Have several questions for the postgraduate! please help

I'm currently studying in Kingston University and I have got a first. I've did a course BSc(Hons) course (joint honors). Will there be any chance for me to get in to cambridge or oxford for the postgraduate masters degree?
Also is it normally sept~oct for the application to open?

Thanks

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 1

ChasingNeverland

You'll never know unless you try. You have a great grade and if your references and personal statement is good, I'm sure you have a good chance. If you're unsure, discuss this with your personal advisor/ tutor for their input.

Reply 2

foreverastudent

Whilst the university you choose is important, the hierarchy in universities shifts a little when it comes to postgraduate studies. Whilst Oxford/Cambridge may seem out of reach for an undergraduate degree, I think you'll find that as a postgraduate it's far less of an intimidating process. Whilst standards are high, I think applications are considered more on an individual basis than they are when you apply for an undergraduate degree. What subject are you thinking of studying? Oxford/Cambridge may not necessarily be the best university to go to for your chosen subject.

As for the application process, it's best contacting each university individually as they're all a little different.

Good luck!

Reply 3

LostRiot

When it comes to postgrad the first thing they look at is your grades/application, then your reference, then your performance at interview (if you have one), then what topic your dissertation is/past work (on the basis that you're still young, so if you tick the other boxes you can still learn, but even so having past experience does help a bit).

Oxbridge isn't as big a deal when it comes to post grad. With a first and a good reference you should find it reasonably straight forward to get onto a masters anywhere. You're basically top of the pile. However getting funding for a masters is hard no matter what grades you have.

Reply 4

MacroDan

Original post by LostRiot

I think Masters (money-making courses for the university) need to be differentiated from funded (self-funded don't count) PhDs (i.e real degrees) rather than lumping them together as "postgraduate studies".

Reply 5

username474976

I also think LostRiot is exaggerating the ease with which one can get a Master's offer from Oxbridge/LSE - the applications to offer ratios tell a different story anyway.

Reply 6

LostRiot

Original post by maskofsanity

I also think LostRiot is exaggerating the ease with which one can get a Master's offer from Oxbridge/LSE - the applications to offer ratios tell a different story anyway.

If you have a 1st, a good reference (which usually go hand in hand) and you have the means to pay, you are in an exceptionally strong position for getting onto any Masters course.

PhD is a very different matter, but with a masters, unless you write a really piss-poor application or come across terribly at an interview you should have no problem.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 7

sj27

Original post by LostRiot

How do you reconcile this statement (and your previous one) with courses which require a first as a minimum entry requirement and yet have offers:applicants ratios well below 1:1 (in some cases less than 10% of applicants get offers)?

Edit: this is not to discourage the OP from applying but it's not the shoe-in lostriot is pretending it is.