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Cambridge help desperately needed!

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(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 1

paneity

What are your predicted grades for A2? If you are predicted 3 A grades then you will certainly get an interview at Cambridge (they claim to interview everybody who is predicted 2 A's)

You don't necessarily have to go to a Bristol Open Day before you apply, if you are offered a place they will invite you to an applicant open day to try and persuade you to go there.

You don't have to worry about your firm and insurance places now, save that until you get offers. Also bear in mind that you have 5 choices, there are lots of good unis out there. The whole point of the insurance system is it is easy, not a mess when you apply to insurance, you WON'T have to go through clearing if you have an insurance offer.

You seem to be worried that you won't get an offer from Cambridge, but that is why you apply to more than one uni: have a look at prospectuses and websites, you don't have to visit them.

Reply 2

Lizj

You do know that you can apply for 5 places, don't you? It's not a question of Cambridge or nowhere. Cambridge do indeed make decisions early, long before you need to choose your Firm and Insurance.
So your scenario is this: Apply for Cambridge, Bristol and three others, before the Oxbridge deadline (mid-October ish?)
If Cambridge make you an offer, make Cambridge your Firm and Bristol your insurance.
If Cambridge reject you, make Bristol your Firm and another your insurance.
You will only have a problem if you get an offer from Cambridge (which will be AAA) and then miss the grades. That is when you may have problems with accommodation etc.
Having said all that, I have to say I think you will be very lucky to get a Cambridge offer with AS grades like those - the Cambridge tutor who spoke to us in 6th form said they look for people who have over 90% in every module.
Good luck.

Reply 3

BJack

josht111

Thankyou again. So let me get this straight, i submit my UCAS application to Cambridge before the 15th, then i will get an interview in December and get an offer in January.

Ideally, yes.

Does everyone get an interview?

No, but the vast majority of applicants are interviewed.

And when do other uni's make their offers?

That varies. Some might reply only a few days after your application is submitted, while others might wait until late January when they've got all the applications in.

So is this simply a case of go for Cambridge as i have nothing to lose?

Yes — go for it! :smile:

Reply 4

junesong

Lizj

Having said all that, I have to say I think you will be very lucky to get a Cambridge offer with AS grades like those - the Cambridge tutor who spoke to us in 6th form said they look for people who have over 90% in every module.
Good luck.

I got in with AAAB at AS(AAA at A2), with the majority of my modules under 90%. So I guess that's not always the case. Especially as the OP has 100% in the subject he wants to take, which shows very good ability :smile:

Reply 5

Acaila

You apply to five unis in October (assuming you apply for Cambridge). Now it's not too difficult to make up a list of unis you have a decent chance of getting into, so if you're sensible, it's not that likely you'll have to enter clearing. Cambridge, Bristol and three others you'd be happy attenting, no problems :smile:

Reply 6

starcarton

josht111

Thankyou all for the fantastic advice, my careres tutor at 6th form is utter ******. Could anyone run through the procedure of applying to Cambridge please? And if possible any dates or deadlines of admissions?

The UCAS deadline of Oxbridge applicants is the 15th October. So you need to have completed your UCAS by then which is sent off to all 5 of the universities you are applying to. You may get offers/rejections from bristol and your other 3 quickly, you may not, but if you get an interview at cambridge that should be some time in december. I believe you just apply to cambridge as usual, enter it on UCAS as one of your choices, along with bristol and 3 other universities. I'm not sure if there is any extra paperwork to be done, I know oxford scrapped the extra forms but I'm not certain about cambridge

Reply 7

Lizj

starcarton

Cambridge asked for an extra application form and some essays in advance a couple of years ago, don't know if this is general or just certain colleges/subjects.
After interview you get a decision from them at the end of December, which leaves you loads of time to decide what to do about your other offers if you have been rejected, and to choose your Insurance if you have been accepted.
You have nothing to lose, other unis are still open to you whatever happens, so go for it! And good luck, hope it all goes well.

Reply 8

mavoury

josht111

Thankyou very much for the fast reply and that is some fantastic advice. However the thing i am worried about is that if i do get turned down by Cambridge, then i will be applying to my second uni later than everyone, thus i will get poor accommodation and maybe even full courses. Unless Cambridge accept and decline earlier than other unis?

You aplly to all your unis at the same time, so you might already have offers from other universities when you hear in January if you are accepted or rejected by Cambridge. The issue of bad accomodation only arises if you miss your Firm offer and have to go to your insurance, where in some cases, accomadation is not guaranteed. But that depends on the individual universities. Being rejected from Cambridge will not affect your chances of being made offers by other universities.
Here is the guide to applying to Cambridge, from their website: http://www.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/apply/index.html

Reply 9

mavoury

starcarton

Cambridge has also scrapped its obligatory extra form known as the CAF: Cambridge Application Form, however after submitting your UCAS application including Cambridge, you will have to fill in a questionnaire online called the SAQ (Supplementary Application Questionnaire). A message concerning this will be sent to you soon after you sunmit your UCAS form.

Reply 10

Carl Sagan

paneity

What are your predicted grades for A2? If you are predicted 3 A grades then you will certainly get an interview at Cambridge (they claim to interview everybody who is predicted 2 A's)

Do you have a link to support this? Does it apply for Maths with it having STEP requirements?

Reply 11

paneity

joshm

Do you have a link to support this? Does it apply for Maths with it having STEP requirements?

I was told by a Clare admissions tutor at an open day that this was the case (for NatSci), and Cambridge claims to try and interview every serious applicant. (Unlike Oxford, which filter many people out beforehand) I can't see it being different for Maths, seeing as STEP is part of the offer and is taken long after the interview stage.

Reply 12

Carl Sagan

paneity

Hmm... I'm sort of contemplating applying for the experience of the interview and to quell the possibility of any "what if?" thoughts if I choose not to apply.

Reply 13

Tom

joshm

Hmm... I'm sort of contemplating applying for the experience of the interview and to quell the possibility of any "what if?" thoughts if I choose not to apply.

You may as well apply. Be aware that some colleges for Geography will require submitted written work (essays from school) and some may want you to sit a test at interview. Others do neither.

If you have decent grades at A-level AND a decent PS you will get an interview for sure. With just one or the other, you might (and probably still will). Only with neither are you likely to be rejected without interview.

A PS for Cambridge will need to be more focused on academic content (proving your interest, the extra reading you've done, how you've gone BEYOND school work, etc) than you might have been intending to write for other unis (who care more than Cambridge about extra-currics and your personal qualities), so bear this in mind when writing it if you haven't already.

Also you say you're appying for BSc? At Cambridge you can't :wink:

Geography there is a BA, although you can specialise almost wholly in physical rather than human modules from year two if you choose. Thta won't affect you choosing BSc courses at the other unis, though.

If you have any questions about the course or the application then feel free to ask me - I've just graduated from Geography at Cam. You might also like to make use of TSR's PS-helper service - forum here: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=303 and FAQ here: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/announcement.php?f=134&a=89. Mention in the thread title that it's for Geography and it's an Oxbridge statement, if you choose to post (and I'll very likely be the person reviewing it).