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Oxbridge

Hi everyone, i am currently in year 12 and am hoping to apply to Oxford/ Cambridge next year. I was wondering which one is better in terms of MFL and which colleges are the best to study at for this subject.
thanks, Hettie xx
Original post by hsmithxx
Hi everyone, i am currently in year 12 and am hoping to apply to Oxford/ Cambridge next year. I was wondering which one is better in terms of MFL and which colleges are the best to study at for this subject.
thanks, Hettie xx


Hi Hettie,

I wouldn’t say that one of Oxford or Cambridge is noticeably better than the other for MFL; the important thing to consider is that Oxford’s languages courses are quite literature heavy, whereas Cambridge’s less so. I would recommend that you look at the course structure and the modules you would have to take for your chosen language(s), to consider which course is a better fit for you.

Usually colleges don’t have a reputation for particular subjects; occasionally some do (e.g. Balliol (Oxford) for PPE or Trinity (Cambridge) for Maths), but as far as I know, there isn’t a college at either Uni which has a reputation for MFL specifically.

Here are some links you may find helpful:

Advice on choosing an Oxford college: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6468778

Advice on choosing a Cambridge college: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6496516

Oxford demystified French & Spanish chapter: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6439260

Oxford demystified German chapter: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6054206

Cambridge demystified French & German chapter: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6467236

Hope this helps and best of luck! :h:
Well, as a Cambridge MMLer (French and German) I'm obviously unbiased enough to say that Cambridge is by far the best! But in all seriousness, it just depends on which course you prefet - Oxford includes a lot of literature in their course, and you don't have to study 2 languages. Cambridge includes literature, history, philosophy, linguistics and film in their course, and everyone studies 2 languages with the option to add a module of another language in 2nd and 4th years. Cambridge is higher on the league tables, of course, but they're both amazing, so it's more about the course, tbh!

Let me know if you have any questions about Cambridge MML - I also wrote a chapter for @Oxford Mum 's Cambridge Demystified on TSR, which you can Google :smile:

Edit - my chapter was linked above anyway :smile:
(edited 3 years ago)
Reply 3
Original post by redmeercat
Well, as a Cambridge MMLer (French and German) I'm obviously unbiased enough to say that Cambridge is by far the best! But in all seriousness, it just depends on which course you prefet - Oxford includes a lot of literature in their course, and you don't have to study 2 languages. Cambridge includes literature, history, philosophy, linguistics and film in their course, and everyone studies 2 languages with the option to add a module of another language in 2nd and 4th years. Cambridge is higher on the league tables, of course, but they're both amazing, so it's more about the course, tbh!

Let me know if you have any questions about Cambridge MML - I also wrote a chapter for @Oxford Mum 's Cambridge Demystified on TSR, which you can Google :smile:

Edit - my chapter was linked above anyway :smile:

thank you!!
Reply 4
Original post by Mona123456
Hi Hettie,

I wouldn’t say that one of Oxford or Cambridge is noticeably better than the other for MFL; the important thing to consider is that Oxford’s languages courses are quite literature heavy, whereas Cambridge’s less so. I would recommend that you look at the course structure and the modules you would have to take for your chosen language(s), to consider which course is a better fit for you.

Usually colleges don’t have a reputation for particular subjects; occasionally some do (e.g. Balliol (Oxford) for PPE or Trinity (Cambridge) for Maths), but as far as I know, there isn’t a college at either Uni which has a reputation for MFL specifically.

Here are some links you may find helpful:

Advice on choosing an Oxford college: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6468778

Advice on choosing a Cambridge college: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6496516

Oxford demystified French & Spanish chapter: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6439260

Oxford demystified German chapter: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6054206

Cambridge demystified French & German chapter: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6467236

Hope this helps and best of luck! :h:

Thank you!
My son chose Oxford for German because that was the only subject he wanted to read at degree level (as redmeetcat says, you have to study two at Cambridge). He also adores literature.

Both are great places to study languages and it is much easier to get into Oxbridge for languages than, say, for medicine.

My son got in with 3 x 8/9s at GCSE. His offer was AAA.
Reply 6
Original post by Oxford Mum
My son chose Oxford for German because that was the only subject he wanted to read at degree level (as redmeetcat says, you have to study two at Cambridge). He also adores literature.

Both are great places to study languages and it is much easier to get into Oxbridge for languages than, say, for medicine.

My son got in with 3 x 8/9s at GCSE. His offer was AAA.

thank you so much x
Something worth clarifying I think, is whether you wish to learn a European modern language, or an non-European modern language. Both have options in each area, however Oxford has a slightly wider range of subjects available through the degree these form part of (Oriental Studies) than Cambridge. At both you can combine a Middle Eastern language with an European language, although this is only noted in the degree name by Oxford; neither allows you to combine a modern Asian language with a European language.

There are also various other combinations, some available at both and some only at Oxford, if you wanted to combine a language with another subject.

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