Cambridge Decisions 2017 - info and FAQ

We prefer to provide feedback to the referee for two reasons:

(i) The referee is well placed to judge the best way to convey the feedback to the individual concerned so that it is received as a beneficial learning experience;(ii) The provision of feedback to your school informs advisers of future applicants about the standards and requirements for the relevant Cambridge course and thus is of wider benefit to the admissions process.

If you think you want the feedback sent to you then just ask. Remember that it might not be as helpful as you would wish though. The most common feedback is inevitably some variation on 'we thought you were a strong applicant but you weren't quite as strong as those we made offers to.' This may seem vague and unhelpful but remember that our admissions process takes a holistic view of our applicants so there's rarely any one, two or even small number of things which led to the decision to not make an offer.

So, if a direct feedback request had already been sent, should it be retracted and have the referee make another instead? Would a response to a referee's request provide a little more and in particular enough information for the referee to advise on whether reapplying is worth considering? And perhaps what could be improved upon even though it was a "strong but not as strong as others" candidate?

Would no STEP vs having STEP for example be a influential factor in the "not as strong"?

Thank you for your advice throughout the application process. I haven't been successful despite also being placed in the Winter pool by my College. It did not surprise me. I did not do as well as I could have done in the ENGAA as I found out two days before it that my father has a very aggressive form of prostate cancer. This has had a devastated effect on me. In the days before my interviews he got further tests results, even worse news. I could not plead extenuating circumstances as I had already submitted my SQA but I thought my school, my referee, had written to them and explain what was going on ( I even had to take some time off school, I got so depressed) but they did not inform my College about anything. Do you think I could ask for a review of their decision? I also have a POLAR 3 "flag".

Regardless of who makes the request, unless specifically stated in the request or previosuly (e.g. on the College Data Protection Declaration) feedback is generally sent to the referee. If you would like to be advised on reapplications then whoever requests the feedback should mention this.

...so looking to find simple areas of improvement is a bit of a reductive view to take and is why most feedback seems vague...


Some part of your performance is related to the person that you are (e.g. the supervision system doesn't suit everybody) so I'd advise you to do your best to come to terms with the decision that has been made before embarking on the reapplication journey.

... so looking for information on how to re-do the same application again better isn't the best way forward.

I was re-interviewed at Robinsons, when is it likely I'll hear back?

When were you re-interviewed?

12th

This might be a stupid question but why my original college instead of Robinsons?

I was also pooled to Robinson (interviewed on the 12th too) and haven't heard back yet. I was told at the end of my interview that I'd hear by the end of January, but probably by the end of the following week. Should I act or just wait?

Other's who have asked me have followed my advice to call their original college without affecting their quantum state but gaining useful information anyway

Can one observe the system and gain information without affecting their quantum state? I wouldn't want to cause the wavefunction to collapse unfavourably

With regards to this particular vector, yes.

The cat is not affected by the phone call itself, but of course might be by the subsequent delivery of information at a later stage.

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Alright, thank you!