University of Oxford 2023 Undergraduate Applicants Official Thread

Thanks, good luck on your attempt to get into law in Oxford, I'm sure you'll do well.
And nice 'Grizz' pfp, I prefer ice though.

Hi! This thread looks like it could be quite helpful so i thought i would just pop something on here

Subject applying for ~ English and Spanish
College applying to ~ I have no idea yet! Hoping you guys can help me with this
A-Levels/ Equiv taking ~ I am taking English Lit, Spanish, History and RS for AS, I will almost certainly drop RS for my A2s
Additional qualifications (if any) - I have teaching qualifications in Dance and I am working towards a piano diploma... don't think these will be of any relevance to my application but I thought I would mention them anyway
Predicted/ Achieved grades (A level/ eq)~ hmmm... I don't know what my official ones will be set as in September but I would assume A*A*A*...
GCSE grades - we are still doing grades over here with CCEA rather than numbers, so I got 10A*s
Why Oxford? ~ Well there are a lot of reasons, I have always wanted to go abroad for uni, even if I come back to NI, I want to experience that independence, so England/Scotland is the natural conclusion. Then choosing Oxford specifically, well I can't do English and Spanish at Cambridge so that's out😂, I have never really been in a challenging learning environment (oh my goodness that sounds bad, wait let me explain). Despite going to a school that has an entrance test and is meant to be somewhat higher than other schools in terms of results, there are very few people in my school/year who want to push themselves academically. There is a general apathy for actually learning, it has definitely become a culture at my school of just doing as little as you can to get a good grade, there is no want for actual education. I think an environment where there is an abundance of people who want to learn from each other and challenge each other is somewhere that i could thrive in? I hope this has made sense... I mean there is also the obvious thing of OXFORD IS SO PRETTY!!
State/Private/Grammar/Home ~ Again its a bit different in NI but I think state?? I'm not sure😅


Thank you all so much!!! (And good luck to all the other applicants who are working towards October)

Hello, my son is currently doing his A levels (English, History, Spanish and DT) at a grammar school in Co Tyrone and was in your position a year ago so I thought you might find his story interesting. No one from his school has got into Oxbridge for many years and this actually works in your favour from a ranking point of view. There are only 4 Oxford colleges which offer his chosen course (Oriental Studies - Japanese) and I emailed each one last summer to see if we could have a look around as we were doing a wee road trip to look at unis including Edinburgh, Durham, Newcastle and Oxford. Mainly because of covid, only one replied - Queen's. We were offered a guided tour and it was really lovely - they couldn't have been more encouraging and my son was really inspired. He was already imagining himself studying in the completely gorgeous library and Queen's have afternoon tea in the common room every day at 4pm where they eat cheese toasties and debate deep academic theories or just play on the XBox. Once we looked more into this particular college, we discovered the Japanese tutor there has a special interest in medieval literature and, you guessed it, this is what my son is passionate about. She was the one to interview him and they ran way over time discussing a particular book they both liked. So he has an offer from Queen's for 2022 admission and I couldn't be more proud of him. He is studying so hard for his A levels as he sees the prize ahead. It is possible to get in, even from a little rural school in Northern Ireland. I hope this inspires you and reach out if there is anything more you would like to know. Good luck!

Hello Paula! Your son is an example to us all. If you are intelligent and talented, as your son is, Oxford may well be for you, no matter what kind of school you come from. Hope all the other readers here note that your son did reading in his own time ( medieval literature) and read other books, which the tutor just happened to have read and liked. Nobody will get in if they are just meh about their subject.

my elder son ( German) was really interested in a particular book and wrote about it on his personal statement in quite an inspiring manner. He ended up talking about it with one of the interviewers ( a phd student) who was doing a thesis about it and they had a whale of a time.

There is another thread on here, that I have left because I am so cross with it. They have mooted that people like your son (the type of person I have been encouraging to apply for years) should not bother and just apply to the kind of uni that is desperately offering financial and academic deals because they need the students. Why should he? These same people suggested that Oxford should not have interviews and be turned into some kind of comprehensive university that accepts anyone.

they also doubt that tutors can spot natural intelligence and think that that “having something extra” is a mystery and not opaque enough.

And here, in a very simple post, you have debunked everything they have said.

Sup everyone,

I plan on applying to Trinity for Medicine for a 2023 entry.
GCSEs: 8A*1A
A-levels: Predicted 4A*
I'm working hard for a solid BMAT and interview, though we'll have to see.

I decided to apply for Oxford as I like the location, architecture and the style of course they offer. It also helps that it is often rated as one of the best universities in the world for studying medicine. I chose trinity college for its contemporary style, decent accommodation and 24/7 stunning library. Wish me luck guys.

Hi everyone! I feel like I'm late to this thread but I'm joining in anyway!! lolSubject applying for ~ HistoryCollege applying to ~ St Johns or St Hughs (not entirely sure yet, hoping the open day will give me a feeling!!)A-Levels/ Equiv taking ~ History, English Literature, SpanishAdditional qualifications (if any) - EPQPredicted/ Achieved grades (A level/ eq)~ haven't received official UCAS predicted grades but the general gist is A*AAAchieved GCSE/ Equiv grades ~ 9988888777Why Oxford? ~ Since the age of about 8, when I first visited oxford and saw the university I was convinced I wanted to go there. Also at the same time, I saw the Do-Do exhibition in the natural history museum there (my family nickname is Do-Do (I don't know why lol)) so I felt like I was being called to study there!Why that college? (if you know why) ~ I've been doing the Inspire 12-13 course with St John's so feel like it's already part of my Oxford experience. The accommodation is really modern or really traditional which is cool. But St Hughs looks really good for History specifically so I'm undecided!!State/Private/Grammar/Home ~ State school

Thanks...interesting...the difference between the least and the most expensive is £1200 p.a. (£3800 to £5000) i.e. the most expensive is almost 30% more expensive than the least expensive

any idea why the data shows that the common number of days for which rent is paid is so high for Jesus (278 days) v/s a number of colleges averaging <190 days. 190 days seems logical as it is equal to 27 weeks (3 terms * 9 weeks).

Hi there Tilly!

You are not late to the thread, in fact there will be many more to come.

It's great that you have already engaged with the Oxford process by taking part in the inspire course (that is what these courses are there for)

Also you got to stay in Oxford accommodation. If that doesn't inspire you, nothing else will!

Here is the Oxford Demystified history chapter.

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?p=85140140&highlight=Oxford%20demystified

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6891370 credit to @Oxford Mum

Hello Paula! Your son is an example to us all. If you are intelligent and talented, as your son is, Oxford may well be for you, no matter what kind of school you come from. Hope all the other readers here note that your son did reading in his own time ( medieval literature) and read other books, which the tutor just happened to have read and liked. Nobody will get in if they are just meh about their subject.

my elder son ( German) was really interested in a particular book and wrote about it on his personal statement in quite an inspiring manner. He ended up talking about it with one of the interviewers ( a phd student) who was doing a thesis about it and they had a whale of a time.

There is another thread on here, that I have left because I am so cross with it. They have mooted that people like your son (the type of person I have been encouraging to apply for years) should not bother and just apply to the kind of uni that is desperately offering financial and academic deals because they need the students. Why should he? These same people suggested that Oxford should not have interviews and be turned into some kind of comprehensive university that accepts anyone.

they also doubt that tutors can spot natural intelligence and think that that “having something extra” is a mystery and not opaque enough.

And here, in a very simple post, you have debunked everything they have said.

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University of Oxford 2023 Undergraduate Applicants Official Thread

Tell us about yourself

Subject applying for ~
College applying to ~
A-Levels/ Equiv taking ~
Additional qualifications (if any) -
Predicted/ Achieved grades (A level/ eq)~
Achieved GCSE/ Equiv grades ~
Why Oxford? ~
Why that college? (if you know why) ~
State/Private/Grammar/Home ~

Applying to #Oxford University – Taking the FIRST step!
How to STAND OUT from the crowd when applying to #Oxford Uni!
Supporting an #OXFORD applicant!
#Oxford Colleges: WHAT, WHY, and HOW to pick one?!
2023 entry admissions timeline
Personal Statements Bank
Very famous and extremely useful Oxford Demystified by @Oxfordmum

hi! I'm currently sitting A-levels so I'll be applying in September during my gap year!
- Applying for history and politics, probably at Pembroke !
- I was predicted A*AA plus an A in epq but I am expecting higher than this.
- GCSEs are lower than the average Oxford applicant but my schools average progress 8 is 45, whilst mine is 68 - so my gcses will be contextualised by school performance I hope ! I received 9887766665 (9 in history, 8 in English lang, 7 in lit - the 5 is music).
- I love the historical architecture of Oxford, I also really wanted to challenge myself. No one from my secondary has ever made it to Oxford so it feels like a major challenge - even though I no longer go to that school - and I am very obsessed with my subjects and the teaching-style of tutors at Oxford.
- The history fellows and politics fellows at Pembroke are literally so perfectly aligned with my personal interests in history and politics - political sociology and American history. Pembroke also cares a lot about first generation students, which makes me feel welcome.
- I'm at a selective state school sixth form (basically a grammar school honestly) but I come from an underperforming secondary.

if anyone else is applying during gap year or has lower gcses I'd love to talk just to reassure each other!!

That's so cool! History and Politics sounds like a great combination!

I wouldn't worry about your GCSEs to be quite honest, in context they're quite good, and I doubt they'll place much emphasis on them anyways given the situation of grade inflation/disparities. Oxford is such a pretty city and I'd love to be able to study there too, I haven't taken a look at Pembroke College but I imagine it's as beautiful as the others haha.

Are you doing one of the upcoming open days?