Hello everyone, I'm sorry if this is a long post but I hope someone can help me.
In February, I applied to UCL (MSc Global Governance and Ethics) and LSE (MSc Global Politics, MSc International Affairs with PKU).
(for context, I study Chinese and International Relations at SOAS).
I am still waiting to hear back from LSE, and I was rejected from UCL, which was my first choice. When I emailed them to ask for feedback, they told me that my application was strong but my grades from year one were the main reason for the rejection. I was a bit confused because I know first year does not count, but to be honest, my grades from year one are actually pretty bad, I failed one Chinese exam and I got two high 2:2s in IR. My second year was in China, and my Chinese definitely improved (my second-year average was 94.5). My grades from third year are not "excellent" but they're definitely better: I got one first and an overall average of 67.
This is my final year and I have only been getting firsts so far, so I have a strong chance to graduate with a first. SOAS does not provide interim transcripts for final year students (UCL couldn't see my current grades when they assessed my application), so I took screenshots of my grades on Moodle, combined them all into one PDF file and sent it to UCL. They said their decision is final, but they asked me to send them an email after I receive my official graduation results because they will be "happy to reconsider" my application if I "meet the minimum requirements" (2:1). Ever since I've been rejected I have felt completely shattered, I know it sounds dramatic, and I know you might think it was silly of me to think I would be able to get into UCL with those grades from year one. But I just kind of felt it was not that relevant as my academic performance has definitely improved and first year does not count. Anyway, that email from UCL has given me a tiny bit of hope, and they made me feel slightly better about myself for the first time in weeks. I should get my official results around mid-July. Realistically, does anyone think I might actually be accepted? I feel like the program will be full by then. I just really don't know what to do. Has anyone been in a similar situation before?