Exteniuating circumstances that I would not reather mention

Last year I was facing with some tremendous issues that have not allowed me to show my full potential in the IB diploma programme . Consequently my predicted will be 39/42 instead of 42/42, since my mocks weren't that good. I do not want to further give explanations neither to my college nor to Oxford admission tutors. It is very personal and I would prefer to keep it for myself. Is it possible to get a validation from a person that can officially explain my situation ( how has it affected me mentally?). I do not want to receive any kind of empathy from my interviewers (tutors) I just want to explain why I was not able to achieve exceptional results (in the last year)

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 1

threeportdrift

Careers Forum Helper

Original post by BioOx

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If you want people to take something into consideration and make exceptions to the norm for you, then you have to explain your circumstances to them in sufficient detail that they can agree to the waiver. So you have to tell someone who is in the formal admission process (normally the person in school who writes your reference) and that information will be passed on to the university admissions staff.

The same goes for all claims for mitigation, you must explain the need for mitigation, in detail, up front, for it to be accepted and considered. De-personalise it and have a think about why that might be!

Reply 2

BrasenoseAdm

Official Rep

Original post by threeportdrift

This is good advice. We would add that you will not be alone in declaring extenuating circumstances.

If the issue affected particular exams on specific dates, then your school may predict closer to 42 if the referee thinks his reflects your potential. If the condition is an on-going one, then provided you are still predicted to achieve the standard offer, predicted grades slight lower than this should not be a problem.

Note that personal/health issues will not be referred to in interview. A college admissions officer may contact you to ask if any special arrangements are needed (for example, interview scheduling) but this is separate from assessment itself.

Reply 3

KombatWombat

Original post by BioOx

Last year I was facing with some tremendous issues that have not allowed me to show my full potential in the IB diploma programme . Consequently my predicted will be 39/42 instead of 42/42, since my mocks weren't that good. I do not want to further give explanations neither to my college nor to Cambridge admission tutors. It is very personal and I would prefer to keep it for myself. Is it possible to get a validation from a person that can officially explain my situation ( how has it affected me mentally?). I do not want to receive any kind of empathy from my interviewers (tutors) I just want to explain why I was not able to achieve exceptional results (in the last year)

39 is still an excellent prediction - 41-42 assuming you get 2 or 3 bonus points - and exceeds any conditional offer Oxford will set, regardless of your extenuating circumstances (and Oxford offers definitely include these points).

I honestly wouldn’t worry too much about your predictions, but mentioning your issues as people above describe is a good idea. The only way these circumstances can be considered is through the official channels, even if talking about it is quite hard. Tutors are professionals and will treat anything you tell them seriously and sincerely.*