University of Oxford 2022 Applicants Official Thread

Whilst we are making introductions, Hi, I'm Oxford Mum!

I am not an Oxford graduate and have never even applied!

Now, why was I here again? :s-smilie:

Reply 42

510 views already, @Nevarty and you only set up this thread yesterday!

Reply 43

azby1098

15

Original post by Oxford Mum

Hey, Azby! Enjoy the serenity of this baby thread, before it gets overcrowded

yessss ahaha if only it stayed that way .. no of course i love the bustling of the oxford threads but it is a lot to get through sometimes haha

Reply 44

Ooh Pink Woshette has just happened by, too....

Reply 45

OP

Original post by Oxford Mum

Ooh Pink Woshette has just happened by, too....

Original post by Oxford Mum

510 views already, @Nevarty and you only set up this thread yesterday!

Brilliant lol. It's quite nice at the moment. I'll know the day when people start turning up because I'll have to turn my notifications off :biggrin:

Reply 46

Original post by EvasiveRose

Hi everyone! I am a recent History graduate from St John's. If anyone has any questions about my subject or college please do ask :smile:

Hi there,
I got rejected pre-interview from Somerville (for history), predicted A*A*A* History, Econ, Maths and EPQ grade awaited: president of history society and took part in essay competitions. I feel my PS and HAT test was decent...Not sure where I went wrong but I am gutted..am from private school.
GCSE 99999999998, academic and sports scholar which I did not mention in the PS. I was planning to apply to Worcester but changed when heard Worcester was honouring all the offers for 2020 which may spill over to 2021. I am awaiting other offers but may decide to reapply to Oxford. Any chance I could PM you? How do I reach you?

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 47

OP

Original post by Parjay

Hi there,
I got rejected pre-interview from Somerville (for history), predicted A*A*A* History, Econ, Maths and EPQ grade awaited: president of history society and took part in essay competitions. I feel my PS and HAT test was decent...Not sure where I went wrong but I am gutted..am from private school.
GCSE 99999999998, academic and sports scholar which I did not mention in the PS. I was planning to apply to Worster but changed when heard Worster was honouring all the offers for 2020 which may spill over to 2021. I am awaiting other offers but may decide to reapply to Oxford. Any chance I could PM you? How do I reach you?

Sorry this happened to you. That must really have sucked

By the looks of it, over the entire history schools, Somerville admits 12-14 per year. In 2019. The college had 25 applicants for history, 5 for history and economics, 4 for history and English, 1 for HML. So APPROX 35.

Looking at the May 2020 statistics release. It looks like about 63% of people admitted to Somerville are state educated. Though this does reflect quite well on the proportion of state applicants to independent (699/318) so it’s most likely not the case that you were pushed out by a state applicant of equal value given their circumstances.

Notably, on the Somerville website ~
“Despite great efforts and ingenuity from my colleagues and our students to make extra accommodation available, it may be that not all new Somervillians can begin their studies in October 2020, with some instead deferring to 2021. I know that this will come as a disappointment for those affected, and we will work with any new student whose place is deferred to put in place arrangements for the coming year.”

https://www.some.ox.ac.uk/news/somerville-admissions-2020-2/

While I am by no means an expert. It could be the case that even FEWER places were available this year due to inflated acceptances, as it seems they must have kept quite close to their normal admission count. Seeing as though accommodation is the problem if people were forced to defer Im sure that would have spilled over to this round. This sucks but there’s nothing much anyone can do.

Given the inevitable reduced intake and the difficult circumstances we find ourselves in, they may have decided to interview fewer applicants.

It may also be the case that lots of people, like yourself, panicked and jumped ship from other college. There may have been more applicants to Somerville this year which makes it more competitive.

Please don’t take any of this as gospel. I’m really no expert. I was just a bit shocked that you were rejected BEFORE interview with the academic record you have. It may have just been small factors that when added up made other applicants more favourable to the college, not your fault.

I don’t know where else you are applying but keep an open mind, don’t write them off if you get any offers (which I’m sure you will). If you really want to reapply to Oxford I say go for it! HOWEVER, please be warned that many people originally intending to go to university in 2021 now seem to be taking a year out and applying for 2022 admission. I am personally doing this due to personal circumstances (though it’s not unusual for Fine Art applicants to take a foundation year then apply which I am doing)

The one thing I CAN tell you that is absolutely 100% be proud of yourself. This year has been difficult for everyone and even though you are a private schooled pupil you may have experienced awful events outside of academia that have made 2020 bad for you. Stay strong, we have all overcome so much this year and we should all be super proud of ourselves, especially those of us who managed to keep our grades and hopes high :smile:

Reply 48

Thanks a lot for taking out time to write such a detailed message! Appreciate the support! It is really upsetting as I did not get an opportunity to show my true potential! However, I understand the times we are in and grateful for what I have rather than what I may have had! Will wait patiently to hear back from the other four unis and then decide.

Reply 49

OP

Original post by Parjay

Thanks a lot for taking out time to write such a detailed message! Appreciate the support! It is really upsetting as I did not get an opportunity to show my true potential! However, I understand the times we are in and grateful for what I have rather than what I may have had! Will wait patiently to hear back from the other four unis and then decide.

I get it completely. Know some people with similar grades who also go to private schools who have also been rejected by the Oxbridge admissions this year.

Its been a rough year for everyone and a blip in the process was pretty much inevitable.

(Plus now you can look forward to applying with your ACHIEVED grades :biggrin:

)

Reply 50

spchee

12

Just had my 3 interviews for Maths + CS over the past few days.

The first 2 were at Worcester College, third was at St Catz. I think they were all decent, altho at st catz the interviewers were a bit unresponsive and a bit dead, so idk how I did. Did anyone else have an interview for maths/CS at st catz? If so was it a similar experience to me?

Reply 51

OP

Original post by spchee

Just had my 3 interviews for Maths + CS over the past few days.

The first 2 were at Worcester College, third was at St Catz. I think they were all decent, altho at st catz the interviewers were a bit unresponsive and a bit dead, so idk how I did. Did anyone else have an interview for maths/CS at st catz? If so was it a similar experience to me?

I think you are looking for the 2021 thread! This thread is for people who are applying NEXT year :smile:

Reply 52

spchee

12

Original post by Nevarty

I think you are looking for the 2021 thread! This thread is for people who are applying NEXT year :smile:

Oh oops mb!

Reply 53

Original post by Nevarty

I get it completely. Know some people with similar grades who also go to private schools who have also been rejected by the Oxbridge admissions this year.

Its been a rough year for everyone and a blip in the process was pretty much inevitable.

(Plus now you can look forward to applying with your ACHIEVED grades :biggrin:

)

Thanks will do 🙏🏻. Good luck to you too for the reapplication.

Reply 54

It's lovely to see some old friends on here... and some new ones!

I hope the 2022 applications cycle will bring you all you wish for.

:heart:

Reply 55

By the way, despite only a handful of posters, this thread has had 1,110 views so far.. @Nevarty

If you are a lurker, why not come and introduce yourselves?

If this is anything like the 2021 thread, it will be the very essence of friendship, laughter, love and support.

Reply 56

EvasiveRose

15

Original post by Parjay

Hi there,
I got rejected pre-interview from Somerville (for history), predicted A*A*A* History, Econ, Maths and EPQ grade awaited: president of history society and took part in essay competitions. I feel my PS and HAT test was decent...Not sure where I went wrong but I am gutted..am from private school.
GCSE 99999999998, academic and sports scholar which I did not mention in the PS. I was planning to apply to Worcester but changed when heard Worcester was honouring all the offers for 2020 which may spill over to 2021. I am awaiting other offers but may decide to reapply to Oxford. Any chance I could PM you? How do I reach you?

I am not too familiar with how many applicants Somerville receives per year (which @Nevarty has covered) but there may have been fewer spaces this year due to multiple factors (2020 students choosing to defer, etc.) and thus, a higher level of competition.

With your academic record, I would recommend asking for feedback r.e. your HAT score (the unknown variable) which I believe is permitted, though I am not sure if this applies to pre-interview applicants too. Nonetheless, always worth asking. I would be happy to look at your PS if you would like too (am a Mock Admissions Interviewer for Oxbridge).

It is really up to you whether you choose to reapply to Oxford next year. There are so many other fantastic universities to which you may have also applied. For me this decision essentially boils down to 2 key questions;
1. What makes the University of Oxford so different in my opinion then say an offer from the University of Durham for example (great History course, similar collegial culture, etc.)?
2. If I choose to reapply how will I spend my gap year productively and can I accept the possibility that I may not get an offer the second time around as well?

Wherever you end up at or decide to do just try to make the most of your experiences :smile:

Reply 57