Maths and Philosophy GV15 (2015 Entry)

Give us a shout if you're applying for the course in the title (or either subjects). Where are you applying? What are you doing in preparation?

Reply 1

phil.stud

Original post by between7and8

Hi! I'm applying for maths & philosophy for 2015. Definitely applying to Birmingham and York, but otherwise I'm still not sure. And you?

Hello! York, King's College London, and Warwick. Haven't decided the other two yet.

How do you feel about MAT/interviews?

Reply 2

phil.stud

Original post by between7and8

Only Oxford and Imperial use MAT right?
I'm still veeery unsure about Oxford. I'd love to go there but I don't think I've got a very good chance.

Same. I'm not sure about Oxford. That's why I left it out of my list.

What you said about Scottish universities is a revelation to me! :beard:

Reply 3

Alicelewis11

I thin this programme gives the chance for students to combine an interest in Philosophy with a focus on Mathematics. Both halves of the course allow you to follow your own interests and particular enthusiasms.
Your Mathematics studies are designed to help you develop many of the skills you would get studying Single Honours Mathematics. This includes the ability to formulate and tackle problems, to think logically, to use technical language and to express complex ideas clearly and accurately. It is a complementary combination of studies that makes you very attractive to employers.
Philosophy asks some of the biggest questions concerning human existence; questions that are at the core of some of the world’s greatest books. The Department of Philosophy at Birmingham has a growing international reputation as a centre of excellence for research in analytic philosophy, especially in metaphysics and epistemology, philosophy of language and mind, and ethics and ethical theory.
2nd Grade Math Problems

Reply 4

shamika

Original post by phil.stud

Same. I'm not sure about Oxford. That's why I left it out of my list.

What you said about Scottish universities is a revelation to me! :beard:

There's no reason not to give Oxford a shot if it's realistic. (Rather stupidly, I didn't know about Maths & Philosophy until after I applied for straight maths, but I know people who have done the Oxford course and loved it. Apparently philosophy is much easier than maths though and they switched to the philosophy side as quickly as possible!)

Reply 5

RichE

Original post by shamika

That's not my experience with people I've known on the course, and one can't become "all phil" or "all maths" until the fourth year anyway. Most have enjoyed the interplay of the two subjects even if they did jump one way or another in the fourth year. It is worth saying though that the maths on the joint courses is just as hard as the maths on the main course.

Reply 6

shamika

Original post by RichE

I should've been clearer; "by as quickly as possible", I didn't mean "straight away", I meant "when they had a choice, they'd pick Philosophy over Maths".

However, given that you are far closer to the course than I ever will be, I'm happy to encourage people to take your advice over mine!

Reply 7

RichE

Original post by shamika

I wasn't disputing any of your friends' experiences - just adding my own really. (My own prejudices might be coloured by the students currently studying the course at my college at the mo who all seem to be loving it. But they're a tight-knit group who work well off one another. )

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 8

shamika

Original post by RichE

Well in the spirit of full disclosure, I have a sample size of two, and both graduated in 2006. I know whose experiences I would rely on more!

(For the record, if you're interested in both, I think the Oxford degree really does seem incredible. It would've been my first choice degree if I bothered researching Oxford properly when I was applying to uni :rolleyes:

)

Reply 9

phil.stud

Thanks for the replies, guys.

Yes, it does seem incredible. Does anyone know, since St John's college says it puts a lot more emphasis on the MAT than the interviews, wouldn't it be wiser for someone confident on the test but concerned about the interview to apply there over other colleges?

Reply 10

DodoManiac

Original post by phil.stud

Give us a shout if you're applying for the course in the title (or either subjects). Where are you applying? What are you doing in preparation?

Hi! I'm applying for Maths and Philosophy at Oxford, Warwick, probably Bristol, maybe Durham, Birmingham, York or Sheffield.

I'm reading some Plato and and a book on Aristotle and I'm looking at MAT and STEP a bit.

How did your AS Levels go?

Reply 11

phil.stud

Original post by DodoManiac

Have you decided which College at Oxford yet? I haven't done A-levels. How did you do? I'm looking at STEP I and MAT too. I don't know whether this is true or not, but I remember reading that Oxford and Cambridge care a lot about modern philosophy - mainly the analytic tradition; and that most of what you do in the first and the second year is from this time. This made me wonder whether it might be necessary, or at least more worthwhile, to read stuff from this era instead of the earlier eras. Perhaps people who have done the course could clear up whether that's the case?

Reply 12

DodoManiac

Original post by phil.stud

No, I'm not too sure about college yet. I liked New College and spent the night there a couple of months ago. I don't know whether I'd want somewhere where I'd be the only MathsPhil student in my year, like New, or somewhere with a few others to be able to talk stuff over with, like Balliol. Anyway, I fancy one of the older ones. How about you? Are you looking at St John's then?

What qualification do you do? I got 4As at AS so pretty happy about that!

STEP is good fun but quite tricky haha..

Yes, I think Oxford does focus on analytic philosophy but input from those who know more would be great, yeah!!

I find the Plato and Aristotle really interesting but getting a wider breadth of reading and looking at some more recent stuff would probably be a good idea yeah. I imagine at interview, though, they're interested in how you think and talk about what you've read, rather than what you've actually read. Anyway, I think there is an option at some point to study Plato and Aristotle, so at least I'm doing some early prep for that, if nothing else!

Reply 13

alexmufc1995

Original post by phil.stud

I applied to John's last year for this course and I got in; however it's worth noting that I was shipped off to Pembroke instead :wink:

I bombed the MAT btw - 55/100 :colondollar:

Just apply to where you want to go, your application will be treated fairly wherever :smile:

Good luck everyone, let me know if you have any questions!

Reply 14

DodoManiac

Original post by alexmufc1995

I applied to John's last year for this course and I got in; however it's worth noting that I was shipped off to Pembroke instead :wink:

I bombed the MAT btw - 55/100 :colondollar:

Just apply to where you want to go, your application will be treated fairly wherever :smile:

Good luck everyone, let me know if you have any questions!

Congrats on getting in! I've decided I'm going to apply to Worcester - loved the lake :biggrin:

Do you have any tips for the personal statement? How did you incorporate what you've read and stuff? I've heard they don't really care about it but I don't want it to be bad and it's awful atm...

Reply 15

alexmufc1995

Original post by DodoManiac

Congrats on getting in! I've decided I'm going to apply to Worcester - loved the lake :biggrin:

Do you have any tips for the personal statement? How did you incorporate what you've read and stuff? I've heard they don't really care about it but I don't want it to be bad and it's awful atm...

Thanks

Good choice with Worcester, it's a lovely college. I think it also has the most MathPhils of any college this year too, but that's just coincidence (before floods of people read this and apply there) :wink:

Perhaps you could PM me with it and I'll take a look? I spent far too much time on my PS, time that I should have spent practising for the MAT; I know you don't want to hear this, but unless you write "I LOVE CAMBRIDGE", they probably won't bat an eyelid to it (Oxford only).

Reply 16

RichE

Original post by alexmufc1995

...I think it also has the most MathPhils of any college this year too...

Impressed how quickly word gets around :smile:

Reply 17

alexmufc1995

Original post by RichE

Impressed how quickly word gets around :smile:

Ahah you should see our Facebook group, listing every student by college and course for this year's entry! Perhaps the definition of organisation!

Who knows; Dr Earl is the Director of Undergraduate Studies and a fellow in Maths there, so perhaps he has a particular fondness for us Math/Phils... :wink:

On an associated note, please could you perhaps give me your opinion on a query I posted earlier:

Speaking of the MAT, I'd love to know if the offer distribution is more lenient for Joint Maths courses, and hence stricter for straight Maths; even though they state the standard of Mathematical ability should be the same.

I feel like I performed relatively poorly on the MAT, and the score I received after asking for feedback confirmed this (only 55/100!). I wonder if I'd have got in with this had I only applied for Maths...?

Many thanks, can't wait to start in October!

Reply 18

phil.stud

Original post by alexmufc1995