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University of Oxford offer-holders' thread 2015

Sorry, did you mean to say only humanities students? In any case, it's in London right next to UCL, Imperial and many other great universities so I'm sure that would not be a problem if I want some diversity.

Please do understand - I do feel that LSE is the right choice but quite a few people disagree. I will most probably attend the offer holder's days when the time comes before making my final decision - thank you for the advice!

I was thinking of Imperial - just ignore me :lol:

If you really believe that LSE is the right choice for you, then that is all that matters. You are the one who has to spend the time at the university for the next 3 years.

Reply 901

powelsmartin

6

Original post by Lucilou101

I was thinking of Imperial - just ignore me :lol:

If you really believe that LSE is the right choice for you, then that is all that matters. You are the one who has to spend the time at the university for the next 3 years.

Yes, I thought so, haha! As far as I can see, whatever I decide now should not ultimately matter - if I feel I made a mistake I can go to Oxford for my masters, especially considering that it is 3 times cheaper! Because honestly at the moment both my heart and my brain are chanting LSE...

Reply 902

emmaappleton

2

Original post by EndorsToi

Same here with my Imperial interview next week. No point in wasting time when I could firm it now.

Any other Lincolnians(is that the word?)?

Posted from TSR Mobile

I have an offer from Lincoln for law :smile:

Reply 903

fluteflute

19

Original post by powelsmartin

I have looked at the careers services of both university in depth and it seems as if LSE is much more involved - they even help you find jobs many years after you graduate!

Oxford do the same - http://www.careers.ox.ac.uk/our-services/for/alumni/ They've got a careers advisor who specialises in it, alumni can Skype for help :biggrin:

Reply 904

admissionshost

1

Original post by powelsmartin

Thank you!

I apologise for seeming so aggressive - I really want to make the right choice here.

No problem! The report I had in mind is this one:

1.

www.hepi.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/.../1.Higher_Educational_Report.pd

It doesn't have a head to head comparison of the two courses but indicates that

you can expect to work longer hours at LSE and Oxford doing your degree (35-40 hours per week versus 25-30 at some other institutions).

Re: accommodation - there are threads on TSR discussing London renting (eg House hunting in London) that you could monitor. Its not an immediate issue though since you get your first year in a hall of residence.

There is a lot of mobility between Oxford and London in both directions at the masters stage.

I think your estimate of the size of the London student population is a bit high! Savills did a survey using the 2011 census:
http://www.savills.co.uk/research_articles/141274/169076-0

Reply 905

powelsmartin

6

Original post by admissionshost

No problem! The report I had in mind is this one:

1.

www.hepi.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/.../1.Higher_Educational_Report.pd

It doesn't have a head to head comparison of the two courses but indicates that

you can expect to work longer hours at LSE and Oxford doing your degree (35-40 hours per week versus 25-30 at some other institutions).

Re: accommodation - there are threads on TSR discussing London renting (eg House hunting in London) that you could monitor. Its not an immediate issue though since you get your first year in a hall of residence.

There is a lot of mobility between Oxford and London in both directions at the masters stage.

I think your estimate of the size of the London student population is a bit high! Savills did a survey using the 2011 census:
http://www.savills.co.uk/research_articles/141274/169076-0

I see! I'm perfectly willing to work hard wherever I go, I just feel that having fun should be an easy option without any sacrifices being required.

Yes, I was careful to say "thousands" or millions - I acknowledge that I can't really estimate too well! (Perhaps the reason I didn't apply for straight economics - my maths may not be up to scratch). I'll check out the forums - thanks for that!

Reply 906

Noble.

17

Original post by mishieru07

The workload is obviously intense, but I think it's an exaggeration to say it has a reputation for "completely burning out students". It's true that people get worked hard, but I haven't actually seen very many burn-outs. Most people will get by just fine (if it's any comfort to you, a vast majority of PPEists will graduate with a 2i, with a good proportion attaining Firsts).

I also think you're being harsh in saying that Oxford churns out graduates who only know how to write 5000 word essays in short amounts of times (which in and of itself can be a useful skill depending on your career) and know nothing else. Careers Services offers plenty of opportunities for students to brush up the commercial side (eg for solicitors, they invite recruiters to do mock interviews and look at your CV), Oxford regularly invites practitioners to give talks, and there are plenty of student societies that you can get involved in to hone your non-academic side (eg the student consultancy, Oxford Management Society). Plenty of ways to hone "real world skills", even if academics don't necessarily provide for them directly.

London definitely has its charms, but personally I really like Oxford. I come from a big city, and it's nice to live somewhere quieter for a change. There's enough going on that one can be happily occupied (are there any specific activities you would like to participate in?), and if you want to go to London, it's just an hour away by train. This is a personal preference though, and I know some people who absolutely love living in London.

PPE offers quite a lot of flexibility in terms of customization; see http://www.ppe.ox.ac.uk/index.php/course-structure. Looking at http://www.economics.ox.ac.uk/Undergraduate/undergraduate-matrix, I imagine courses like Mathematical Methods, Econometrics, and Game Theory would be pretty maths-heavy. Or at least that's the impression I get based on the exam papers.

I'm all for people choosing whichever place best suits their interests. However, I also think that it's important to provide as much information as possible so people can make the most informed choice for themselves.

What people tend to forget is, while Oxford isn't in London, employers tend to come to us :tongue:

Reply 907

mishieru07

12

Original post by powelsmartin

I see! I'm perfectly willing to work hard wherever I go, I just feel that having fun should be an easy option without any sacrifices being required.

Yes, I was careful to say "thousands" or millions - I acknowledge that I can't really estimate too well! (Perhaps the reason I didn't apply for straight economics - my maths may not be up to scratch). I'll check out the forums - thanks for that!

I'm not sure what you mean by "sacrifices", but at the end of the day, everyone only gets 24 hours a day. It's really a case of (relatively) unlimited wants but limited means, so you'd have to make some sort of choice anyway (I don't buy that having a perfect schedule where you have time to get to everything you possibly want to do is realistic, but maybe I'm being cynical), but perhaps LSE makes this easier because it's supposedly less strenuous academically.

That said, I don't actually get the impression that LSE students all that free either (or at least my friends weren't) - maybe try and find someone who does your course in the LSE forum and ask how much time they actually spend on their academics? You could do the same for PPE on this forum, or get in touch with your college and ask if they will introduce you to a current student. The PPEists I know do manage to have a life outside their academics (while doing very well), so I'm loathe to think that it's difficult to have fun at Oxford.

Also, as someone who did both undergrad and grad school at Oxford, I do feel that the gradate experience is quite different from the undergrad one, at least academically. For starters, the tutorial system isn't the mainstay anymore - the bulk of the teaching is done through seminars and lectures; I can't think of a single Masters course that replicates the undergrad system at grad level. In fact, mine might well be one of the few that even offer tutorials at all. If you ask me, I personally think I had better teaching at the undergrad level, which appears to be a common sentiment amongst my peers in my subject.

Oxford also gives out conditional offers, which can put a lot of pressure on you if it's conditional on a First (friend's offer for Economics was conditional on a good First I think) and you don't have other offers/ don't want to go elsewhere.

Seriously though, I think you already know where you want to go, and you're looking for validation. At the end of the day, like Lucilou said, you don't need our validation, or anyone else's for that matter. We're not the ones spending 3 years studying for a degree - you are! Go wherever makes you happiest, and that is a question only you can answer.

Reply 908

Marakh

7

Original post by Idontknowi

Does anyone know anything about Oriel? Is it really as posh and right-wing as they say? Is it a rich college? Anything???

I'm currently there, it really isn't that posh nor right-wing. I mean there is a healthy smattering of public school guys and girls but not an overwhelming number. It is rich enough to provide accomodation for all years of your course and has a sports ground and other things so pretty decent. Gimme a shout if you want some help with anything Oriel related

Reply 909

Marakh

7

Original post by Somniare

Yay! I am also extremely excited! I really enjoyed the interviews ^o^ (what kind of questions did you get?) I applied to St Hugh's and received an offer from them =D did you have your second interview at Oriel? I am just a bit scared about A* in Further Maths as I hear it is quite hard to get...
What areas of Maths are you interested in? And philosophy? I hope everyone is good friends then! =p

Further Maths is a pisstake though?

Reply 910

StarvingAutist

17

Original post by Marakh

Further Maths is a pisstake though?

ayy

It's not that bad but come on.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 911

Poolfiend

8

Original post by mnina19

Unconditional offer from St Catherine's for History - if anyone is at Catz or doing History, let's chat! Does anyone know if there will be a Catz Facebook group or anything where we can talk? Or will there be a general Oxford offer holders FB group?

Congrats! Catz is a wonderful college really friendly and unstuffy. Did you know you can find out your HAT score by emailing to [email protected]?

Reply 912

Marakh

7

Original post by StarvingAutist

ayy

It's not that bad but come on.

Posted from TSR Mobile

I just remember going into my last 3 modules knowing all I had to get was around 30-40 in one of them to get an A* since I did an extra module in L6

Reply 913

Idontknowi

4

Original post by Marakh

I'm currently there, it really isn't that posh nor right-wing. I mean there is a healthy smattering of public school guys and girls but not an overwhelming number. It is rich enough to provide accomodation for all years of your course and has a sports ground and other things so pretty decent. Gimme a shout if you want some help with anything Oriel related

That is a relief to hear- I'm a working class immigrant, and a leftist, so :smile:

)) I found Oriel really beautiful during the couple of minutes I was there and was delighted to receive an offer from them, but I didn't want to live in a hostile environment for four years!
Also, do they give out travel grants easily?

Reply 914

Chlorophile

20

Original post by Marakh

Further Maths is a pisstake though?

It's actually not?

Reply 915

Marakh

7

Original post by Idontknowi

That is a relief to hear- I'm a working class immigrant, and a leftist, so :smile:

)) I found Oriel really beautiful during the couple of minutes I was there and was delighted to receive an offer from them, but I didn't want to live in a hostile environment for four years!
Also, do they give out travel grants easily?

I'm honestly not sure, they sent me an email a while back saying there was a deadline to apply but I haven't looked into it.

Reply 916

Marakh

7

Original post by Chlorophile

It's actually not?

It sort of is, you just have to destroy A2 Maths and do a couple of extra modules first year, then you can have an easy ride in the U6 since you don't have to do at all well to get an A*

Reply 917

Chlorophile

20

Original post by Marakh

It sort of is, you just have to destroy A2 Maths and do a couple of extra modules first year, then you can have an easy ride in the U6 since you don't have to do at all well to get an A*