Barror1&#x27;s Road to Cambridge

OP

Original post by Oxford Mum

Hi barror1 so proud of you and all your hard work. The best way to think of Cambridge ( and Oxford) is to have a go. You may pleasantly surprise yourself. I always think it’s worth trying to go for your dreams, and was always encouraging my son to go in for competitions etc. It was worth it because he won two of them! The only way you are sure not to get into Cambridge is not to apply. If you get in, it’s a bonus, if you don’t get in, it’s no big deal, but at least you tried. My elder son always used to say “someone’s got to get in”

Aha yeah, you need to definitely have that mindset with my academic background :laugh:

Honestly, if I don't get in, I will be devastated but will absolutely love it at York. I was kinda at the point where I had nothing to lose so just said to myself 'if I can get an A in English Language, I will apply to Cambridge'.
I did, and here I am now. Thank you so much for your support! :hugs:

Reply 63

58 out of 60 for English coursework, that is going it some. You are absolutely on the right track. And wanting to get an accurate recording of the wife of bath’s dialogue shows dedication and attention to detail. The wife of bath is an amusing character isn’t she. And what do you think of wuthering heights? Heathcliff is extremely passionate about Cathy. In a bit of a scary way. But secretly I would want to be loved like that

Reply 64

OP

Original post by Oxford Mum

58 out of 60 for English coursework, that is going it some. You are absolutely on the right track. And wanting to get an accurate recording of the wife of bath’s dialogue shows dedication and attention to detail. The wife of bath is an amusing character isn’t she. And what do you think of wuthering heights? Heathcliff is extremely passionate about Cathy. In a bit of a scary way. But secretly I would want to be loved like that

Yeah the Wife is good! I personally need to catch up on the Miller's Tale though :laugh:

And WH is amazing, but A Thousand Splendid Suns is one of my favourite books to date! It's a real contest in the prose category :rolleyes:

Reply 65

bmgrace

13

Original post by barror1

26/4/19
This week has not been very bust for me, though it should have been. I just could not get back into my sleep routine from Easter. Pair this with a night at the pub with some close mates (they are at uni so group gatherings are rare) and a midnight screening of Avengers and you have a recipe for disaster. :laugh:

I am feeling much better today though, and catch up has been pretty easy! I should be able to have my week's work done by Sunday if I keep my head down :yay:

But I know what you are all here for...

I've got great news!
And I dare say that @bmgrace was entirely correct (have a cookie). I got my literature coursework back and got...
58 out of 60! :party:

That's a solid A*. Could not be happier!!!

It is such a huge relief given that the panic about literature has been real. I've also managed to look into some more essay structures and am feeling much better!

For now though, I have my Sociology paper 2 and 3 mocks next week to revise for and 16 days until my first exam.
Wish me luck! :sleep:

Edit: I've updated the OP to look nicer/ added some info!

Tags:

Spoiler

Congratulations!

Reply 66

OP

Original post by bmgrace

Congratulations!

Thank you! :hugs:

Reply 67

OP

1/05/19
12 Days to First Exam
Oh lord I am so tired :sleep:

Not going to lie, this week has been really tough.
I am STILL doing mocks. In-class mocks. What kind of sadist does this to year 13s?
This week I have done my Crime and Deviance Paper 3 mock for Sociology, and have my Families and Households Paper 2 tomorrow. I will cover the content again for it again over May half term, so I will just use the revision I have done so far and see what I get. I mentioned before that I managed an A in my Education mock, so I am not horrifically worried :u:

And on Tuesday I have my Learning Psychology mock. Like I finish the subject in less than 20 days. I get it is an AS but why are they making me do end of topic tests? Like really? :bawling:

So I have realised that I will have to cram Psychology a little bit.
Honestly, I am not too surprised about this, I have had to put so much time into the A2s that it kind of fell behind. I am going to try and cover and understand all of the content over the next few days, and then cram for a couple of days beforehand to make sure I internalise it. An A would be nice, but I will take a B at this point. I am just so excited for it to end. Foundations are so BORING! :laugh:

Sociology
It has really just been the usual pack work. After tomorrow, I think we will be cracking down on the education unit in class which I am super excited for. It also means I can use the Cambridge Access Scheme as evidence in my essays, which I just find kinda funny to do. :giggle:

The only content I have left to cover is Stratification and Differentiation, but I am finding it really difficult to approach it. If it really gets unbearable, I might just leave revising it until the 24th May (after my last May exam). This gives me half term to fully understand everything :smile:

English Lit
Literatre definitely could be going better, but I feel like it is not too bad! I have finished my notes on A.C Bradley's Othello Lectures and have been *highkey* stalking Snaprevise to get some more insight into essay stucture. I have not really been structuring my essays before (sounds insane, I know! :eek3:

) so I really hope getting a structure down will boost me to the A* that I so desperately need.
And now for something completely different...
I think that I have sprained a finger/knuckle on my left hand and have invested in a splint. Unfortunately for me, I am left-handed. I can take the splint off if I need to (like for essay writing and stuff), but it is still super frustrating. Hopefully it starts feeling a bit better soon or I might have to go to my doctors and get it checked over :no:

.
And finally, I have managed to do a little self-care! Got my hair cut so it is back to being short again (and above shoulder-length so I don't have to tie it up! :yay:

) and it looks great! I have also managed to drop the adulting facade for the day. Going to do a couple of hours of Psychology now and possibly type up my Othello critics before tomorrow (I have an open book test where we can use out notes) in my Playstation onesie, some naughties. music and a massive stawberry milkshake.

Gonna try and grab an early one tonight but we will see how that goes with the typical evening of :crast:

See y'all soon!
Tags:

Spoiler

Reply 68

OP

4/05/19
9 Days to First Exam

It's cramming day!
It is the season of desperately trying to cling on to my AS boys and girls, let's go!
Today I hope to finish the Learning unit ahead of my final end of the topic test on Tuesday, and then crack on with the maths units which I have been so desperately avoiding. This includes statistical tests, drawing graphs, and some measures of central tendencies.

Luckily I have today and tomorrow to do this, and then will probably catch up on Sociology and do some literature practice essays on Monday to fully utilise the long weekend.

Some off-topic beauty

I also now have somewhere to go in my study breaks! There is a new brunch cafe in town with a bunch of retro board games, music, and arcade machines. They are having their grand opening tonight and I am going to go there with my mates a the end of my studies today. Turns out I also know someone who works there (which is such a pleasant surprise) and I *think* there will be free alcohol :cheers:

My secondary goal for today is to set a super high score on the Tetris cabinet, I've spent so much time on my old school Gameboy cart trying to get my skills up. I am honestly so excited.
I will hopefully update again on Tuesday after I get my final internal exam done! Have a great weekend folks!
Tags:

Spoiler

Good luck!

That brunch café sounds so cool. Have fun! :party:

Reply 70

OP

Thanks!
And yeah it is so good! I literally just saw it passing by in the car yesterday, looked it up, and then went in there for a coffee yesterday. I had no idea I knew people working there. It's funny how the world works! :laugh:

Original post by RazzzBerries

Good luck!

That brunch café sounds so cool. Have fun! :party:

Reply 71

Hi Barror1!

:king1:

You've fixed my computer! You little beauty! It was indeed the cookies! Now, where's a Cambridge place for this guy ..... :wink:

Reply 72

OP

I'm glad your computer is working again!
Sadly I don't think my compsci knowledge will help with getting into a literature degree though... :wink:

Original post by Oxford Mum

Hi Barror1!

:king1:

You've fixed my computer! You little beauty! It was indeed the cookies! Now, where's a Cambridge place for this guy ..... :wink:

Reply 73

Original post by barror1

I'm glad your computer is working again!
Sadly I don't think my compsci knowledge will help with getting into a literature degree though... :wink:

Reply 74

The RAR

Original post by Professional G

Hey, fellow Aries.
I know how it feels like to be like this. I was in a similar situation like you last year.
I had terrible GCSES too 1B, 7/8 Cs and 2 Ds
Ended up doing BTEC and did much better. My dream uni was Surrey doing biomedical science. Was rejected by Surrey and about several other unis, was incredibly sad.
But just like you, I got a second chance.
Applied for UCAS extra and decided against my better judgment to apply for Warwick (higher than Surrey) and surprisingly, got an offer. Now i’m at Warwick, having the time of my life.
Just goes to show that hard work and dedication (with a little bit of luck) can go a long way :smile:

Hope you get to Cambridge

**** man, you are actually bear blessed with those circumstances. I wish you luck!

Reply 75

The RAR

Original post by barror1

I'm glad your computer is working again!
Sadly I don't think my compsci knowledge will help with getting into a literature degree though... :wink:

LOL I am actually doing my Computer Science coursework right now, funny time mentioning your knowledge about it :biggrin:

Reply 76

Dear the rar, glad to see my computer difficulties have amused you. They also amuse my kids and colleagues, who realise I am actually senile. How refreshing it is then, that a couple of my tsr friends rushed to my aid so quickly

Reply 77

Hi @Professional G
So lovely to read your academic story! Your second chance was well deserved and I am glad you are so happy at Warwick. Tell me, what is it like there? My younger son has a very close friend who is in his first year there. I’ve heard it’s a great uni, and has a legendary reputation for maths

Reply 78

username3941996

22

Original post by Oxford Mum

Hi @Professional G
So lovely to read your academic story! Your second chance was well deserved and I am glad you are so happy at Warwick. Tell me, what is it like there? My younger son has a very close friend who is in his first year there. I’ve heard it’s a great uni, and has a legendary reputation for maths

Hello,
Thank you. I’m glad i’m here too. It’s actually quiet most of the time. It’s a fairly big campus and there’s plenty to do around here. The atmosphere is friendly and everyone is close here. It feels like a uni. The nightlife is decent too. It’s pretty good and for maths, I hear it’s on Oxbridge level so that’s good to know

Reply 79

Themysticalegg