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Official Cambridge Applicants Thread 2015 Entry - MK II

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Reply 5980

aersh8

Original post by SerLorasTyrell

I'm bio

you?

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Me too! Do you know who your interviewers are?

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Reply 5981

melissa2196

History Interview for the 11th at Homerton college! Two medieval historians in my subject specific interview!! I am bricking it!

Reply 5982

User1255194

Original post by EHZ17

Does anybody know of we are allowed to make notes for the preparatory study? To organise thoughts and make points ect, or does it have to be kept in your head?

Thaaaaaaaaanks m8

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BUMP

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Reply 5983

SerLorasTyrell

Original post by aersh8

Me too! Do you know who your interviewers are?

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Yup sure do, all biologist associated with St. John's other than the general one, yours the same?

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Reply 5984

HopefulLawyerHG

Original post by EHZ17

BUMP

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I think we are allowed to make notes but aren't allowed anything else with us while making them? Not sure though.

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Reply 5985

Fttohi

Original post by Master219

Yh, I live in Dubai, got an interview at Cambridge for medicine on 9 dec so taking a flight on 6th to UK (I applied as home not international)
wbu

I have a Mathematics Aptitude test to sit at churchill on 9th and interview to attend on 10th. Why are you going so early?

Original post by Sapphire0258

Woah I am! When are you going?

Haven't booked my flight yet and ticket prices are rising like no tomorrow. :biggrin:

Original post by ChemPrince

Not me! But I love Dubai.. And the food across the whole UAE!

Ps: sorry I'm a crazy foodie :P

Original post by L'Evil Fish

Meeeeee

No but... I need a holiday back there.

All the foooood

Whenever I mention the word "Dubai", I expect to get comments on the weather. Food is new, but I can relate :^_^:

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 5986

Aish_de_la_Lune

Original post by Shehr

No problem! :smile:

Based on my opinion, I think the interviewers are generally equipped with enough knowledge on all HSPS subjects to interview you, despite being qualified in others. I chose Politics as my main choice but my first interview was largely about Biological Anthropology. Plus, HSPS is such an interdisciplinary course that most of these subjects are somehow linked, which is why they've given you a spectrum of interviewers (to see if you can find these links). It's good to just read up on some of the descriptions of the subjects just so you have a broad idea of what they are. I'm pretty certain that you're going to get a few random questions on things you don't know. That's just to test you and observe your thought process. Just keep attacking the question and don't give up on it. That's what they're really looking for. :smile:

Ooh thanks!
Yeah I figured it would be the case. I've made sure I've made a connection between all the subjects, so that I have at least one way of approaching it at the very least. I'll be reading a bit more about archaeology and biological anthropology, which are weak spots for me at the moment, and make a few notes that will help me keep context. Hopefully that basic knowledge combined with the way I think and process things should be enough to get me through :smile:

Thanks again!

Reply 5987

SJT97

Original post by JamesJL

Sorry to hear about your issue,

My advice would be (if you haven't), to ring up the admissions and describe your situation just as you have done now. If you have the money, may I suggest a hotel?

Hey guys,

Thanks for the responses I rang the admissions office, explained everything and now have accommodation. Thanks a lot for the help! Woo hoo! Good luck to all with their applications.

Reply 5988

Aish_de_la_Lune

Original post by Robertus

Yes, it definitely wasn't without it's faults. Unfortunately, though, I think introducing the comprehensive system worsened that dilemma in many areas. Instead of having some of the non-rich kids going to grammar schools and then to the top universities, you have many more now going to bog-standard comprehensives and thrown in with kids of lower ability and those with little ambition to learn. And the dichotomy between these comprehensives and the private schools (as well as some remaining grammar schools) is in many ways larger than ever. Comprehensively educated children just do not have the same opportunities as the privately educated do.

In an ideal system, I'd like to see standards of teaching raise across the board. It wouldn't ever happen exactly as we want it to, but there's no reason comprehensive school children can't be pushed to the same level that grammar/private school children are. Schools of both kinds need to have an academic focus, with vocational subjects as entirely optional.

To address your last point, the simple way to rectify that is to have, as I said, several points of entry into grammar schools. So most likely at 11, 13, and 16. The grammar schools should also maintain strict requirements, so that those who pass the entrance exam at 11/13 but flop their GCSEs for instance cannot be admitted into the Sixth Form.

Really, though, the most pressing issue is the terrible standard of many comprehensive schools in this country. To put it into perspective, mine is one of the better comprehensives in my area. In 2013, we achieved a 67% 5 A*-C rate at GCSE. A nearby grammar school - that several people I know went to - attained 99%, and has had 100% in previous years. That's utterly absurd, and to think that there are schools out there much worse than that is appalling.

I'm from a poor working class family, who got into grammar school after sitting the 11+... as far as I know, its still implemented here in Birmingham (I start a tutoring job tomorrow that supports working class children to strive to get into grammar school via the 11+).
I think the correlation between money / class and grammar schools is largely due to the opportunity money can bring - whether thats being academically pushed in a private school, being taught by people who have a highly academic background or being able to afford tutoring. I'm not sure how it works in other localities in England though, is it based on fees? Or have they scrapped grammar schools all together?

I do completely agree with you regarding the state of comp. education. Living and working in the low socioeconomic community I do, I see how little kids are actually taught in comparison to what I was... basic things such as academic writing or critical thinking. I still never fully appreciated the standard of my education until I came back to college as a mature student, and realised how much context, knowledge and skills I was taught and took for granted.

I think grammar schools are a good way of really bringing the best out of those who are academically gifted, but the general standard of education also has to be brought up in comprehensive schools so that children are being supported to achieve no matter where they are educated.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 5989

User1255194

Original post by HopefulLawyerHG

I think we are allowed to make notes but aren't allowed anything else with us while making them? Not sure though.

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I hope so otherwise we will have to remember all the points and usually when that happens I tend to forget some. I want to be able to organise my thoughts on paper :/

Reply 5990

Blazar

Original post by MasterOfTheSwag

Interview for Natural Sciences at Caius on the 10th :smile:

Physical or biological? :smile:

Reply 5991

aersh8

Original post by SerLorasTyrell

Yup sure do, all biologist associated with St. John's other than the general one, yours the same?

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Yeah

I got a mathematician for my general one. Do you think the subject interviews will have anything to do with the specialties of the interviewers or just more general biology?

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Reply 5992

bored565

So I'm seeing people on here with two or three interviews, and I only have one..? What's the significance of this?

Reply 5993

Elcor

Original post by bored565

So I'm seeing people on here with two or three interviews, and I only have one..? What's the significance of this?

A large amount of applications for the same course and college, according to my physics teacher. I also have 1 interviewer for both of mine.

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Reply 5994

Elcor

Starting to like the idea of a meal with some of you people on the 11th.

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Reply 5995

aprocrastinator

Interview from Downing for Medicine today! I am so relieved!

Reply 5996

RainbowVeins

Original post by aprocrastinator

Interview from Downing for Medicine today! I am so relieved!

Congratulations! :smile:

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Reply 5997

L'Evil Fish

Original post by Elcor

Starting to like the idea of a meal with some of you people on the 11th.

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So you'd be down for it?

I forgot the other users name... The moroccan one

Cerlohee will also come.
Two friends of mine will be in camb, don't think they'll come though, cos they're with their parents.

Anyone else? Around 7pm 11th December

Reply 5998

tomfailinghelp

I've already asked this before so sorry to repeat but I didn't get any replies - for people who're travelling the night before, what time are you getting to Cambridge? I feel like I might be very early

Reply 5999

SerLorasTyrell

Original post by aersh8

Yeah

I got a mathematician for my general one. Do you think the subject interviews will have anything to do with the specialties of the interviewers or just more general biology?

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