ucas points needed to get into oxbridge?

i understand that they don't accept ucas points per se and rather they require A*AA in 3 relevant subjects for the course you want to study.

but i read somewhere that the average cambridge applicant has 598 ucas points, which just about equates to A*A*A*A* at A2 and an extra A at AS level!!

seeing as the entrance requirement adds up to just 420 points, does this mean that although applicants aren't required extra a-levels, the majority of them do have 4+, and you need to as well order to have a realistic chance at successfully gaining a place there? :redface:

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 1

Chlorophile

Original post by tanyapotter

Firstly, you mean the average successful Cambridge applicant, not the average applicant.

From what I remember, the average successful applicant to Cambridge had 2.4A*s and if we assume the average applicant has 4 A2 grades (and no extra AS grades), this equates to an average of 528 UCAS points, leaving us with 70 UCAS points remaining. This could come from a variety of places. It could be from an extra AS level (an A at AS is worth 60), or it could be from an extended project (which can be worth up to 70) or it could come from a multitude of other things like AEAs (worth up to 40) or even music grades (I believe Grades 7 and 8 are worth UCAS points). So, if someone gets A*A*AA + a* in the EPQ, they've already almost got the average.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 2

tanyapotter

Original post by Chlorophile

From what I remember, the average successful applicant to Cambridge had 2.4A*s and if we assume the average applicant has 4 A2 grades (and no extra AS grades), this equates to an average of 528 UCAS points, leaving us with 70 UCAS points remaining. This could come from a variety of places. It could be from an extra AS level (an A at AS is worth 60), or it could be from an extended project (which can be worth up to 70) or it could come from a multitude of other things like AEAs (worth up to 40) or even music grades (I believe Grades 7 and 8 are worth UCAS points).

ah, that makes a whole lot more sense! thanks.

Reply 3

Paralove

I've an offer and dropped my fourth A-Level after AS and haven't done anything like the EPQ etc.

More subjects isn't a necessity nor does it put you in a better position except for medicine, really,

Also, Cambridge is changing the offer for science courses from 2015 entry, to A*A*A.

Reply 4

ermm

As the above poster said, there's all sorts of ways to get UCAS points beyond academia.
Also bare in mind, it's an average. You'll typically get some students with extraordinary grades (A*A*A*A*A*A*A* I've seen before) but then those with A*AA too. It tends to be that science applicants tend to do 4+ A levels and achieve 3A*s+ which drives averages up

Reply 5

Rob da Mop

I wouldn't trust a statistic like that without a very good source. Most Oxbridge applicants will have 3-4 A2s and 1-2 ASes or EPQs with a mix of As and A*s.

Reply 6

lucas13

no although the average is high they are not likely to let you in if you have 4 rather than 3 a starts, they will only base your offer on 3 a levels. a lot of people have 4 a levels because they are clever and so they do the other a level just for fun but its not needed although it may be useful if your doing a broad subject such as natural sciences

Reply 7

ross95

Original post by lucas13

This is wrong. Oxbridge (and other unis) often give out offers based on 4 A levels.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 8

username987675

Original post by ross95

This is wrong. Oxbridge (and other unis) often give out offers based on 4 A levels.

Posted from TSR Mobile

They may give out offers based on 4 A levels, but even more often they base it off the 3 most relevant subjects for sciences or the 3 best subjects for arts. They'd rather have 3 good A*/A's than 4 mediocre A/B's

Reply 9

lucas13

Original post by ross95

This is wrong. Oxbridge (and other unis) often give out offers based on 4 A levels.

Posted from TSR Mobile

its very rare though, its for maths when they want maths, further maths, and 2 others

Reply 10

oyyoyy

Original post by ross95

This is wrong. Oxbridge (and other unis) often give out offers based on 4 A levels.

Posted from TSR Mobile

That's not entirely true, I got an offer based on 3 A2 levels [though I did my 4th A2 during my AS year, maybe that's why they didn't include it in my offer]