Economics Applicant Thread UCAS 2012

Who cares.

They're the 'Young Economist of the Year', you're just some random kid who entered like along with a 1000 others.

But the question is...

IS IT WORTH GETTING BULLIED FOR?

Sure, but if you look at the previous winners of the competition and read their essays the actual essays more like stories or pieces of creative writing than academic pieces of work. I used the competition as an opportunity to focus on something that would further my understanding in that particular area and while I may not have had the most exciting, interesting or creative essay I got a good response from teachers for it and it was academically accurate. Thanks for the tip though.

Meh, just some advice.

Very true. Although even if they want it, it'll look a bit pretentious to your other choices won't it? I'm going to email the admissions tutor just to find out.

Competition can bring the worst out in people.

I think the fact that he didn't win is irrelevant. He entered and therefore showed initiative and eagerness to further his economic understanding. Besides, there will only be one winner so by claiming that "others will be applying who have won and you haven't" is ridiculous - since the likelihood that a single winner will apply to the same university at the same college(s) as him is pretty low. Well done Tateco, Wish you luck

Your choice.

The winners of the competition are going to be applying to the same universities as you are, the admissions officer will read your PS and their PS, they won and you didn't.

Who cares.

They're the 'Young Economist of the Year', you're just some random kid who entered like along with a 1000 others.

Do the likes of Cambridge/Oxford/UCL/LSE/Warwick look at your best 8 GCSEs and give them a weighing according to how many A*s you got? Or do they look at all you GCSEs are calculate the % of A* you got? Because I've heard this talk about your 'best 8' GCSEs, why is it not the full 10 or however many you took?

I think the 8 best GCSEs thing came from the system Cambridge use when working out how to rate schools (and from that how to adjust GCSE scores of the applicant). But as far as I'm aware when considering you individually they look at all of your GCSE grades (if I remember correctly). This is only what I've read for Cambridge though, not sure about other universities.

Yes, you're remembering correctly (I just checked today >_>) Although I should add in for somaiyar, they don't include half GCSEs in your score.

Do they look at them as a percentage or as x A*s and y As

Hi,
I'm applying for economics next year, but am unsure of what calibre of university to apply to, I'd like to apply to atleast one top 5 one, and I think my AS levels are good enough; Maths 100%, Economics 98%, Politics 95% and Further Maths 92%, but am concerned my GCSE's; 5A* 4A 1B will hold me back.
What does anyone think my chances would be, especially an offer from Warwick or interview for Oxford?

Thanks in advance

They score you 1 for each A*, and 0.6 (?) for each A (or there abouts). And then they adjust your score by adding points depending on the overall performance of your school.

Hi,
I'm applying for economics next year, but am unsure of what calibre of university to apply to, I'd like to apply to atleast one top 5 one, and I think my AS levels are good enough; Maths 100%, Economics 98%, Politics 95% and Further Maths 92%, but am concerned my GCSE's; 5A* 4A 1B will hold me back.
What does anyone think my chances would be, especially an offer from Warwick or interview for Oxford?

Thanks in advance

Do you know what an avg score for an Oxbridge interviewee for econ is? I can find the stats for ox medicine, but not for econ

Hey
Your percentages in your AS levels are VERY good. You must have worked hard. The GCSEs though are below average for Oxford. Since Oxford puts a lot of emphasis on GCSEs that might be a problem also because they don't care about your high AS percentages... Have you thought about Cambridge? With those percentages you would stand a very good chance plus they don't care about GCSEs as much as Oxford does. And in regard to Warwick, there you will also stand a very good chance! You should also consider LSE

Are you seriously worrying about your GCSEs? Oxbridge place less weighting on GCSEs and yours are amazing anyway?!