Can I get into Oxford/Cambridge?
I am 17. I am doing English Lit, History, Philosophy, Politics at AS-Level. I would absolutely love to go to Oxford or Cambridge, this institutions are so evocative of a by-gone age and completely romantic. I got C B B B B B B B A A A A* in GCSE. Whilst these are not the best, I am doing much much better in AS-Level. Realistically, I think I could realistically achieve, Eng- A History- B Politics- A Philosophy- A/B, do you think I could get into Oxbridge? If not, could I get into any other good universities? I am doing an EPQ, I do debating, present presentations in my schools history society, I have had a poem published in a poetry book, I did work experience in the houses of parliament. I am also a prefect. I am in an incredible band as well.
www.soundcloud.com/bewildereduk
www.facebook.com/thedollhouseband
What say you?
www.soundcloud.com/bewildereduk
www.facebook.com/thedollhouseband
What say you?
Given that you haven't even specified what subject you want to study and that your sole motivation for wanting to go to Oxbridge seems to be that the buildings and libraries are pretty, I really don't think it's the best idea for you.
People go there to study the hell out of the academic subjects they love.
Your GCSE and AS grades are also kind of low for Oxbridge, and unfortunately they care very little about extra-curriculars (unless they are directly related to your academic studies — your Soundcloud page is irrelevant here).
Here's a quote from The History Boys that you might appreciate:
Mrs Lintott: Didn’t you try for Cambridge?
Hector: Oxford. Cloisters, ancient libraries… I was confusing learning with the smell of cold stone. If I had gone to Oxford I’d probably never have worked out the difference.
Don't go confusing learning with the smell of cold stone. Romanticising the history of Oxbridge is hardly a good idea, either; these institutions have been and, according to some, still are some of the most elitist and discriminatory universities in the world.
My biggest raised eyebrow though is that you haven't even mentioned what you'd like to study at Oxbridge. When choosing where to apply, always choose subject first, and then university second — and even then the actual course content of what you're going to be studying should be the primary factor here, not the physical buildings of the uni.
If you're after "romance" and beautiful buildings and tradition, there are many places in the world where you can experience this that don't require a 3+ year commitment and a massive stress load. Here's a picture of the University of Coimbra library.
In short: don't apply for Oxbridge "just because it's Oxbridge". Apply because you have a clear passion for an academic subject and because you naturally spend many hours of your time learning, learning, learning about it.
But seriously. What do you even want to study?
People go there to study the hell out of the academic subjects they love.
Your GCSE and AS grades are also kind of low for Oxbridge, and unfortunately they care very little about extra-curriculars (unless they are directly related to your academic studies — your Soundcloud page is irrelevant here).
Here's a quote from The History Boys that you might appreciate:
Mrs Lintott: Didn’t you try for Cambridge?
Hector: Oxford. Cloisters, ancient libraries… I was confusing learning with the smell of cold stone. If I had gone to Oxford I’d probably never have worked out the difference.
Don't go confusing learning with the smell of cold stone. Romanticising the history of Oxbridge is hardly a good idea, either; these institutions have been and, according to some, still are some of the most elitist and discriminatory universities in the world.
My biggest raised eyebrow though is that you haven't even mentioned what you'd like to study at Oxbridge. When choosing where to apply, always choose subject first, and then university second — and even then the actual course content of what you're going to be studying should be the primary factor here, not the physical buildings of the uni.
If you're after "romance" and beautiful buildings and tradition, there are many places in the world where you can experience this that don't require a 3+ year commitment and a massive stress load. Here's a picture of the University of Coimbra library.
In short: don't apply for Oxbridge "just because it's Oxbridge". Apply because you have a clear passion for an academic subject and because you naturally spend many hours of your time learning, learning, learning about it.
But seriously. What do you even want to study?
(edited 10 years ago)
Sorry, it was my first post, so in my haste I rather over-looked some things. Ideally I would like to study English and History, or Politics. This kind of depends on my AS grades, whilst I will pick the ones I will enjoy, I want to well. I think your comments about the romanticism of Oxford are rather unfounded, it is not my sole reason for going there, not at all. I want to go there because I want to learn about a subject I am passionate about. And the entry requirements are AAA for all the subjects I mentioned.
I included the soundcloud link because I am a hopeless and rather frantic networker.
I included the soundcloud link because I am a hopeless and rather frantic networker.
Original post by ScarletFields
Sorry, it was my first post, so in my haste I rather over-looked some things. Ideally I would like to study English and History, or Politics. This kind of depends on my AS grades, whilst I will pick the ones I will enjoy, I want to well. I think your comments about the romanticism of Oxford are rather unfounded, it is not my sole reason for going there, not at all. I want to go there because I want to learn about a subject I am passionate about. And the entry requirements are AAA for all the subjects I mentioned.
I included the soundcloud link because I am a hopeless and rather frantic networker.
I included the soundcloud link because I am a hopeless and rather frantic networker.
Cambridge wants at least A*AA
You could only apply to Oxford if you think you'll get AAA as Cambridge want at least A*AA for all courses.
Your GCSEs are low for an Oxford applicant. You can't study Politics on it's own, there's either History and Politics or PPE. You'll either sit the ELAT or HAT admissions test so you'll have to ace those to make up for poorer GCSE scores.
Your GCSEs are low for an Oxford applicant. You can't study Politics on it's own, there's either History and Politics or PPE. You'll either sit the ELAT or HAT admissions test so you'll have to ace those to make up for poorer GCSE scores.
if you apply before you receive your results, I think it may put a little too much pressure on you; especially since everyone will undermine your ability to achieve A*AA - even you yourself doubt you can.
I'd say take a gap year if you get the grades and apply post-qualification. Then you can be more confident in yourself during the interview process.
I'd say take a gap year if you get the grades and apply post-qualification. Then you can be more confident in yourself during the interview process.
Original post by ScarletFields
I am 17. I am doing English Lit, History, Philosophy, Politics at AS-Level. I would absolutely love to go to Oxford or Cambridge, this institutions are so evocative of a by-gone age and completely romantic. I got C B B B B B B B A A A A* in GCSE. Whilst these are not the best, I am doing much much better in AS-Level. Realistically, I think I could realistically achieve, Eng- A History- B Politics- A Philosophy- A/B, do you think I could get into Oxbridge? If not, could I get into any other good universities? I am doing an EPQ, I do debating, present presentations in my schools history society, I have had a poem published in a poetry book, I did work experience in the houses of parliament. I am also a prefect. I am in an incredible band as well.
www.soundcloud.com/bewildereduk
www.facebook.com/thedollhouseband
What say you?
www.soundcloud.com/bewildereduk
www.facebook.com/thedollhouseband
What say you?
There is little point applying to oxford. Your GCSEs are low for an oxford candidate (I had AAAA at AS, A*A*A* A2 predictions and 5A*s and 6As at GCSE and i was not even given an interview as my GCSE grades were too low). Unless those GCSE grades are above the average of your school (So your school averages just all Cs then your grades are very good and would be considered). Otherwise I would wait to see what you get at AS and if you have very high UMS marks you could go for Cambridge who don't care about GCSEs as much as oxford.
Original post by ScarletFields
I am 17. I am doing English Lit, History, Philosophy, Politics at AS-Level. I would absolutely love to go to Oxford or Cambridge, this institutions are so evocative of a by-gone age and completely romantic. I got C B B B B B B B A A A A* in GCSE. Whilst these are not the best, I am doing much much better in AS-Level. Realistically, I think I could realistically achieve, Eng- A History- B Politics- A Philosophy- A/B, do you think I could get into Oxbridge? If not, could I get into any other good universities? I am doing an EPQ, I do debating, present presentations in my schools history society, I have had a poem published in a poetry book, I did work experience in the houses of parliament. I am also a prefect. I am in an incredible band as well.
www.soundcloud.com/bewildereduk
www.facebook.com/thedollhouseband
What say you?
www.soundcloud.com/bewildereduk
www.facebook.com/thedollhouseband
What say you?
I would say that without extenuating circumstances, your gcses will probably rule you out for Oxford. In terms of Cambridge, they still might present a problem, and so to rectify this you would probably need to achieve a 90%+ as an average in your top 3 subjects. To be honest, given that you are predicted a B in one subject and are borderline A/B in another, I think this would mean that you probably wouldn't be called for interview, if you applied (to gain an interview your average needs to be ~85%)
I think you could obviously get into other Russell Group unis with those grades
, but obviously it would depend on the course to a certain extent, as entry requirements are higher for the most competitive ones.In terms of your extra-curriculars, I would say that for Oxbridge, anything that's not academic won't be valued, but might be good for other unis.
Good luck with your ASs and applications!
Maybe you should look at Durham OP, it has the pretty old buildings but is not as academically demanding.
No, I don't think so. Your academic profile does not suggest evidence of sustained ability and although people do develop at different rates, even your predicted grades are too low. If you did get in, you would find the pace extremely difficult to maintain on the evidence of your past achievements, and that is what you will be judged on, plus the specialist entrance exams are unbelievably difficult for most people. It's good to aim high and there will be suitable places for you in higher education, but Oxbridge is unlikely to provide them.
Original post by Munrot07
There is little point applying to oxford...I had AAAA at AS, A*A*A* A2 predictions and 5A*s and 6As at GCSE and i was not even given an interview as my GCSE grades were too low
Careful not to transpose your experience of a Science based application across to an Arts one though. An Oxford History applicant can perform well enough in the HAT to get an interview, even if the GCSE profile is modest or non-existent.
Original post by shoshin
Careful not to transpose your experience of a Science based application across to an Arts one though. An Oxford History applicant can perform well enough in the HAT to get an interview, even if the GCSE profile is modest or non-existent.
Of course, very true
Original post by shoshin
Careful not to transpose your experience of a Science based application across to an Arts one though. An Oxford History applicant can perform well enough in the HAT to get an interview, even if the GCSE profile is modest or non-existent.
As can someone applying for physics or mathematics. My GCSEs are worse than 5 A*s and 6 As, tutors are far more interested in MAT/PAT performance.
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