Is it a bad idea to list boxing/bodybuilding on my application? (Cambridge maths)

Remember that your extra curricular para should only be about 100 words.

That's if you decide to put one in at all. I didn't bother and I thought my PS was much the better for it. I can't imagine why any admissions tutor would be interested in an applicant's extracurriculars, no matter what positive spin they put on them. I suspect the Cambridge maths admission tutor will care even less.

That's if you decide to put one in at all. I didn't bother and I thought my PS was much the better for it. I can't imagine why any admissions tutor would be interested in an applicant's extracurriculars, no matter what positive spin they put on them. I suspect the Cambridge maths admission tutor will care even less.

Admissions tutors need some way to get to know the person behind the application, before interview, to work out whether they will fit into the program and not quit halfway. However, that isn't to say that not including any extra curricular activities in your PS is going to lose you a place.

Yes, admissions tutors will want to get an idea of what the applicant is like as a person and whether they'd cope in the Oxbridge system - but that is done at interview. You can't get to know someone just by reading a personal statement and I doubt that any admissions tutor would expect to. The personal statement is essentially a way of saying "I am the perfect person for your course because..." - if you start talking about irrelevant extracurriculars then the admission tutor would likely assume you have nothing else to say about the course or why you want to do it, which doesn't look very good in my opinion.

First off, everyone who gets a place isn't necessarily interviewed. I agree that you can't get to know someone from a PS but interviewing is both time consuming and expensive and so admissions tutors need to get some idea about what the person's like before they get invited to interview.

Academic excellence does come first and this sentiment is echoed on the Cambridge admissions webpages. That's why I said that not mentioning extra curriculars isn't going to lose you a place. I did advise the OP to focus their talk about extra curricular activities on relevant skills gained so I'm not advocating mentioning irrelevant extracurriculars. General selection criteria for Cambridge (they are probably similar to other unis as well) include things like potential and self-discipline which include transferable skills which can be gained from and demonstrated using extracurricular activities as examples.

Finally, my advice is not just a personal opinion but is based on years of experience with reviewing PSs, helping people with all sorts of applications and working in a university.

Cambridge interviews everyone they are likely to give an offer to. The PS is a very small part of their considerations, especially for Maths applicants.

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Maybe so. But everyone who meets the academic entry requirements doesn't necessarily get interviewed so it's probably not a good idea to discount the impact of a PS completely.

Applying to study Maths at Cambridge, Imperial, Warwick, Durham and St Andrews.

Is my apprehension to abstain from listing "boxing" and "bodybuilding" on my UCAS personal statement justified? Despite the fact both of them are a big part of my life (I lift six times a week and box four), I fear that they could subconsciously put across the idea of "roughness" in the minds of the admissioners given that they're both considered "blue-collar" sports in comparison to, say, cricket. Granted, extracurriculars are far less important for mathematics (and my mathematical aptitude will be their prime concern) but, if it ends up neck-and-neck between me and another applicant, I worry that it could possibly affect me in a negative way.

What's your take? There are genuine skills and life-lessons that I've taken away from both of these endeavours that aren't your cliche "I learned team work and leadership from playing sports". Both are heavily reliant on self-discipline due to being individual-based sports; if you don't do what you've got to do, you'll fail. It's as simple as that. And that self-discipline has translated itself into every facet of my life; particularly my studies. And for that reason, when compared to the average university student, I am fairly confident in saying that my study schedule will be superior to theirs.

What's your take on this situation?

"... very small part ..."

Admissions only care about academia.i.e. your extra curricular should be about academic activities. Like being able to walk down the street reading a book. Honestly I saw someone doing that in cambridge.