Year 12s: what will be the first way you research your future options? >>

What can I do now to help with my university application?

I want to take mathematics in university, I'm in year 12 now. Is there anything I could do that I can put on my application that would help with being accepted?

Reply 1

idonthaveaname1223

Original post by QuackQuack1111

I want to take mathematics in university, I'm in year 12 now. Is there anything I could do that I can put on my application that would help with being accepted?

Hi, I’m a medicine applicant however, I think there are a few things you could do. You could attend math-related talks - I attended one held by my schools’ sister school about coding. I think further maths gives you an advantage? I’m not too sure tho. You could even do an epq around maths? Find an area of maths that you’re interested in and nurture it! Speak to your school too, maybe they have better ideas?

Reply 2

QuackQuack1111

Original post by idonthaveaname1223

Thank you so much! This really helped, I hadn't thought about attending talks :smile:

Reply 3

username5258614

Original post by QuackQuack1111

I want to take mathematics in university, I'm in year 12 now. Is there anything I could do that I can put on my application that would help with being accepted?

Independent Reading on Maths (Graph theory etc...), attending summer camps (though with covid not sure), enrolling in online courses at Coursera/Edx that explore maths at college/university level...

Reply 4

ageshallnot

Original post by QuackQuack1111

Thank you so much! This really helped, I hadn't thought about attending talks :smile:

Have a look at the Maths lectures at https://www.gresham.ac.uk/

There will be other institutions that you might find useful.

Reply 5

QuackQuack1111

Original post by GreatMan678

Independent Reading on Maths (Graph theory etc...), attending summer camps (though with covid not sure), enrolling in online courses at Coursera/Edx that explore maths at college/university level...

thank you so much!

Reply 6

QuackQuack1111

Original post by ageshallnot

Have a look at the Maths lectures at https://www.gresham.ac.uk/

There will be other institutions that you might find useful.

thank you so much!

Reply 7

Clearing and Applications Advisor

Start researching the topics, structure and content of different maths degrees. The same course title doesn’t mean the same content. Finding courses that allow you to explore your interests is really useful in making sure you fulfill your potential

Reply 8

Interea

Original post by ageshallnot

Have a look at the Maths lectures at https://www.gresham.ac.uk/

There will be other institutions that you might find useful.

Ooh that's a good site, https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/schools/mathematics/news-and-events/birmingham-popular-maths-lecture.aspx also do some good ones on Zoom :smile:

Reply 9

idonthaveaname1223

Original post by QuackQuack1111

I want to take mathematics in university, I'm in year 12 now. Is there anything I could do that I can put on my application that would help with being accepted?

Hi, I know I have already replied on this thread previously, but I’ve linked below a maths talk for the 19th Jan 2021 at 4:15pm by Dr Tom Crawford (if you’re interested & btw I don’t wanna seem like a stalker but my skl just sent this email and I remembered you) the link and the passcode are below, plus extra info that was in the email!
Dr Tom Crawford (Tom Rocks Maths - YouTube) and he will be talking about the Navier-Stokes equations. These express conservation of momentum and conservation of mass for fluids and can be used to model the weather, ocean currents, flow in a pipe and air flow around a wing. As such they help with automotive and aeronautical design, understanding blood flow, pollution and many other scenarios which involve liquids. This talk should appeal to keen mathematicians and future engineers in years 11 and above.

Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://spgs.zoom.us/j/97107317952?pwd=M2NuTGhmSEVDRmxlcmR5ZkNkWnRmdz09
Passcode: 605763

Reply 10

GlowInTheDark

The best thing you could do would be some sort of summer school or any educational programme, however, these are very competitive and often are very hard to get into, many may not even go ahead with coronavirus.

One easier way to improve your chances would be through reading books and listening to podcasts, whilst doing school work or other activities you could listen to podcasts, which make it an efficient strategy to boost your application.

Some schools offer the chance to take the U.K. Senior Maths Challenge, which is a test that is used to find candidates for the maths olympiads, but any participant can receive an award (Bronze, Silver, Gold or Kangaroo), which show ability in more theoretical maths questions, and would be closer to tests you would likely receive in an interview. However, this test is conducted in early November, so if you are intending on applying for Oxford or Cambridge, this may not be plausible. Many schools offer this, but you can also enter privately (I expect) and it could increase your chances.

Another good thing to put on your application is any semi-relevant work experience, if you could, contact an accountancy or engineering firm for even a days work experience, these show some commitment and it would be difficult to find any work experience in an entirely mathematical field.

One thing I personally did (although I applied for economics) was to help out in lessons of younger students in your school, if you are a private candidate or at a college, this may not be possible. These lessons can show you’re keen for maths, and even if they don’t, they can show that you are helpful to younger students.

Obviously you would not need to try all of these, but any of these should be able to boost your chances along with the suggestions from previous comments.

Hope this helps!

Reply 11

username5256148

You could get involved in a research project? I did a nuffield research placement last year (online of course aha) and it was an amazing experience and it gave me something to talk about in my personal statement - I’ve applied for maths too :smile:

. You do have to prove that you’re a disadvantaged student (first person to go to uni from your family, low-income family etc) but definitely look it up to see if it’ll be for you! :smile: