Ask an Admissions Tutor IX, 4th August - 2nd September

Hi, I had pretty severe extenuating circumstances(sibling got mental illness in my last year of A Levels and parents didn't get her institutionalized) this year. I missed my offer by a lot but did get A*A*A*. I talked to my college and they said they or another college might be able to take me but they can't guarantee anything of course. I just wanted to know how are cases of students with extenuating circumstances looked upon. Have you ever seen someone with EC get accepted even if they missed their offer by 2 grades in a subject(that no colleges require for the course, some do prefer it though), given that their academic record prior to the EC is perfect and they exceed the standard offer? This is for a humanities course. Thank you.

No clue. Maybe the Christs's AT can shed some light on it if it isn't confidential, I'm rather curious.

The small number of mistakes have now been rectified and candidates informed. Your results are final and you're in, well done!

I have contacted Wolfson College, regarding the A*A*B and the missing RS paper, and they have suggested that I resit it. It appears the standard age colleges, or at least the ones I have contacted, have suggested leaving the grades as they are as a resit will almost never form part of an offer.

"The mature colleges take a more relaxed attitude towards re-sits, as we understand that life inevitably accrues further complications as it goes on beyond the age of 17. There can be no question of outgrowing A levels: fear not. One simply has to prove competence prior to arrival, and this is currently the most effective method."

I also contacted St. Catharine's whose stance was this:

'because we almost never make offers based on anything other than 3 A-levels sat at the same time, we probably wouldn’t take your RS result into account, other than as evidence of your ability to work independently etc'

I am in a dilemma as to whether to indicate an intention to resit on my UCAS form. It seems admissions tutors have very different stances on this. If need be, I definitely would resit but I feel I wouldn't be moving on with my life in any meaningful way. I feel a single module resit in RS wouldn't serve as much of an indicator of my competence beyond an ability to self-teach A Levels ad infinitum.

Hello ,, can you tell me if you know anyone want to study at campridge seminars and did not apply yet ,, even if pre master and english courses ,, i am sorry but it will help me funding mumy study.
Thank you

Hi there,
I'm applying for economics and I wanted to ask how important is the entrance examination relative to the rest of my application? I feel my grades and personal statement are quite strong. Would Cambridge look at my application and the entrance exam result together or would doing badly in the entrance examination immediately disqualify me from gaining an interview? How big a filter is the entrance exam for all applicants? And finally what's the best way to prepare for the entrance exam?

Thanks in advance.

It's really no bother, please don't worry. I'm sorry that your History AS did not go as well as you'd have liked or were expecting. Hopefully the remark will move you to an A. I've taken people for History with a B in History at AS before so it's not inconceivable, though it would be unusual. You will just have to ensure that the rest of your application is very strong. There's no need to give up just yet.

Just wondering about applying to Cambridge for English - I'm holding a place at Durham atm, and not sure about taking a gap year.

English lit A* (400/400 - also full marks)
History A* (388/400)
Latin A (352/400 but pending investigation - seems a little low compared to my expectations)
EPQ A* (47/50 - English-related)

Religious Studies AS: A (194/200)
Plus 10A*s 1A at GCSE. Would these results make me stand out or are they pretty standard for Cambridge? Thanks in advance

Thank-you! I'll apply then. Even with my poor GCSE grades? I'm paranoid about my GCSE grades coupled with an unexpected underperformance. I'll definitely apply to Cambridge, though. I won't give up just yet

Thanks so much! I better try my hand at the admissions specimen papers then

Best of luck! You'll just have to leave it to us, the only surety is that if you don't apply, you won't get in.

Hey admissions tutor it's just me again.

I'm wondering whether or not I would still stand a chance of getting an offer (or even just an interview) despite my bad GCSE grades (3 A*s 3 B's, 2 C's, 1 D and 1 E) although they have major extenuating circumstances (which I talked about earlier in the week) and cost me 4 years worth of secondary education.

At AS I got:

A - English language
A - English literature
B - History

I've always done well at History so the B came as a shock. I was devastated! I've been the strongest in the cohort, and I even got 60/60 in the AS History paper one in my exam. I didn't drop a single mark! We're sending Paper 2 back for a remark because I was 6 marks from an A grade overall, and I got 15/40 in paper 2. So it seems strange to go from 60/60 to 15/40, especially as I've gotten full marks in every History assignment since Year 8. Including my GCSE!

Is it still worth applying for Cambridge to read History?

I know there will be people with AAA and 11 A*'s at GCSE, which makes my application seem a bit silly. (AAB and only 3 A*'s at GCSE). I just love History so much, and to study it at Cambridge would be such an amazing experience.

A2 predictions will be A*AA-A*A*A, with the A* prediction in History.

Thanks for all of your help, hope I haven't been too much of a bother!

Hello and thanks for your question. Congratulations on your results. They are strong, especially in English. A*A*A is about standard for an English entrant though 100% UMS in English acorss the whole A Level will be a significant point in your favour. The big thing you need to do is think about whether you want to give up a place at Durham for a try at Cambridge. it;s a big question and you need to take advice from your school and your parents. certainly think you;d be competitive but there's no guarantee.

You're in the exact same position as me! Three marks off an A in History and remarking. Definitely not helped by the fact that History exams were in the afternoons after some soul-destroying Maths exams. Hopefully I'll still get an interview and impress with rest of application via supercurriculars.

Congratulations on your results. You don't need a fourth subject and it won't be an advantage as you are already doing the three most relevant subjects for Architecture (Maths, Art and Physics). On the other hand, they are your A Levels and you should do what you want for your own satisfaction. Just remember that what we want to see is excellence in three subjects, just doing more subjects isn't going to impress us, so if you're going to do more subjects do them fr you and not for our sake.