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(edited 8 months ago)

Virtually all applicants have those grades and Oxbridge don’t really care about extracurriculars, especially ones unrelated to the subject you’re applying for so they wouldn’t have given your application any advantage really. Did you do an interview with them?

(edited 8 months ago)

Reply 2

t3rminator

Those are really great achievements but im pretty sure cambridge doesnt look at extracurriculars and only any supracurricular exploration you have done based on your degree choice so maybe thats a factor?

Reply 3

username6212751

yh very true, although i really did try and do alot of extra work in my chosen subject, and only briefly mentioned the extra curriculars in a sentence at the end of my personal statement

Reply 4

username6212751

yep i had an interview

Original post by Sorcerer of Old

Reply 5

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by Hmmm6736252

can someone tell me where i went wrong.
straights 9s at gcse, 4 A*s at a level (including 99% on one of the maths papers), in maths, bio, chem and music. distinction in grade 8 violin, gold d of e, played hockey for my county, volunteering, tonnes of extra work around my subject (reading, experiments, online courses) and i still managed to get rejected aha

What course did you apply for? As noted a lot of those extracurricular activities aren't really of relevance to Cambridge generally as they're non-academic (grade 8 violin relevant for music but not other subjects for example).

Ultimately one of the major factors I gather is the interview, which I understand is just as much a way to gauge how well you would respond to and thrive (or not) in the supervision/tutorial environment that is unique to Oxford and Cambridge which is a major part of teaching there. There are undoubtedly many very bright and capable students who just wouldn't thrive in that environment where you're in a room with just a couple other students (or maybe even just one!) and an academic having your work scrutinised and discussed academically at a very high level. Some people just do better quietly working away independently - they would likely do extremely well at any uni they go to including other very academically rigorous ones, but not necessarily Cambridge (or Oxford).

So also bear in mind it may not simply be a case of "not being good enough" but could well be a case of "good enough academically but wouldn't thrive in the course due to the unique teaching environment it is framed in".

Reply 6

toxicgamage56

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by Hmmm6736252

yep i had an interview

Did you get an offer from anywhere else?

Reply 7

totallyfine

I'm so sorry to read this. I have had students in the same boat in previous years. There are so many excellent students chasing so few places that in the end not all can get in. Its not about not being good enough, its just the way it is.

You don't know unless you try, you did and it didn't go your way. I hope you have a place lined up with equally good opportunities. There are plenty out there.

Reply 8

username6212751

yes, from Durham, imperial, manchester and york :smile:

Original post by toxicgamage56

Did you get an offer from anywhere else?

Reply 9

toxicgamage56

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by Hmmm6736252

yes, from Durham, imperial, manchester and york :smile:

Damn, Imperial is better than Oxbridge for certain courses so you've done really well for yourself anyway. Definitely not worth getting hung up on Oxbridge.

Reply 10

fedora34

It's a lottery. They have more excellent people apply than they have places for. Maybe your interview wasn't very good, maybe your personal statement didn't convey the passion or subject knowledge they were looking for, or maybe they just had to make a random decision between you and four other people. There's any number of reasons really and I would caution you against thinking that those grades alone should have made you a shoe-in.