Durham Freshers 2012 Thread

I doubt they're very lenient as they're likely to fill the spaces with people who do meet the requirements. However I'm not too sure, but good luck anyway!

well, my offer last year was ABB. i got A*AC on results day (which in points is actually higher) but they didn't let me in because i technically missed the grades so the place was filled by someone else.

HOWEVER, on results day, if you find out that you've missed your grades, phone the admissions tutor for your COURSE (not the uni or college one) and ask if they'll defer your offer. they might then give you an unconditional for next year (like me).

they have meetings the few days after results day to decide who they should let in and who not to. also, it's best to phone the unis on results day because UCAS will be crashed (last year nobody could log in because there were too many people) so get about 3 numbers for the uni and keep calling them!

i hope you get the grades anyway

thanks so much that was really helpful! congrats on getting in may I ask why deferring your offer made a difference? also, are you international?

i'm not an international, no!
deferring helped because each uni has their quota of students from the government, and if they go over, they get fined. so each student they let in over quota is a £10,000 fine! when they're making decisions, they'll either say yes or no. but if you say you're willing to wait another year, then it means they don't have to try and fit you in this year, and if they've let in too many people already then they can still give you an offer.

the thing is, once they've updated UCAS, they can't change it so you've got to get them early! i hope that kind of makes sense.

re-applying this year was so much easier, because with my grades the unis just gave me unconditionals - no pressure, i just had to choose where i wanted to go!! i just wish i'd decided i wanted a gap year when i was still at school!

Also: I'd like to hear from other soon-to-be cuthswomen and -men, also from you natural scientists. How is it that one rarely reads from people in this biggest course and almost biggest college ?

Hey just realised youre doing biological sciences! We could be in the same class working at haematology lab right now so im kicking about in the staff room waiting to be given summat to do, did you do any work exp in your gap year?

we'll probably have some of the same classes, when i looked at the course there seems to be a lot of choice but there'll be some compulsory modules! i'm REALLY impatient to start, i've become a complete biology geek this year, i haven't read anything but science books!

as far as experience goes, i worked at King's college last year so i wanted something different - i'm volunteering at great ormond street children's hospital! it's amazing. i decided to go for it because i recently have had thoughts about doing medicine afterwards. when i was at king's college i worked right next to haemotology (i was in endocrinology), haemotology seemed really cool! i know how you feel though, i spent a lot of time sitting around reading or cleaning things!!!

i hope to see you in october
which college are you at?

Isnt there going to be a 2012-13 Freshers' page on FB? There was one for 2011-12 Freshers.. Do we create one or what?

I really want to start but I've got exams to go through first Dreading Chemistry one because I'm really struggling on it. But fingers crossed I can at least get a C! ><

That's pretty awesome, they're big hospitals aren't they? As opposed to the University Hospital in Hartlepool which doesn't have an A&E anymore!! London is mmiiillleeesss away, does it not bother you being that far away from home?

The lab I'm working with focuses on haemostasis but I'm more of the grunt worker, so on the first day I ended up labelling, bagging and boxing 22000 lancets which took me a good 7 hours of my shift. Then today labelled and packaged 150000 vials of heparin resistant recalcifying solution (not a clue what that is but I know they're being sent to an Australian company which is cool )

I would really love to specialise in zoology in the second year, will you be leaning towards more biomed modules?

I'll be at St. Aidan's college, wbu?

i'm not an international, no!
deferring helped because each uni has their quota of students from the government, and if they go over, they get fined. so each student they let in over quota is a £10,000 fine! when they're making decisions, they'll either say yes or no. but if you say you're willing to wait another year, then it means they don't have to try and fit you in this year, and if they've let in too many people already then they can still give you an offer.

the thing is, once they've updated UCAS, they can't change it so you've got to get them early! i hope that kind of makes sense.

re-applying this year was so much easier, because with my grades the unis just gave me unconditionals - no pressure, i just had to choose where i wanted to go!! i just wish i'd decided i wanted a gap year when i was still at school!

thank you so much! really appreciate your replies ooh god, I didn't know about the quota. I knew there was one for medicine for international students but beyond that I wasn't aware it was government set. I will bear that tip in mind if I happen to miss my ib points. do you think being international would make any difference?

Universities have no quotas on international students - that only applies to home/EU students.