Applying to PPE at Oxford Tips?

Original post by Buteyko

I want to study Economics and Management so take everything I say with a pinch of salt.

Oxford are looking for the most academic students - so don't worry about mentioning any extracurricular activities (eg. sports).

Super curricular wise, again, they're not critical for your application, but essay competitions would be a good starting point - any competitions that showcase your willingness to learn to be honest.

Prepare for the TSA as well.

supercurriculars are pretty critical, and Oxbridge still look for extracurriculars (they want a well-rounded person), just nowhere near as much as top US unis.

Reply 3

Original post by Anonymous #1

I am in S5 in scotland and I wish to apply to PPE at Oxford as well as other Universities.
I currently take Higher Maths, English, Chemistry, Economics and History. Next year I plan to take Adv Higher Maths, Chemistry and Economics.
Any suggestions on what I can do super curricular wise to strengthen my application? or any other tips in general when applying.

Read lots of books on philosophy and economics like Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire by Rebecca Henderson or Think by Simon Blackburn. I would also recommend doing a project which doesnt have to be related to your course but would definitely help your chances of getting in if it is; so maybe like an essay on something that interests you in philosophy/econ/politics.

Reply 4

artful_lounger

21

Original post by lanky_giraffe

supercurriculars are pretty critical, and Oxbridge still look for extracurriculars (they want a well-rounded person), just nowhere near as much as top US unis.

On multiple occasions Oxford and Cambridge admissions tutors have stated on record in interviews with major news publications that unrelated extracurricular activities aren't something they really look at and while they recognise other universities may be interested in them, they don't really care if you have e.g. grade 8 violin when applying to maths.

Original post by Anonymous

I am in S5 in scotland and I wish to apply to PPE at Oxford as well as other Universities.
I currently take Higher Maths, English, Chemistry, Economics and History. Next year I plan to take Adv Higher Maths, Chemistry and Economics.
Any suggestions on what I can do super curricular wise to strengthen my application? or any other tips in general when applying.

Read around the subject areas, think about how they intersect (and how they don't, or areas of friction between them). Also look at essay competitions perhaps - you have nothing to lose (except time I suppose) entering them, and may be able to win a prize and write about that, and even if not you'll have done a bunch of wider reading (if it's one of those areas or related in some way). I think the bank of England has some kind of competition aimed at 6th formers interested in studying economics as well which may be worth exploring.

Reply 5

Anonymous #2

Original post by Anonymous #1

I am in S5 in scotland and I wish to apply to PPE at Oxford as well as other Universities.
I currently take Higher Maths, English, Chemistry, Economics and History. Next year I plan to take Adv Higher Maths, Chemistry and Economics.
Any suggestions on what I can do super curricular wise to strengthen my application? or any other tips in general when applying.

Recently I came across this competition called "Economics World Cup" which seems pretty low work since it requires no prior knowledge. If you get a podium prize it could look good on your ps. Link is economicsworldcup.org

Reply 6

username5989765

0

9

Original post by Anonymous #2

Recently I came across this competition called "Economics World Cup" which seems pretty low work since it requires no prior knowledge. If you get a podium prize it could look good on your ps. Link is economicsworldcup.org

pay to win 😭

Reply 7

Anonymous #2

Original post by pav_kvu

pay to win 😭

My school is paying for it. You should consider asking lol. + They have financial aid if registration fees are too expensive.

Reply 8

Original post by lanky_giraffe

supercurriculars are pretty critical, and Oxbridge still look for extracurriculars (they want a well-rounded person), just nowhere near as much as top US unis.

Oxbridge don't look for extracurriculars. They don't particularly care if you're a well-rounded person, only that you'll be good at the subject you've applied for.

Reply 9

Original post by melancollege

Oxbridge don't look for extracurriculars. They don't particularly care if you're a well-rounded person, only that you'll be good at the subject you've applied for.

Depends on the college/your interviewer then

Reply 10

Scotney

20

Original post by lanky_giraffe

Depends on the college/your interviewer then

You are misinformed.Supercurriculars only.

Reply 11

Scotney

20

Original post by Anonymous #1

I am in S5 in scotland and I wish to apply to PPE at Oxford as well as other Universities.
I currently take Higher Maths, English, Chemistry, Economics and History. Next year I plan to take Adv Higher Maths, Chemistry and Economics.
Any suggestions on what I can do super curricular wise to strengthen my application? or any other tips in general when applying.

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6436380
Have a look at this.

Reply 12

Original post by lanky_giraffe

Depends on the college/your interviewer then

Nope. Speaking as a Cambridge student and ambassador who works with my college's admissions officer and student liaison officer, I can tell you that extracurriculars not related to your degree will not affect your chances of success

Reply 13

Well, this is debatable because I know for a fact that for degrees like engineering, medicine and veterinary medicine they look for teamwork and leadership skills. Regardless, how can doing extracurriculars hurt your chances??? If all you’re doing in sixth form is studying, then you aren’t going to have a happy time at an academically challenging university.

If you do extracurriculars and are committed to them, it shows that you are disciplined and committed and can balance a healthy lifestyle.

Look, maybe they don’t say that they care, but you can build on many skills by having an extracurricular, and your interviewer will possibly see those skills.

(edited 10 months ago)

Reply 14

Original post by lanky_giraffe

Well, this is debatable because I know for a fact that for degrees like engineering, medicine and veterinary medicine they look for teamwork and leadership skills. Regardless, how can doing extracurriculars hurt your chances??? If all you’re doing in sixth form is studying, then you aren’t going to have a happy time at an academically challenging university.

If you do extracurriculars and are committed to them, it shows that you are disciplined and committed and can balance a healthy lifestyle.

Look, maybe they don’t say that they care, but you can build on many skills by having an extracurricular, and your interviewer will possibly see those skills.

You do realise that if you can relate your extracurriculars to your degree then they are, by definition, not "extracurriculars not related to your degree" and instead become extracurriculars that are related to your degree. This is also true for the skills learned by them and that is why I specified that it was only extracurriculars not related to your degree that make no difference in admission.

In terms of whether or not they can hurt your chances, it's true that they're unlikely to do so in a vacuum. However, the amount of time, effort and energy a given person has is finite. If someone is doing an extracurricular only because they think it will help them, then they may be not be able to do something that does actually help.

Finally, I'm only talking about utility in admissions here. I'm not saying to only do things that directly relate to your degree until your offer is confirmed. The majority of my hobbies have very little to do with my degree. I'm just saying that these won't affect your chances of admission, which is what the post is about.

Reply 15

Original post by melancollege

You do realise that if you can relate your extracurriculars to your degree then they are, by definition, not "extracurriculars not related to your degree" and instead become extracurriculars that are related to your degree. This is also true for the skills learned by them and that is why I specified that it was only extracurriculars not related to your degree that make no difference in admission.

In terms of whether or not they can hurt your chances, it's true that they're unlikely to do so in a vacuum. However, the amount of time, effort and energy a given person has is finite. If someone is doing an extracurricular only because they think it will help them, then they may be not be able to do something that does actually help.

Finally, I'm only talking about utility in admissions here. I'm not saying to only do things that directly relate to your degree until your offer is confirmed. The majority of my hobbies have very little to do with my degree. I'm just saying that these won't affect your chances of admission, which is what the post is about.

Well, then you could argue that there is no extracurricular that doesn't relate to your degree. I can think of a way to relate every extracurricular to every degree.

Fair enough; time is indeed finite, but starting to ensure that you have a good work-life balance at sixth form would be very beneficial before university.

Yeah, I get that you don’t believe they would, but I still think that you should be recommending them to have extracurriculars as they help to maintain a healthy work-life balance and they can improve confidence, teamwork and leadership skills which can very much help them get into a top uni (Oxford/Cambridge/Imperial/LSE).

Reply 16

But you’re right, this person is specifically applying for PPE, where leadership and teamwork isn’t particularly important. So yeah extracurriculars probably wouldn’t directly help. But I still believe they do indirectly help and they help create a healthy work life balance and reduce the chance of burn out so they may actually perform better in their a levels.

(edited 10 months ago)

Reply 17

Original post by lanky_giraffe

Well, then you could argue that there is no extracurricular that doesn't relate to your degree. I can think of a way to relate every extracurricular to every degree.

Fair enough; time is indeed finite, but starting to ensure that you have a good work-life balance at sixth form would be very beneficial before university.

Yeah, I get that you don’t believe they would, but I still think that you should be recommending them to have extracurriculars as they help to maintain a healthy work-life balance and they can improve confidence, teamwork and leadership skills which can very much help them get into a top uni (Oxford/Cambridge/Imperial/LSE).

There are some links that would be considered tenuous at best, but it wouldn't be feasible to give an exhaustive list of every such case.

I don't disagree with you that a good work-life balance is important. I'm not saying that they should give up hobbies, just to note that they are unlikely to make a difference in admission. It is not uncommon for people to think that they would, though, and do them not for their own pleasure but in the hopes in would increase their chances.

Also, you seem to mention that teamwork and leadership skills are very useful for Oxbridge in general. This is very much course-dependent. I don't know about PPE (we don't do it at Cambridge) so I can't comment but they are definitely not required for all subjects. I do Maths and if anyone suggested in the CMS that teamwork was a really useful skill for Cambridge Maths, they'd get some confused looks. I could understand their utility for say, Economics and Management, though.

Reply 18

idek101

6

Original post by lanky_giraffe

Well, this is debatable because I know for a fact that for degrees like engineering, medicine and veterinary medicine they look for teamwork and leadership skills. Regardless, how can doing extracurriculars hurt your chances??? If all you’re doing in sixth form is studying, then you aren’t going to have a happy time at an academically challenging university.
If you do extracurriculars and are committed to them, it shows that you are disciplined and committed and can balance a healthy lifestyle.
Look, maybe they don’t say that they care, but you can build on many skills by having an extracurricular, and your interviewer will possibly see those skills.

I think extracurriculars put the icing on the cake but I highly doubt they are even a factor in deciding whether to accept an applicant, just something which will confirm their decision.

Reply 19