Went to University of Oxford and...
Sad to hear they take in account of your GCSE grades. My GCSE's are bad, but my alevels are really good (Predicted all A's). Do they seriously not think people change for the better ?! tbh I like one of their college
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Original post by neluxsan
Sad to hear they take in account of your GCSE grades. My GCSE's are bad, but my alevels are really good (Predicted all A's). Do they seriously not think people change for the better ?! tbh I like one of their college
Of course they take the potential to improve seriously and personally, I'd open Oxbridge to people who have so far faced the greatest adversity. But those are not the main criteria at present.
Faced with massive over-subscription for places, and an admissions policy centred on academic excellence, they are always likely to choose the candidate who has already demonstrated that over the person who has so far demonstrated only average aptitude for exam success.
You still might persuade them; but if you get those predicted grades, a post-A Level application might give you a better chance.
Original post by neluxsan
Sad to hear they take in account of your GCSE grades. My GCSE's are bad, but my alevels are really good (Predicted all A's). Do they seriously not think people change for the better ?! tbh I like one of their college
What are you considering applying for? Some subjects care a lot more about GCSEs than others.
Original post by neluxsan
Sad to hear they take in account of your GCSE grades. My GCSE's are bad, but my alevels are really good (Predicted all A's). Do they seriously not think people change for the better ?! tbh I like one of their college
How can you not have done some research and looked up their GCSE policy? Was this for an interview or just an enquiry?
Everyone will have all A grades or better.
Yes Oxford use GCSEs, and more extensively than Cambridge; it isn't the only metric they use, but it is one of them they do weigh heavily in shortlisting for interview for many courses, as I understand. Cambridge don't weigh them nearly as heavily, and most colleges are pretty clear that they wouldn't reject anyone solely on the basis of GCSE performance. Thus, if GCSE grades are a concern, then Cambridge might be a better option than Oxford for applications.
It's also worth mentioning that the applications process is holistic in that they will consider every metric available to them, and any information given on the circumstances surrounding those metrics.
Say for example you are applying for English Literature, you're predicted 4As at A-Level, and got A/A*s at GCSE in English Lang./Lit., History, Geography, and other such 'essay-based' subjects, and got Cs/Bs in Sciences/Maths, your GCSEs might not hold you back so much. This shows the tutors that you have a strong aptitude for these subjects, and you compound that with having chosen them at A-Level and excelled at them. A note in your reference saying that your abilities in this side of academia are excellent would compound this, as would an excellent personal statement and admissions test. Do well in all of these and you stand yourself in good stead to be invited to interview: perform well here, and you stand a good chance of being made an offer.
Similarly, if there were extenuating circumstances with your GCSEs which the university is made aware of, poorer grades can be overlooked provided the rest of the application is good.
And if you didn't really care about academics during GCSEs and only really found your love of learning at A-Level, there are ways of saying so in your personal statement that demonstrates this to tutors. Maybe you read a certain book, watched a certain documentary, or visited a certain place over the summer, sparking your interest and causing you to really 'double down' in your A-Level studies.
The point here is that Oxford (and Cambridge, and anywhere else's) admissions tutors are very clever people themselves, and they want the best and brightest thinkers. The grade requirements allow them to cut off the majority of the population to make their admissions process feasible, but if you can demonstrate that you are one of the best and brightest despite what your GCSEs show, you are still in with a chance of admission.
Apply to your strengths if you can - as mentioned above, Cambridge is less concerned about GCSEs than Oxford - but if your heart is really set on a certain course/place, there's no harm in applying. It's just one out of your five choices, and who knows - you might get in!
Say for example you are applying for English Literature, you're predicted 4As at A-Level, and got A/A*s at GCSE in English Lang./Lit., History, Geography, and other such 'essay-based' subjects, and got Cs/Bs in Sciences/Maths, your GCSEs might not hold you back so much. This shows the tutors that you have a strong aptitude for these subjects, and you compound that with having chosen them at A-Level and excelled at them. A note in your reference saying that your abilities in this side of academia are excellent would compound this, as would an excellent personal statement and admissions test. Do well in all of these and you stand yourself in good stead to be invited to interview: perform well here, and you stand a good chance of being made an offer.
Similarly, if there were extenuating circumstances with your GCSEs which the university is made aware of, poorer grades can be overlooked provided the rest of the application is good.
And if you didn't really care about academics during GCSEs and only really found your love of learning at A-Level, there are ways of saying so in your personal statement that demonstrates this to tutors. Maybe you read a certain book, watched a certain documentary, or visited a certain place over the summer, sparking your interest and causing you to really 'double down' in your A-Level studies.
The point here is that Oxford (and Cambridge, and anywhere else's) admissions tutors are very clever people themselves, and they want the best and brightest thinkers. The grade requirements allow them to cut off the majority of the population to make their admissions process feasible, but if you can demonstrate that you are one of the best and brightest despite what your GCSEs show, you are still in with a chance of admission.
Apply to your strengths if you can - as mentioned above, Cambridge is less concerned about GCSEs than Oxford - but if your heart is really set on a certain course/place, there's no harm in applying. It's just one out of your five choices, and who knows - you might get in!
Original post by SummerStrawberry
It's also worth mentioning that the applications process is holistic in that they will consider every metric available to them, and any information given on the circumstances surrounding those metrics.
Say for example you are applying for English Literature, you're predicted 4As at A-Level, and got A/A*s at GCSE in English Lang./Lit., History, Geography, and other such 'essay-based' subjects, and got Cs/Bs in Sciences/Maths, your GCSEs might not hold you back so much. This shows the tutors that you have a strong aptitude for these subjects, and you compound that with having chosen them at A-Level and excelled at them. A note in your reference saying that your abilities in this side of academia are excellent would compound this, as would an excellent personal statement and admissions test. Do well in all of these and you stand yourself in good stead to be invited to interview: perform well here, and you stand a good chance of being made an offer.
Similarly, if there were extenuating circumstances with your GCSEs which the university is made aware of, poorer grades can be overlooked provided the rest of the application is good.
And if you didn't really care about academics during GCSEs and only really found your love of learning at A-Level, there are ways of saying so in your personal statement that demonstrates this to tutors. Maybe you read a certain book, watched a certain documentary, or visited a certain place over the summer, sparking your interest and causing you to really 'double down' in your A-Level studies.
The point here is that Oxford (and Cambridge, and anywhere else's) admissions tutors are very clever people themselves, and they want the best and brightest thinkers. The grade requirements allow them to cut off the majority of the population to make their admissions process feasible, but if you can demonstrate that you are one of the best and brightest despite what your GCSEs show, you are still in with a chance of admission.
Apply to your strengths if you can - as mentioned above, Cambridge is less concerned about GCSEs than Oxford - but if your heart is really set on a certain course/place, there's no harm in applying. It's just one out of your five choices, and who knows - you might get in!
Say for example you are applying for English Literature, you're predicted 4As at A-Level, and got A/A*s at GCSE in English Lang./Lit., History, Geography, and other such 'essay-based' subjects, and got Cs/Bs in Sciences/Maths, your GCSEs might not hold you back so much. This shows the tutors that you have a strong aptitude for these subjects, and you compound that with having chosen them at A-Level and excelled at them. A note in your reference saying that your abilities in this side of academia are excellent would compound this, as would an excellent personal statement and admissions test. Do well in all of these and you stand yourself in good stead to be invited to interview: perform well here, and you stand a good chance of being made an offer.
Similarly, if there were extenuating circumstances with your GCSEs which the university is made aware of, poorer grades can be overlooked provided the rest of the application is good.
And if you didn't really care about academics during GCSEs and only really found your love of learning at A-Level, there are ways of saying so in your personal statement that demonstrates this to tutors. Maybe you read a certain book, watched a certain documentary, or visited a certain place over the summer, sparking your interest and causing you to really 'double down' in your A-Level studies.
The point here is that Oxford (and Cambridge, and anywhere else's) admissions tutors are very clever people themselves, and they want the best and brightest thinkers. The grade requirements allow them to cut off the majority of the population to make their admissions process feasible, but if you can demonstrate that you are one of the best and brightest despite what your GCSEs show, you are still in with a chance of admission.
Apply to your strengths if you can - as mentioned above, Cambridge is less concerned about GCSEs than Oxford - but if your heart is really set on a certain course/place, there's no harm in applying. It's just one out of your five choices, and who knows - you might get in!
This is all true. Every year, a few people with mediocre GCSEs are able to demonstrate that this is outweighed by other factors. A contextual 'flag' will give you a good chance of being selected for interview, and an edge when compared with a similarly qualified candidate without a flag.
But these are generalities. If you want to quantify your chance a bit more, with specific information about who they actually end up making offers to, you could try looking at the statistics that Oxford provides in response to Freedom of Information requests. One site that hosts these is here.
Original post by neluxsan
Sad to hear they take in account of your GCSE grades. My GCSE's are bad, but my alevels are really good (Predicted all A's). Do they seriously not think people change for the better ?! tbh I like one of their college
Everyone is predicted 3As. They have to select something else. They have interviews, they have aptitude tests, but both are flawed too. And GCSEs correlate nicely with degree outcomes.
As mentioned, its more important in some subjects (like medicine) than others.
If your course has an admissions test, doing well in that is far more important than gcses. Getting above a certain score in say, the MAT will get you an interview. Often the interview is decisive on your offer.
Original post by nexttime
Everyone is predicted 3As. They have to select something else. They have interviews, they have aptitude tests, but both are flawed too. And GCSEs correlate nicely with degree outcomes.
As mentioned, its more important in some subjects (like medicine) than others.
As mentioned, its more important in some subjects (like medicine) than others.
Moreso for some subjects than others - for some subjects the correlation is pretty weak compared, say, with aptitude tests.
Original post by RichE
Moreso for some subjects than others - for some subjects the correlation is pretty weak compared, say, with aptitude tests.
Hence why different subjects use different weightings.
Original post by 9501282
I don’t think GCSEs are everything! If you’ve a very strong application otherwise you’ll be okay. They’re just one part of what they look at.
Which college do you like?
Which college do you like?
I liked brasenose college out of all of them.
Original post by RichE
What are you considering applying for? Some subjects care a lot more about GCSEs than others.
Some sort of engineering, probably mechanical engineering.
Original post by SummerStrawberry
It's also worth mentioning that the applications process is holistic in that they will consider every metric available to them, and any information given on the circumstances surrounding those metrics.
Say for example you are applying for English Literature, you're predicted 4As at A-Level, and got A/A*s at GCSE in English Lang./Lit., History, Geography, and other such 'essay-based' subjects, and got Cs/Bs in Sciences/Maths, your GCSEs might not hold you back so much. This shows the tutors that you have a strong aptitude for these subjects, and you compound that with having chosen them at A-Level and excelled at them. A note in your reference saying that your abilities in this side of academia are excellent would compound this, as would an excellent personal statement and admissions test. Do well in all of these and you stand yourself in good stead to be invited to interview: perform well here, and you stand a good chance of being made an offer.
Similarly, if there were extenuating circumstances with your GCSEs which the university is made aware of, poorer grades can be overlooked provided the rest of the application is good.
And if you didn't really care about academics during GCSEs and only really found your love of learning at A-Level, there are ways of saying so in your personal statement that demonstrates this to tutors. Maybe you read a certain book, watched a certain documentary, or visited a certain place over the summer, sparking your interest and causing you to really 'double down' in your A-Level studies.
The point here is that Oxford (and Cambridge, and anywhere else's) admissions tutors are very clever people themselves, and they want the best and brightest thinkers. The grade requirements allow them to cut off the majority of the population to make their admissions process feasible, but if you can demonstrate that you are one of the best and brightest despite what your GCSEs show, you are still in with a chance of admission.
Apply to your strengths if you can - as mentioned above, Cambridge is less concerned about GCSEs than Oxford - but if your heart is really set on a certain course/place, there's no harm in applying. It's just one out of your five choices, and who knows - you might get in!
Say for example you are applying for English Literature, you're predicted 4As at A-Level, and got A/A*s at GCSE in English Lang./Lit., History, Geography, and other such 'essay-based' subjects, and got Cs/Bs in Sciences/Maths, your GCSEs might not hold you back so much. This shows the tutors that you have a strong aptitude for these subjects, and you compound that with having chosen them at A-Level and excelled at them. A note in your reference saying that your abilities in this side of academia are excellent would compound this, as would an excellent personal statement and admissions test. Do well in all of these and you stand yourself in good stead to be invited to interview: perform well here, and you stand a good chance of being made an offer.
Similarly, if there were extenuating circumstances with your GCSEs which the university is made aware of, poorer grades can be overlooked provided the rest of the application is good.
And if you didn't really care about academics during GCSEs and only really found your love of learning at A-Level, there are ways of saying so in your personal statement that demonstrates this to tutors. Maybe you read a certain book, watched a certain documentary, or visited a certain place over the summer, sparking your interest and causing you to really 'double down' in your A-Level studies.
The point here is that Oxford (and Cambridge, and anywhere else's) admissions tutors are very clever people themselves, and they want the best and brightest thinkers. The grade requirements allow them to cut off the majority of the population to make their admissions process feasible, but if you can demonstrate that you are one of the best and brightest despite what your GCSEs show, you are still in with a chance of admission.
Apply to your strengths if you can - as mentioned above, Cambridge is less concerned about GCSEs than Oxford - but if your heart is really set on a certain course/place, there's no harm in applying. It's just one out of your five choices, and who knows - you might get in!
Thank you, I will express that in my personal statement. Although, I don't really know what sparked me. Probably my crap GCSE grades.
Original post by 999tigger
How can you not have done some research and looked up their GCSE policy? Was this for an interview or just an enquiry?
Everyone will have all A grades or better.
Everyone will have all A grades or better.
No, an open day. I did look up but not properly I guess.
Original post by neluxsan
Some sort of engineering, probably mechanical engineering.
Are you aware the standard Oxford offer for engineering is A*A*A? Are you predicted such grades?
Original post by RichE
Are you aware the standard Oxford offer for engineering is A*A*A? Are you predicted such grades?
Yes, I can ask my teachers to push it up a little bit. And I will work harder next year too. I am proud of getting all A's this year after bad GCSE.
Original post by neluxsan
Yes, I can ask my teachers to push it up a little bit. And I will work harder next year too. I am proud of getting all A's this year after bad GCSE.
I think the main thing then this summer would be looking over past PAT papers and getting used to their style, format of the questions and time management.
Original post by neluxsan
Sad to hear they take in account of your GCSE grades. My GCSE's are bad, but my alevels are really good (Predicted all A's). Do they seriously not think people change for the better ?! tbh I like one of their college
Don't take this the wrong way and by all means apply, but even AAA at A Level is below average for Oxford (and Cambridge, Imperial, LSE). The typical student has A*AA achieved, rather than predicted as well.
I think you might be able to mount a more competitive application if you get some A* grades in there with a high admissions test score
Alternatively, if you can get A*AA, I would probably apply to Cambridge
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