The Student Room Group

Questions about submitting written work

I would very much appreciate any advice I can get about this from past applicants/students.

Apparently I will have to submit two pieces of written work.

1. When will they be asked for?
2. How much do they count? Will they be discussed at interview?
3. Is it better to have them both in the subject I am applying for?

And fourthly, the biggest problem of all is the fact that I am a post A level student so obviously the only written work I have (if any) will be from my last academic year at school. Frankly, I don't think they are very good at all and since my philosophy teacher was appalling he hasn't marked them very well. Furthermore, I doubt I have many to choose from as I threw most of it away after my exams :redface:
Reply 1
Adhsur
I would very much appreciate any advice I can get about this from past applicants/students.

Apparently I will have to submit two pieces of written work.

1. When will they be asked for?
2. How much do they count? Will they be discussed at interview?
3. Is it better to have them both in the subject I am applying for?

And fourthly, the biggest problem of all is the fact that I am a post A level student so obviously the only written work I have (if any) will be from my last academic year at school. Frankly, I don't think they are very good at all and since my philosophy teacher was appalling he hasn't marked them very well. Furthermore, I doubt I have many to choose from as I threw most of it away after my exams :redface:


1) they'll be asked for when you get your interview pack through
2) they can count a for a bit- i got asked on my written work, and issues/themes arising from it
3) what is your subject? philosophy? idealy yes but then again, if it shows skills which would be relevant to the subject you want to study, stick it in if you can't find anything better. i was asked for 2/3 pieces and subitted 2 german essays and an english lit essay

as for the last point, maybe you could pcik a couple of questions based on aspects of philosophy you enjoy, and write your own essay. maybe get in contact with your school/local uni and ask a phil. teacher/lecturer to look at them for you?
Reply 2
i sent written work in before my interview when i was asked, but it was never brought up or mentioned to me again
rts
i sent written work in before my interview when i was asked, but it was never brought up or mentioned to me again


Same here. That was at Christ's.
I didn't have the option of sending philosophy essays since I haven't done the subject before, so I sent a history essay and a sociology essay. I tried to choose things which could in some way be related to philosophy by the themes covered or the skills demonstrated. To be honest I have no idea what bearing they had on my eventual offer since they weren't mentioned at interivew. I had a test and two interviews, so they were obviously trying to judge me in all sorts of different ways. Hopefully that means if you are weak in one aspect you can make up for it in another.

My request form also said I could submit 'an essay on a philosophical topic of my choice' if I wanted, i.e it didn't have to be a school essay, it could be specially written. That sounds like a bit of a gamble to me though. Hope this helps, good luck. If you get in for philslophy I'll probably see you about as I'm taking it at Trinity Hall.
Reply 5
I had to send 2 pieces of work, and chose my A2 English coursework and an A2 Theology homework essay. I wasn't asked about either at the interview, which was quite annoying as I'd spent ages choosing them. I had to phone the college to ask when I'd be asked for the essays, as they didn't bother telling me until 10 days before the interview and then posted the wrong number of cover sheets. 10 months later, I'm pleased to see they are continuing with their initial incompetance.
Reply 6
I was asked to submit work, but not school work as I had expected. I was sent two lists of essay titles and had to chose one from each. I had just less than 10 days to write them both and having never done anything related to sociology or anthropology before it was quite scary! The titles I chose were subject specific (they all were, I chose my favourite and the most quirky!) 'There is no such thing as society. Discuss' and 'To what extent is it possible to distinguish treasure hunting from archaeological investigation ?' So don't assume written work equals essays you've already written!

They were mentioned (only to say they liked them and nice introductory stuff) but I ended up relying on my soc anth essay (society one!) in that interview because I was totally lost on what I was being asked...didn't really understand any of that to be honest, really random and insanely long questions, I had no idea how to answer a question I didn't even understand so just kept refering to points in my essay or any preparatory reading I had to do in order to write the essay! I think she was as confused as I was by the end of it!

If I were in your shoes I'd ask them for a suggestion of an essay title or topic, explaining you're not in school so would rather write a new one! Then they'd have to discuss it with you, or at least be impressed!
I am so glad I didn't have to send in any written work. I would have worried about them being prejudiced against me, even before the interview. I suppose some people make a better impression through writing, and some through face-to-face discussion.
Reply 8
Adhsur
I would very much appreciate any advice I can get about this from past applicants/students.

Apparently I will have to submit two pieces of written work.

1. When will they be asked for?
2. How much do they count? Will they be discussed at interview?
3. Is it better to have them both in the subject I am applying for?

And fourthly, the biggest problem of all is the fact that I am a post A level student so obviously the only written work I have (if any) will be from my last academic year at school. Frankly, I don't think they are very good at all and since my philosophy teacher was appalling he hasn't marked them very well. Furthermore, I doubt I have many to choose from as I threw most of it away after my exams :redface:


First of all the pieces will be asked for when you get your interview information. There will be some cover sheets that Trinity asks you and your previous teacher(s) to sign - nothing terribly complicated.

How much they count may depend on how much they impress, and who interviews you. I know for a fact that my interviewers only read one of my two pieces (the one that was course relevant), but they were luckily quite impressed with it (the other piece was far worse). However, don't count on this luck.

Depending on the subject these pieces may form a significant part of the interview. Half of my interview was a discussion of this piece in which I had to defend my points, conceed on points, and elaborate my arguments.

You should make sure they are from somewhat related subjects, but they do not all have to be from the subject you are applying for - remember that not all students will have studied any philosophy before they come up, so this cannot be held against someone.

Finally, in terms of your pieces, you should then work on improving the essays you have. I'm sure you can find a teacher who would be willing to scribble something on them to make them look marked. My teachers were all willing to remark essays which I had reworked specifically for that purpose.

Overall don't worry too much. The essay are more of a springboard for discussion in the interview - so long as they are not apalling, then the interview will count far more.