The Official Cambridge Applicants for 2024 Entry Thread

The University of Cambridge in 2023 for entry in 2024!

(Parents, your thread is here -> https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/sho....php?t=7212699)

It never hurts to get ahead of the game when thinking about the future, and in particular - Cambridge Applications!
REMEMBER THOUGH: Cambridge isn't the be-all and end-all of things but being aspirational doesn't hurt!

Don't worry if you haven't done a lot, this is well in advance!

1) What A Levels are you taking from September (or other eligible qualifications)?
2) What course at Cambridge do you have your eyes on? And why?
3) What grades did you get/are you predicted to get at GCSE?
4) Why Cambridge specifically? and why not Oxford?
5) Which admissions tests do you have to sit, and when will you start preparing for them?
6) What have you done in lockdown to help your studies and potentially your application to Cambridge?
7) What do you want to do with your degree from Cambridge?
8) Have you decided which college you're applying to?

1) Biology, Chemistry, Maths and Philosophy (predicted 4 A*s)
2) Medicine - I love the science and helping people
3) 9 9s
4) I like Cambridge’s early focus on the medical sciences and then clinical skills. The course has more choice for intercalation in the third year than Oxford and I prefer the environment
5) BMAT - late August (after the UCAT and a work experience placement)
6) 2 MOOCs, 2 books, some medical lectures and masterclasses, 2 work experience placements, written an article, delivered a presentation, volunteering, silvers and golds in challenges and olympiads
7) Become a doctor but not sure in what area (probably not a GP though lmao)
8) Probably Emmanuel, but I will take a look at some others (like Peterhouse) on the open day

what do you like about emmanuel?

I think that it has a very good location because it’s quite central and I like its size because it’s big but not too big. I’ve also heard that they do your laundry for you which is a plus

Hey all, I know this thread is still very new, but I applied and got into Cambridge for English last year so if there’s anyone who has any questions about the application process feel free to ask! I didn’t know anything at all about the Cambridge application system when I started out and I know how daunting it can seem- so I’d be happy to help in any way I can

Hey!! I haven’t actually decided if I want to apply to Cambridge or Oxford yet (I know) but I thought I would take you up on asking for help because it’s very kind of you to offer. I’m international, and my school doesn’t know how to do UK applications let alone Oxbridge so I’m very much trying to do this on my own.

Some questions:
1) How much ‘wider reading’ is desired? I really enjoy reading deeper about my passions but I’m worried I haven’t done enough to be considered a competitive applicant
2) I know grades are one of the main features of someone’s application, but is it virtually the only feature? Or are there other things one can do that may make them a more viable candidate?
3) With written work (this seems quite daunting) are most people sending in near perfect essays/perfect? I don’t think my written work is bad, but I've never been given a 100% for the relevant subjects so I’m worried I wouldn’t look very good.
4) How important was college choice for you? This is something that is stressing me out quite a lot. Especially with the discussion of different tier systems which seems a bit complex for an outsider.

Sorry this is so long! It wasn’t intended to be

Hey!! I haven’t actually decided if I want to apply to Cambridge or Oxford yet (I know) but I thought I would take you up on asking for help because it’s very kind of you to offer. I’m international, and my school doesn’t know how to do UK applications let alone Oxbridge so I’m very much trying to do this on my own.

Some questions:
1) How much ‘wider reading’ is desired? I really enjoy reading deeper about my passions but I’m worried I haven’t done enough to be considered a competitive applicant
2) I know grades are one of the main features of someone’s application, but is it virtually the only feature? Or are there other things one can do that may make them a more viable candidate?
3) With written work (this seems quite daunting) are most people sending in near perfect essays/perfect? I don’t think my written work is bad, but i’ve never been given a 100% for the relevant subjects so I’m worried I wouldn’t look very good.
4) How important was college choice for you? This is something that is stressing me out quite a lot. Especially with the discussion of different tier systems which seems a bit complex for an outsider.

Sorry this is so long! It wasn’t intended to be

Hey!! I haven’t actually decided if I want to apply to Cambridge or Oxford yet (I know) but I thought I would take you up on asking for help because it’s very kind of you to offer. I’m international, and my school doesn’t know how to do UK applications let alone Oxbridge so I’m very much trying to do this on my own.

Some questions:
1) How much ‘wider reading’ is desired? I really enjoy reading deeper about my passions but I’m worried I haven’t done enough to be considered a competitive applicant
2) I know grades are one of the main features of someone’s application, but is it virtually the only feature? Or are there other things one can do that may make them a more viable candidate?
3) With written work (this seems quite daunting) are most people sending in near perfect essays/perfect? I don’t think my written work is bad, but i’ve never been given a 100% for the relevant subjects so I’m worried I wouldn’t look very good.
4) How important was college choice for you? This is something that is stressing me out quite a lot. Especially with the discussion of different tier systems which seems a bit complex for an outsider.

Sorry this is so long! It wasn’t intended to be

Hey all, I know this thread is still very new, but I applied and got into Cambridge for English last year so if there’s anyone who has any questions about the application process feel free to ask! I didn’t know anything at all about the Cambridge application system when I started out and I know how daunting it can seem- so I’d be happy to help in any way I can

Welcome to the thread.It will be great to have a recent applicant on here.How have you enjoyed your first year?

Never heard of tiered colleges at either Oxford or Cambridge Just pick one you like the look of and look at alternative prospectus to get another perspective on the culture and social life at the colleges .
Can you get to the open days at all?

Sorry I meant I just applied last year- I don’t start until September. I’m a little nervous but mostly excited!

Don’t worry about the length haha! The first thing I’d say is that by June 2023 you’re in no way behind. There’s a lot of stigma around oxbridge applications that you have to start really early, but myself and the others I know who got in did the majority of their prep over the July-December period.

1) So in all of the application talks I attended they stressed depth of knowledge over breadth. An applicant who shows clear interest in a few topics that they can back up with 2-3 quality references to wider reading (book, podcast, online course, website) will be much more competitive than someone who has mentioned lots of books one after the other. Even in the interview stage, Cambridge knows that the people applying do not have university-level knowledge of every possible topic and will ask you questions based on what you do know.

2) Grades are only important as a tick-box to prove you will be able to handle the workload. I believe the standard Cambridge offer is A*AA and Oxford AAA. If you can hit this you have just as much chance as anyone: I applied with predicted A*A*A and got an offer when people I knew with 4 A*s did not. Everyone applying will have the same grades so there is no way of making decisions based just on this. That’s why Cambridge also conduct subject-specific assessments and interviews, and there’s the personal statement as well.

3) They actually caution against writing a “perfect” essay- they know you are only at secondary-level and want to see your standard of work and that you have the capacity to improve. If you’re worried, you could speak to your teacher or advisor about what would best showcase your ability. Also, when you send in written work, you upload a cover sheet that provides context- it asks what the work was, what help you received and how much time you had to complete it. So against a coursework essay that a student has spent weeks on, an essay on a recently introduced subject that’s timed in an hour is in no way disadvantaged.

4) Colleges are where you will live and they also run your supervisions, but outside of that everyone receives the same education and gets the same degree- there aren’t any colleges that are objectively better or worse than others. Apologies that I’m not 100% sure what you mean by tiered system- is it an international thing? My advice would be to check out their websites and see which one would fit you best- based on where they are in the town, whether they’re all-girl, their size, accommodation, how close they are to your subject buildings, how pretty their gardens are (superficial but valid). I applied to Lucy Cavendish for the latter reason, but also because it was smaller, a little removed from the busy town and the vibe was so welcoming when I visited I could really see myself enjoying it there. If you’re really stuck on colleges you can make an open application and leave it up to fate!

This has been an equally long response, but I hope I’ve been able to clear some things up for you and let me know if there’s anything else. Best of luck on your application!

All of this has been incredibly helpful, so thank you very much. It's quite a relief to know that I'm not behind. I had it in my head that most other students would have their personal statements done by now and I would have to race to catch up.

RE point 3, on the essays: That's extremely reassuring to know! I think I will have a much easier time finding an essay that best showcases my ability and capacity to learn as opposed to one that is necessarily perfect. Especially considering my history teacher never gives full marks for introductions or conclusions on principle. Unfortunately, my best essay in literature was a take-home project and is far too long to send in. Would it be wiser to send in an extract from this essay, or to use one from class that may not be as good? I don't know if you'll be able to answer this, but I was considering applying for a joint degree with languages (History + French), however, in my curriculum, I've never had to write an essay in French. Would I be at an advantage to submit my 150-200 word response to a prompt that we write when we do assessments? My main concern is that other applicants would be at essay writing level, making me not competitive.

RE point 4, on the colleges: The blog @askacambridgestudent on Tumblr has a lot of information about a 'tier system' at Cambridge, which is where I have gathered this knowledge from. In a nutshell, they say that there are colleges more people apply to and that people get pooled from, colleges that people usually get pulled to, and then ones in the middle. As I don't actually go to Cambridge this could be a gross generalization or misunderstanding on my part. I, however, will definitely continue doing my own research!