Rejection - why?

You really seem bitter, I am just going to say that there certainly was an administrative error in giving you an interview in the first place!

I did not hit the slopes once. I was revising for the whole three weeks in the apartment.

To all the underachievers spewing out nonsense in this thread, please remember that I had A*A*A*A and was declined.

Perhaps Oxford were looking for a less pretentious candidate. I wonder what your definition of a "proper" university is? I am not disputing that Harvard and Dartmouth are excellent universities, despite Dartmouth being considerably worse than Oxford, whilst Cambridge surpasses Harvard at number one in the world rankings, however discrediting Oxford simply because they don't want you is not only childish but goes to show what a hindrance you would have been to the University. No doubt, had Harvard or Dartmouth rejected you, you would have sneered at them. Although don't pride yourself too much, Ivy League schools in the US will take the most average student as long as they have a scholarship of sorts.

lol well if you are being genuine then: I think the problem is, universities like Oxford and Cambridge have a lot of applicants, all of whom have amazing grades and there just isn't enough spaces for them all. Interviewers are always encouraging and polite to interviewees, and smiling and shaking someone's hand doesn't guarantee that you have a place. Also, the decision may not have been down to this one interviewer, I'm sure a number of people in the department have to make the decisions together. It is so competitive in universities these days, that there just isn't enough room for everyone who shows the intelligence or promise to go to these universities.

Ha Ha, very funny. I would have drawn this conclusion myself if it wasn't for the fact that the interviewer made me feel as though I was part of the family. We had a laugh about current affairs and he said 'you will be hearing from ME shortly' then firmly shook my hand and smiled. This (according to my head of sixth form who did an MA at Cambridge) is a sure sign of acceptance. As you can imagine, my head is swimming with folklore and i'm not sure what to believe.

Oh look, a wise guy. Please just stick to the meanings of the thread or go back to your media/arts based degree with no job prospects, you left wing arrogant cretin.

And you would know this how? Excuse me while I talk sense when I say that your quintessential ignorance is obvious to everybody but you. Going to oxford is all about showing you have the skills to become a world leader, that could be by showing your leadership skills (rugby captain), being a school leader (Head boy etc.). Please stop embarrassing yourself and learn to use google, Oxford have released countless articles recently stating their preference for social skills though of course you probably don't even know what they are.

If you honestly think that firm handshake and smiling at you constitutes pretty much giving you an offer... I'm at a loss for words really. Same about your college's policy of ringing up colleges in advance to announce that you've applied

The fact is that, unfortunately for you, someone was better. Even if they honestly did want to give you a place after interviewing you, maybe the people after you were better and they changed their mind.

I seriously doubt you'll be able to prove misleading contact. Even if there was, it's hardly going to endear you to college and entice them to retract their decision and take you in now, is it?

Get a grip and go to LSE instead

x

And you would know this how? Excuse me while I talk sense when I say that your quintessential ignorance is obvious to everybody but you. Going to oxford is all about showing you have the skills to become a world leader, that could be by showing your leadership skills (rugby captain), being a school leader (Head boy etc.). Please stop embarrassing yourself and learn to use google, Oxford have released countless articles recently stating their preference for social skills though of course you probably don't even know what they are.

The exact same situation for me. It appears that the rumours that Oxford is seeking to take less intelligent undergraduates to appear less "elitist" is true. Ever since I was 8 years old i knew i was destined for a position high in the world and I only applied to Oxford as a backup (For Harvard and Dartmouth, proper universities), so to see a rejection was laughable. With my A*A*A*A predicted grades they must have either declined me accidentally or, as mentioned earlier, seen me as too intelligent for the new breed of .... average students.

I understand some of what you are saying but I think my sixth form (not college..) has a good grasp of how to ensure we are chosen to study at oxford and by informing the college before we apply makes them look forward to reading the application. My head of sixth said my application would contain Latin (from some extracurricular study I did) so the admissions tutors would know that an old boy recommends me when he reads my personal statement.

I am not going to go to LSE as I think Cambridge or Oxford might cater better to my desires and I don't like the large asian population at LSE which might hinder my performance in competitions/decrease job prospects for political correctness reasons.

Your Head of Sixth Form is a complete knob. This is 21st century Oxford which (OK might not quite tally up with the rest of 21st century society) is no longer some old boys' club where a firm handshake and smile, or "you will be hearing from me shortly" (just a polite phrase: how can you not see that) equates to an offer.

I'm very sorry if you're not a complete **** or troll and if you've been genuinely misled, but your evidence of an offer is none. If you try and make a claim against the uni, you'll be laughed out of the building

Listen to me, smart arse. If the family has to go abroad to meet someone important and the venue HAPPENS to be a skiing resort, it doesn't mean I was enjoying myself.

If this isn't a troll, it will only just reconfirm Oxford's decision that they were right.

Hello all, this is my first post here so I will try to be as concise as possible to ensure I do not overcomplicate matters.

My name is Martin, and after much deliberation I decided that Oxford would be the university best suited to my planned study of PPE (philosophy, politics and economics in case you didn't know). Naturally, my school supported this decision and the head of sixth form contacted the college to let them know of my intentions to apply (school policy to ensure high acceptance rate).

So the time came to apply and I filled in my UCAS (7A*'s at GCSE, A* A* A predicted grades. Would have been more but my revision suffered due to a skiing holiday, so i put this on the form). As expected I was invited to interview pretty quickly unlike some of my peers who did not even get interviewed.

The interview went swimmingly, the interviewer even dropped heavy hints that I would be chosen, so, naturally, we planned for me to live in oxford and I began studying all the major historical happenings and we even bought a romper suit with the oxford university logo embossed in the lapel (straying off topic here).

I logged into UCAS on the 24th to find an 'unsuccessful' stamp on my application to oxford. Reeling with shock I immediately telephoned the college to have my say but I was told no-one would be there to answer my calls until after christmas, which, i'm sure you'll agree, is outrageous. The verbal contract me and the interviewer held has been shattered and i'm beginning to think oxbridge in general is as rubbish as people say. I wasn't sure I wanted to go there in the first place and having put trust in a university which has a reputation for apparently being 'the best' (...) but being turned down is ludicrous.

Could someone please explain why I might have been rejected considering the interviewer guaranteed me that I would be accepted (firm handshake, smiling etc)? I have spoken to my head of sixth form already and he has written a letter of complaint to the college that they have acted with misleading conduct. He said there's a chance I might get in if we prove that I have been misled. As it stands at the moment I have to hear back from York and I have an offer from LSE but both of these are subpar for the course I want to study so I feel lost and confused.

Thanks alot,

Martin

EDIT; I have come under fierce criticism and the point of the topic has been lost. Please stay on track and provide possible reasons why the interviewer would blatantly lie to my face and then not offer me a place. I am also interested in discussing the issue with a current PPE student at Cambridge as I'm considering applying there next year.