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English 2008 - Extra-curricular evaluation?

I'm applying to Cambridge (probably King's or Trinity, though I haven't fully decided yet) this October, to read English in 2008. My GCSE grades are, admittedly, below average (A*AAAAAABBB), but I also have a C in a combined AS science course which I took in Years 10/11, and my AS grades this year are shaping up a lot better than my GCSEs (January modules: AAAB). Relevant or not, I'm applying from a state school, but one that tops league tables and almost achieved 5s ('outstanding') across the board in its latest Ofsted report.

As well as trying for good AS grades and predicted A2s, I'm hoping to compensate for my GCSEs in my extra-curricular activities, personal statement and references. I'm confident of getting very good references from teachers, who, while I don't wish to seem arrogant, see me as a 'star pupil' in English, and reckon that I can write a pretty convincing personal statement. But, of course, it's what I put in there that counts, not the style. I've got some good writing experience:

I'm currently a staff writer for both Flak Magazine and CD Times. My work has also appeared on New York-based The Morning News, one of TIME magazine's '50 Coolest Sites of 2006', Gawker Media's urban travel blog Gridskipper and in The East Anglian Daily Times.

I was also thinking of putting in some stuff about reading the TLS, being involved in local political groups (not English-related, I know, but to show that I'm a rounded person), and of course something about my favourite books, authors, &c.

So, any suggestions on other helpful stuff to add/things which I should remove? How do you reckon I'm shaping up as an applicant overall?

Thanks a lot,
Louis.

Reply 1

BRavichandran

Hi Louis,

As someone who writes regularly for the TLS, and as someone who was admitted King's through a highly unconventional procedure (although not in English, but NST), I can tell you that Cambridge (or King's at least) uses much more than GCSE or A-levels to choose candidates.

But, as the Cam website itself says, no amount of extra-curricular work can "compensate" for academic potential. The best thing for you to do is to concentrate on your AS and A-levels, and expand your knowledge on your chosen subject (English, in your case) as much as possible. The most important factor, in my personal experience, they look for, is passion for the chosen subject. And that must be reflected well in your application, your written works, and during your interview.

So, when it comes to English, you will be required to submit some written work as part of your application, and will be asked to read and interpret works of literature during your interview (fellow TSR members - correct me if I'm wrong) - if you perform well enough in these, I'm sure your GCSE results won't be seen as a reason for rejection.

And King's is a college that pioneers in selecting students from unconventional backgrounds - so, you might consider applying for it.

Good luck.

B.

Reply 2

epitome

Hey Louis,

Good questions. And nice strong application, don't worry! (Though the information about your school's Ofsted report is, as you probably realise, completely irrelevant, so forget about it now).

What's important in an extra-curricular sense for English is...English. Strange but true. :wink:

All your writing is fab (though absolutely not required or expected, in case any other potential applicants are reading this who *don't* write!). What's most vital, though, is - predictably - your reading. How you read and how you think (and not particularly *what* you read, though if you only read Mills & Boon you're screwed...). Reading the TLS is largely neither here nor there - it's great that you do, but it's what you get from it that's important. Do you use it to seek out your next book to read, or to look at different essay & review styles? Both are cool.

The non-English-related stuff is important insofar as it does indicate that you're not too single-track (helpful for a subject like English, where almost any 'outside' interest can potentially be related to your studies), and also suggests good time management. Other than that, though, they don't really care a huge amount...the interviewers will be looking at your reading interests and - vitally - the way you think, and the way you might develop. Strong teachers' references are a good springboard, but now they largely lack confidentiality they are becoming increasingly meaningless; so concentrate on YOUR part of the application - that is, your personal statement (writing style *can* matter, in that a well-written statement is obviously going to go down well) and your interview. And, ultimately, your A Level grades! :wink:

You're obviously thinking realistically about the application, which is great - keep it up! Very best of luck with the process, and feel absolutely free to PM me with any further questions if you think I might be able to help. :smile:

Reply 3

Franc Vouloir

Thank you both for very detailed and helpful replies. King's is shaping up to be my college of choice, and I'll definitely include some information about my personal appreciation of literature, as well as why I enjoy the subject and why I'd like to study it at Cambridge.

epitome: The reason I mentioned the Ofsted report wasn't, as you might have thought, to suggest that my application might be favoured in coming from a 'good' state school. In fact, what I meant was that GCSE grade expectations for my school are probably not much lower than most independent schools, and that a fair percentage of my fellow Year 11s achieved higher than I did. So, all considered, I don't think they'd be biased either for or against my application on account of my school. Which is basically what you said. :rolleyes:

Reply 4

Niccolo

LGoddard

Don't rely on coming from a certain type of school. Don't think for one second that 'extra curriculars' will help in any capacity whatsoever. DO read like a mother******er starting from now, DO read any critical analyses of texts that you cna lay hands on and think about books independently. DO get damn good AS results (270 or 280+). In this way you might be able to blag that you are really intelligent and studious in the interview (whether or not you actually are, I obviously don't know). They can't fully 'anawyze your potechel to learn' in half an hour, despite what people say on here, so just try your best with the above measures.

Reply 5

epitome

They can't fully 'anawyze your potechel to learn' in half an hour, despite what people say on here

Hehehehe! I like.

True, to some extent. BUT the interiewers tend to be really quite good at sifting through the weaker applicants, and it really is quite easy (generally) to see through pretentious bullshiit.
The vast majority of people, though, are genuinely just fairly good. There are some eejits (who don't get places), and some geniuses (who are easy to spot too)...but everyone else just muddles along best they can. LUCK plays an absolutely massive part in the process (anyone who says "if you deserve to get in, you [necessarily]will" is talking through their hat). It is, as Niccolo says, possible to blag parts of an interview (but, as said above, pretentious **** not appreciated or respected)...but more important is the (un)luck involved nin being asked about a strong (or weak) part of your application.

So yes, read like mad. But do contine to enjoy what you're doing - don't make it too goal-oriented. There are some cracking books out there (obviously), and it's not wasted time if you don't talk about them all in your interview!

On a separate note, DO NOT LIE in your personal statement, PLEASE! This involves saying you've read stuff that you *intend* to read between when you submit the app and the interviews...it's unlikely that you will ever get round to it, and you'll just end up in a tizz the week/night before, or being caught out in the interviews [often]. It's not worth it, because it (a) creates an unnecessary area which could ruin your interview (natural ignorance is bad enough, and that, at least, everyone has!); and (b) creates stress pre-interview.

Reply 6

epitome

Oh, and a word of warning about Trinity - for English they have this (to me it seems) horrible concept of a 'group interview.' If you don't like the idea of being interviewed in a group with other applicants, I would not advise applying there.

Extremely good point. I could not have hacked that at all. Ever.

Reply 7

epitome

Trinity also has what seems to be another unique interview technique...The Word List. They give you a list of words, and ask you to define some of them.

Again, idea of hell.

Reply 8

Franc Vouloir

Good call guys -- those both sound like things I'd feel very uncomfortable with, which further strengthens King's place as my college of choice.

Reply 9

epitome

Trinity does have very good facilities, though. Am definitely not trying to persuade you one way or the other. But it does have extremely weird interview things going on! :wink:

Reply 10

Jigglypuff

LGoddard

Good call guys -- those both sound like things I'd feel very uncomfortable with, which further strengthens King's place as my college of choice.

King's is great, I'm in my first year there. Good choice!

Reply 11

Franc Vouloir

I've just had a sudden impulse to apply to Exeter College, Oxford instead. Do you think it would be better for somebody with an application such as mine to pick Cambridge, where I'm more likely to get an interview (I think Cambridge interview more than Oxford, don't they?), or Oxford?

Reply 12

epitome

1) LOOK AT THE COURSES. Oxford & Cambridge offer VERY different English courses. Take a very long, hard look at them both and see which one better suits you.
2) Don't think about any 'numbers game' or statistics or chances of anything. You're right that Oxford turns more people down pre-interview, so you would be taking that chance. BUT it's not like your grades are really dreadful, so it *shouldn't* be a factor (though of course I cannot say this definitively).

You need to work out what you want from (a) A University and (b) The Course. Oxford and Cambridge are very different places, and they offer (as I said above) very different academic courses. THAT should be your primary concern: not statistics, and not individual colleges.

Having said that, following a gut instinct can be as good as anything else in this process. It's certainly what I did. (Though I had at least decided on the University/Course...).

Reply 13

Franc Vouloir

epitome

LOOK AT THE COURSES.

Seems like sound advice. I've had a look at both, and will definitely be doing some more research before reaching a final decision.

Reply 14

rebel without a cause

I'm in the same boat....basically I ********ed up my gcse's for various inexcusable reasons- stress etc and so consequently was left rather disappointingly with 2A*s, 6 As and 2Bs which, considering I'm at a non-selective independent school (though I have an academic scholarship) isn't really going to help my case. But that said, I'm really obsessed with classics (one slight snag latin AS but not Greek) and I'm predicted 4 As (but borderline german A/B at the mo). I'd really like to go to cam but I think my chances are very very small. Any advice? I think it's worth a shot but am not sure which college- Gonville and Caius or King's?

Reply 15

epitome

Once again I stongly suggest that you go and visit the colleges, if you have the opportunity (or can make the opportunity) to do so. Kings and Caius are really quite different (although they are, as you probably know, pretty much next-door to each other), and it's worth going to see that difference for yourself - you might find that you love one, or really dislike one...or, even, if you wander around other colleges, you might find yourself applying to one you didn't previously consider! Again, if you've not already, go and look at the King's & Caius websites; order their college prospectuses AND their Alternative Prospectuses - that way you'll be able to get a great feel for the colleges. Though nothing beats visiting and nosing around. :smile:

I guess you're looking at Classics, not English (which this thread started as)? If so, have a look - if you can - at the Classics provision & results in the college, if you're bothered about that (remembering that all colleges have *something* to offer). Enthusiasm and interest will get you a LONG way, particularly in a subject like Classics where most people *haven't* studied both Latin & Greek all the way through to A Level, and lots of schools offer neither. So don't worry too much about your GCSEs - no, they're not the best results ever, but they're also not shameful!

Very much worth a shot - and concentrate more on what you're like *now* than what you were like when you did your GCSEs. That's what matters more.
Good luck & happy thinking!

E :smile:

Reply 16

epitome

On a pretty much irrelevant note, Caius was the college I was all set to apply to before going to visit Cambridge. Then I found Newnham and that was that...*grins*. But recently I've begun to really get to know Caius, and love what I see. It's a groovy place. :smile:

(NB: Am not pushing Caius as the place to apply to, by the way - it's a wholly personal thing!)

Reply 17

rebel without a cause

Thanks for the advice- I didn't know that they had college prospectuses! And also sorry for cluttering up an english thread....but it seemed slightly self-indulgent to start an entire new thread just to moan about my gcse results! :p:

Reply 18

epitome

Haha! No, it's fine - made sense. :smile:

There are lots of different things that Cambridge kills trees for:

- University Prospectus
- University Alternative Prospectus
- College Prospectuses
- College Alternative Prospectus

The 'official' prospectuses are mainly produced by University staff; alternative prospectuses are produced, respectively, by the Students' Union and the individual college JCRs ('student councils'). You can obtain all the college materials from the separate college admissions offices. (So, Caius has its own, as does King's, as does Newnham...etc). There is a central University Admissions Office, which deals with things pertaining to ALL the colleges (i.e. The University).
It's not as complicated as it sounds! :wink: