Oxford vs. UCL

Hi i am choosing (or trying to) between and offer to do Spanish at Oxford (St John's) or ESPS at UCL, and having quite a lot of trouble with it. collegiate life really appeals, but the course is not what I applied for (spanish and philosophy) and is not as good as ESPS. I have lived in London my whole life and all my friends are saying they just want to leave and go somewhere else...

So, I'd be grateful for any advice, particularly from people who are doing the courses, and to know how easy (or possible, or worth it) it would be to switch to spanish and philosophy or spanish and something else interesting.

thanks

Reply 1

Abstractineum

Without any insight I'll have to say Oxford just because of St John's :wink:

Reply 2

disco1000

7

Just out of interest, do you know where you want to go with this degree thereafter? could make a difference

Reply 3

pumpkin gets a snakebite

Original post by charliesatow

Hi i am choosing (or trying to) between and offer to do Spanish at Oxford (St John's) or ESPS at UCL, and having quite a lot of trouble with it. collegiate life really appeals, but the course is not what I applied for (spanish and philosophy) and is not as good as ESPS. I have lived in London my whole life and all my friends are saying they just want to leave and go somewhere else...

So, I'd be grateful for any advice, particularly from people who are doing the courses, and to know how easy (or possible, or worth it) it would be to switch to spanish and philosophy or spanish and something else interesting.

thanks

much as I love st john's, I turned down the chance to go to UCL to go to Oxford, and though one of the reasons I decided to do so was that I wanted to get out of London, and Oxford has been great, I still have been thinking recently that I might have enjoyed the UCL course (for an unrelated subject) more, and got more from it. ESPS at UCL is a particularly great course, and though you'd probably have a fantastic time here, you'd also probably make just as many friends in London. I'm sorry I can't advise you as to the likelihood of you being able to switch, but please don't consign yourself to 3 years of something you don't really like that much. 'cause being at Oxford probably won't make up for that.

(sorry for the not-very-helpful post. you do have two really good offers! especially as St John's is ace)

Reply 4

charliesatow

OP

thanks for the advice, particularly pumpkin. I emailed St John's yesterday to ask whether there was any possibility of switching but they said no - so I am broadly resolved on UCL now just because the prospect of the course excites me more, even though Oxford was my first choice originally. also re: disco i am not sure but maybe something in europe/eu not sure - ESPS i think you be better for this anyway even you might not get the 'contacts' of Oxford that i am continually told about

Reply 5

charliesatow

OP

*i think would...even though you

Reply 6

quintsy

17

Original post by charliesatow

thanks for the advice, particularly pumpkin. I emailed St John's yesterday to ask whether there was any possibility of switching but they said no - so I am broadly resolved on UCL now just because the prospect of the course excites me more, even though Oxford was my first choice originally. also re: disco i am not sure but maybe something in europe/eu not sure - ESPS i think you be better for this anyway even you might not get the 'contacts' of Oxford that i am continually told about

There's still a reasonable chance they might allow you to switch once you're actually here, though. The reason it doesn't really happen at this interim stage is because Oxford typically requires you to re-interview if you want to change course, and there simply isn't the time or inclination to offer that before you make your UCAS decision/arrive. Were it permissible, there'd be a hoard of people choosing subjects on a whim, safe in the knowledge that they can easily switch after receiving an offer.

What they are receptive to is someone who tries the course for a few weeks (even a whole term in the case of someone from my college), before deciding that, for whatever reason, they'd like to drop or take up a related subject. Obviously it's not guaranteed, however, as your college/department have to approve this, and you must pass any tests or interviews that general candidates undertake, but definitely don't rule it out even if John's have said no now :smile:

Reply 7

Zora

Hey
We met on the Assessment Day on January 19th- I was the girl with the constant grin from Switzerland :biggrin:

I say you should choose ESPS, since it seems to be tailored to your interests. You could still do your master degree at
Oxford, it might even be more rewarding at that stage since the quota of international applicats is larger, i.e. you will get "contacts" from all
over the world as opposed to mainly Britons :biggrin:

Anyway, I suppose you will have made your choice by now, as much of an internal tug-of-war
as I imagine it must've been. If you chose UCL, see you in a year (I applied on deferment)!

Oxford vs. UCL

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