reply 782

Amanda096

Original post by Renee8100

Yeah I thought that might be the case, I've heard there's a lot to read for such a short amount of time too but I guess I'll just have to do my best. Politics and IR are really my main interests. Thank you! :smile:

I think you should be fine then, as Politics and IR seems to be the most popular aspect of HSPS and therefore, the reading should actually be relatively well suited to your interests. I struggled because my interest was chiefly archaeology, and so I wasn't familiar with a lot of the stuff that was mentioned! I'm sure you'll be fine :smile:

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 783

llamabubble

10

I am rejected after being pooled, and I will reapply next year. Any other reapplicants? :biggrin:

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Reply 784

Bobbitt

1

HSPS applicants: what courses did you apply for at other unis? :biggrin:

Reply 785

llamabubble

10

Original post by Bobbitt

HSPS applicants: what courses did you apply for at other unis? :biggrin:

Combined social science at Durham, flexible combined honours at Exeter and sociology and anthropology at other units :smile:

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Reply 786

IFoundWonderland

19

Original post by Bobbitt

HSPS applicants: what courses did you apply for at other unis? :biggrin:

Combined Honours in Social Sciences at Durham, which will be my insurance.
Liberal Arts at Bristol
Social Anthropology with Social History at Edinburgh
Social Anthropology with International Relations at St. Andrews.

Reply 787

docmcstuffin

Hey,

I'm really interested in applying for this course. I know minimum entry requirements are A*AA, but was just wondering what kind of grades some of you got your interviews based on?

Thanks

Reply 788

Monkeycheckbook

5

Original post by docmcstuffin

Hey,

I'm really interested in applying for this course. I know minimum entry requirements are A*AA, but was just wondering what kind of grades some of you got your interviews based on?

Thanks

Hi, I applied after getting my results and got in with 3 A*s and a B. I don't think they tend to interview people with predicted grades of below A*AA (at least they didn't when people from my year applied) unless they have a really good personal statement. Good luck :smile:

Reply 789

llamabubble

10

Original post by docmcstuffin

Hey,

I'm really interested in applying for this course. I know minimum entry requirements are A*AA, but was just wondering what kind of grades some of you got your interviews based on?

Thanks

I think people with a ums around 90 would definitely get an interview, as long as their personal statement is okay.

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Reply 790

ceco_moev

7

Hey,

I got a question for Politics & IRstudents at Cam. On the official website it says that in the second year you do the following:

•

Comparative Politics

•

International Relations

•

The History of Political Thought

whereas on the HSPS site instead it says that you do:

•

History of Political Thought

•

Ethics and World Politics

•

Comparative Politics

My question is whether International Relations is the same as Ethics and World Politics and which is the actual one?

Thanks in advance

Reply 791

sammyshell2

As a potential applicant next year, I was wondering if there is anywhere I can watch a past interverview for HSPS7

Reply 792

ntanationa

7

I am really interested in this course (HSPS)! Is it by any chance more difficult to get into than other courses at Oxbridge? Also, I saw some of you saying the preferred interest, do you have to specify which aspect of HSPS you want to focus on most, and study, or can you go as broad as you want, and just study anything? This is what attracts me most about it, that I could study Politics and Archeology together :biggrin:

Thanks!

Reply 793

J65

Original post by ntanationa

Also, I saw some of you saying the preferred interest, do you have to specify which aspect of HSPS you want to focus on most, and study, or can you go as broad as you want, and just study anything? This is what attracts me most about it, that I could study Politics and Archeology together :biggrin:

Thanks!

Have a look at the course structure. You can take a broad range of modules in your first year but in second and third years you have to specialise in a 'track' (in Politics for example). Whilst there are some 'joint tracks' (such as Politics and Sociology), Politics and Archaeology is not a 'joint track' option. However, with most tracks you have the opportunity to take one HSPS paper from outside your track each year. So for example you could be on the politics track and take one paper in archaeology, or on the archaeology track and take one paper politics politics each year.

Reply 794

ntanationa

7

Hello! I have another question regarding this course, for whoever has done it/is doing it.

In the name, there is also 'Human Sciences'. Does this mean that it is also possible to study things like genetics and slightly more scientific? Is it like the Human Sciences course at Oxford? Or is it more on the humanities side compared to the Oxford one?

Thanks a lot.

Reply 795

Monkeycheckbook

5

Hi, yes there are some options which are more scientific. In biological anthropology there is a fair amount, there's morphology, genetics a lot of primatology. Also you can take PBS1 (psychology) which involves some neuroscience.

Also, but slightly differently, you can take ARC2 which is about methods in archaeology, which involves a lot of lab work and is essentially dating and recovery techniques which has aspects of geology, chemistry and biology.

Hope that helps!

Original post by ntanationa

Hello! I have another question regarding this course, for whoever has done it/is doing it.

In the name, there is also 'Human Sciences'. Does this mean that it is also possible to study things like genetics and slightly more scientific? Is it like the Human Sciences course at Oxford? Or is it more on the humanities side compared to the Oxford one?

Thanks a lot.

Reply 796

ceco_moev

7

If someone's going to take part in R. A. Butler Prize or Robson History Prize, please feel free to post here :smile:

: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?p=52192449&highlight=social%20sciences%20essay%20competition

Reply 797

Bill Samways

Hi,

Strongly considering applying for HSPS for 2016 entry, but I don't like the problem-solving element of the tsa. Looking at King's as they have an alternative written test in the form of a choice of essay-based questions.

I know it says these questions are general and require no preperation, but could anyone tell me if they tend to be a choice of the subjects within HSPS? what do they look like? Just so I can see whether I'm up for King's style of testing.

If anyone with experience of them or related applications has examples, that would be great.

Thanks

Reply 798

danibradford

Any students looking to or have applied to HSPS for archaeology? I'm hoping to apply for St. John's and am worried about the entrance essay you have to sit. Has anyone sat one? What were your questions like? Did you have a choice?