ELAT

It seems unlikely for Oxford because it's only equivalent in UCAS points, not grades, and Oxford specifically says it doesn't use the UCAS Tariff system. :dontknow:

There was one part of their website where it says, to illustrate the point that people shouldn't take four A Levels if it will mean a lower overall performance, that AAA would meet the requirements for law but A*A*BB wouldn't. Who knows what goes on inside the minds of admissions tutors. :3

I know exactly what you mean! I emailed them before I applied and they were adamant that I needed predictions of AAA but I applied anyway, just to see if I got anything out of it at all. I thought I did below average on the ELAT...not horrific but definitely not brilliant. But I'm eternally grateful for an interview if I'm honest, especially when people at my school are being bitter because they didn't get interviews (for different subjects) with better grades than me.

Reply 781

troubadour.

19

Original post by AngelicAmazing

I know exactly what you mean! I emailed them before I applied and they were adamant that I needed predictions of AAA but I applied anyway, just to see if I got anything out of it at all. I thought I did below average on the ELAT...not horrific but definitely not brilliant. But I'm eternally grateful for an interview if I'm honest, especially when people at my school are being bitter because they didn't get interviews (for different subjects) with better grades than me.

I'm starting to think that they place more emphasis on the personal statement and reference than they let on, even for science subjects. I got rejected for Biomedical Sciences despite having comparable GCSE and BMAT results to another applicant who did get invited to interview... :s-smilie:

I also read recently (on an old thread) about some guy who put chemistry at Oxford down as a fifth choice on a medicine application and got an offer! You'd think the personal statement would mean a lot more in a subject like that, with no admissions test...

We'll never know. :lol:

Good luck with your interview. :smile:

Reply 782

Shotte

8

Original post by AngelicAmazing

I'm so glad I'm not the only one in this situation! I tried to get my prediction of a B in Maths moved up to an A but Head of Maths very firmly said no. I am shocked to be honest, however I am going to prepare as well as I can for the interviews :h:

Aha! See, that's something that interests me as well. My B prediction is in Mathematics also; I perhaps should've but honestly couldn't bring myself to go to my Maths tutor Karen asking for a rise in predicted grade: I didn't realise how important the AAA minimum was at the time! But heh, though Karen probably would've gone ahead with it, an A-grade predicted for me in Maths would be quite the fib in all honesty.

My Dad reckons - I'm not really convinced - that there may be a bit of an unofficial 'Well damn, that's Mathematics' attitude in play to explain it. I just think the other aspects of our application might've earned a slight overlooking on the AS-levels component of it. My Mum says I only got in because I was on UNIQ >:s

Anyways, I'm glad now I didn't go in for getting the predicted risen because if I do get an offer I can work (my ass off) towards it there and then rather than stressing about it for my other universities. Even for Oxford... I mean, there's I guess the slimmest-of-slim chance they might give some leeway on the Mathematics on the day, though I daren't hope for it!

Gotta say for myself that even if I do get an offer I'm likely not going to be permitted go to Oxford; the A-grade Maths if a contentious issue... I don't see me achieving that, sadly, I've been at the bottom of the class near-enough for the whole process and how I managed a B last year remains beyond me. xD;

Original post by AngelicAmazing

I know exactly what you mean! I emailed them before I applied and they were adamant that I needed predictions of AAA but I applied anyway, just to see if I got anything out of it at all. I thought I did below average on the ELAT...not horrific but definitely not brilliant. But I'm eternally grateful for an interview if I'm honest, especially when people at my school are being bitter because they didn't get interviews (for different subjects) with better grades than me.

Edit: although for me I just feel saddened on the last count, I know too many people who one million times over deserved an interview and weren't given one, compared to a certain bozo who may or may not be writing this post! Sometimes I think the results show that Oxford doesn't in fact have some grandiose system we can't understand... they just don't know what they're doing!

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 783

troubadour.

19

Original post by Shotte

Aha! See, that's something that interests me as well. My B prediction is in Mathematics also; I perhaps should've but honestly couldn't bring myself to go to my Maths tutor Karen asking for a rise in predicted grade: I didn't realise how important the AAA minimum was at the time! But heh, though Karen probably would've gone ahead with it, an A-grade predicted for me in Maths would be quite the fib in all honesty.

My Dad reckons - I'm not really convinced - that there may be a bit of an unofficial 'Well damn, that's Mathematics' attitude in play to explain it. I just think the other aspects of our application might've earned a slight overlooking on the AS-levels component of it. My Mum says I only got in because I was on UNIQ >:s

Oxford doesn't care a lot about AS grades though (because some private schools don't cash-in their applicants' ASs and Oxford doesn't have anything like the SAQ to make people declare grades even if they're not cashed in like they do at Cambridge).

Their official advice is that they don't use it systematically but that it reassures them that you're on track to make their standard offer for the subject being applied for. So it would only really be an issue if you got like a D or lower, I presume. :smile:

Reply 784

Shotte

8

Original post by Hydeman

Oxford doesn't care a lot about AS grades though (because some private schools don't cash-in their applicants' ASs and Oxford doesn't have anything like the SAQ to make people declare grades even if they're not cashed in like they do at Cambridge).

Their official advice is that they don't use it systematically but that it reassures them that you're on track to make their standard offer for the subject being applied for. So it would only really be an issue if you got like a D or lower, I presume. :smile:

Ahh, gotcha. See, I honestly wasn't aware of any of that. Still a little worried as to my viability for making said standard offer, but that's a problem for me and me alone which I'll deal with if I come to it. :P

My biggest nightmare remains getting a C in Maths, as in a system that irks me - probably 'cause it doesn't benefit my position one bit, and I'm a salty git - I'd probably end up getting an insta-rejection from my other universities. Only Sheffield might hold a candle out still, even that's a bit hopeful. To be fair, you'd think that if I was concerned about ending up with an awkward C I'd put a uni which takes them down on the UCAS form... but frankly, the calibre of uni you're looking at in that case is, like, UCLan... DeMontfort 'because if we were good, we wouldn't need to advertise'... haha, there's no point paying a whopper £9000 in those cases, it's just not worth the money or the time even. I'd either change my focus and do another A-Level year or suck it up and get a job if I had to deal with that, unless Clearing offered something pretty natty (unlikely).

Reply 785

troubadour.

19

Original post by Shotte

Ahh, gotcha. See, I honestly wasn't aware of any of that. Still a little worried as to my viability for making said standard offer, but that's a problem for me and me alone which I'll deal with if I come to it. :P

I think maths is one of the easier A Levels to improve at because it's quite literally just practice. I finished my A Levels this year and, having done my exam board's (WJEC's) past papers, you could clearly tell that, until 2014, the papers were formulaic as hell. The first question on a C4 paper would always be on partial fractions, the second would always be on parametric equations, and so on.

Anyway, you have quite a bit of time at the moment so I recommend spending a bit of time every day on www.examsolutions.net. It's quite highly recommended on this website and people claim to have learned entire maths modules in weeks. It covers all major exam boards so you'll need to make sure you only bother with the stuff that's on your spec. Just work at it and I'm sure you'll make that A (or maybe even A* :O).

but frankly, the calibre of uni you're looking at in that case is, like, UCLan... DeMontfort 'because if we were good, we wouldn't need to advertise'... haha, there's no point paying a whopper £9000 in those cases, it's just not worth the money or the time even.

That's fair enough. :smile:

With fees being this high, you shouldn't really be settling for a university that you don't really like.

I'd either change my focus and do another A-Level year or suck it up and get a job if I had to deal with that, unless Clearing offered something pretty natty (unlikely).

The offerings in Clearing seem to improve every year because of the lifting of government-imposed caps on places. Even places like Durham participate, although I doubt they would for a course like English (they don't put many courses in Clearing and the ones that they do are the really specialised, 'more places than applicants' type courses). It's pretty easy to get into a decent Russell Group university through Clearing although the really top places like Oxbridge, LSE, Imperial etc. don't enter Clearing so there is that.

Reply 786

Tessie25

1

Original post by Shotte

Edit: although for me I just feel saddened on the last count, I know too many people who one million times over deserved an interview and weren't given one, compared to a certain bozo who may or may not be writing this post! Sometimes I think the results show that Oxford doesn't in fact have some grandiose system we can't understand... they just don't know what they're doing!

Tbh I think that it isn't that Oxford want exceptional grades - their typical offer is no higher than most other Russell unis - but more about the kind of person they want. People with the right sort of passion and character to succeed in their subject, which is why interviews and personal statements are pretty crucial, imo.

Reply 787

charleethompson

5

How is everyone feeling about interviews?
I'm still just incredibly excited, nerves haven't kicked in yet :')
What prep have you been doing?

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 788

jonwithnoname

4

Original post by charleethompson

How is everyone feeling about interviews?
I'm still just incredibly excited, nerves haven't kicked in yet :' :wink:

What prep have you been doing?

I had one mock interview over a week ago but aside from that I haven't done anything - and I'll bring my personal statement and written work to read on the train down and to go over before interviews :smile:

There's not much more prep to do I don't think, they want to see how you respond to the whole interview environment and you can't do much prep for that :smile:

Hope everyone who's got interviews is feeling alright, it's all gonna be fun! :smile:

Reply 789

BrasenoseLitGeek

6

To all of the above:

Context and potential are the key factors.

You don't have to be a perfect, shiny example of the education system. Most people aren't :smile:

Reply 790

Ulysses98

1

What year are you all in? Have you taken your A levels yet?

Reply 791

AngelicAmazing

5

Original post by Shotte

Aha! See, that's something that interests me as well. My B prediction is in Mathematics also; I perhaps should've but honestly couldn't bring myself to go to my Maths tutor Karen asking for a rise in predicted grade: I didn't realise how important the AAA minimum was at the time! But heh, though Karen probably would've gone ahead with it, an A-grade predicted for me in Maths would be quite the fib in all honesty.

My Dad reckons - I'm not really convinced - that there may be a bit of an unofficial 'Well damn, that's Mathematics' attitude in play to explain it. I just think the other aspects of our application might've earned a slight overlooking on the AS-levels component of it. My Mum says I only got in because I was on UNIQ >:s

Anyways, I'm glad now I didn't go in for getting the predicted risen because if I do get an offer I can work (my ass off) towards it there and then rather than stressing about it for my other universities. Even for Oxford... I mean, there's I guess the slimmest-of-slim chance they might give some leeway on the Mathematics on the day, though I daren't hope for it!

Gotta say for myself that even if I do get an offer I'm likely not going to be permitted go to Oxford; the A-grade Maths if a contentious issue... I don't see me achieving that, sadly, I've been at the bottom of the class near-enough for the whole process and how I managed a B last year remains beyond me. xD;

Edit: although for me I just feel saddened on the last count, I know too many people who one million times over deserved an interview and weren't given one, compared to a certain bozo who may or may not be writing this post! Sometimes I think the results show that Oxford doesn't in fact have some grandiose system we can't understand... they just don't know what they're doing!

See, the only reason I got a B was because I got a D in one of my modules, due to stress etc. Despite this, no one was willing to predict me an A even though I got an A* on the start of term test so I just gave up if I'm honest. See, I don't know! I think Oxford do care generally about your grades but their admissions test are very important to them so if somebody doesn't do well, they're more likely to reject them. That's why I'm surprised because I didn't feel my ELAT was anything special...I would even say it's one of the most mediocre essays I've ever written. May I ask what UNIQ is? I've never heard of it! I think the reasons I got my prediction in Biology to be an A is because my teacher knows I'm an able enough student and I only really messed one paper up, I guess. I do really feel sad for the people who didn't get interviews though, especially as the majority of our school's Oxford applicants got rejected despite perfect GCSE's and AS grades.

Reply 792

ArtyQuell

6

Original post by jonwithnoname

I had one mock interview over a week ago but aside from that I haven't done anything - and I'll bring my personal statement and written work to read on the train down and to go over before interviews :smile:

There's not much more prep to do I don't think, they want to see how you respond to the whole interview environment and you can't do much prep for that :smile:

Hope everyone who's got interviews is feeling alright, it's all gonna be fun! :smile:

I have the same plan, but I will take King Lear and Hamlet with me just in case (since they take the seat of honour in my PS) :wink:

Reply 793

jonwithnoname

4

Original post by ArtyQuell

I have the same plan, but I will take King Lear and Hamlet with me just in case (since they take the seat of honour in my PS) :wink:

Fabulous

I'm just super excited for the journey down tomorrow, I like trains :biggrin:

Spoiler

Reply 794

ArtyQuell

6

Original post by jonwithnoname

Fabulous

I'm just super excited for the journey down tomorrow, I like trains :biggrin:

Spoiler

Nice reference! XD
Where are you journeying from?

Reply 795

jonwithnoname

4

Original post by ArtyQuell

Nice reference! XD
Where are you journeying from?

Hehe thanks,love me a good gif :biggrin:

Leeds-ish (though technically York train station), how about you? :smile:

Reply 796

ArtyQuell

6

Original post by jonwithnoname

Hehe thanks,love me a good gif :biggrin:

Leeds-ish (though technically York train station), how about you? :smile:

Ah, a hopeful from the Northern wilderness! ;P
I am from Cardiff (roughly 3 hours at most), so my trek isn't too bad in relation to a couple of friends who are making the journey down from north Wales and Durham. :smile:

Reply 797

Eimermcauley777

Original post by ArtyQuell

Ah, a hopeful from the Northern wilderness! ;P
I am from Cardiff (roughly 3 hours at most), so my trek isn't too bad in relation to a couple of friends who are making the journey down from north Wales and Durham. :smile:

coming from Northern Ireland to St. Peter's! Anyone one else from the north or that college??