Oxbridge admissions - Entry criteria

Hi everyone! I’m a single mom to an 11-year-old, and I’m starting to think about the future—specifically about Oxbridge admissions. I’d love some advice on what steps we can start taking now to improve her chances of getting in. She’s doing great academically and loves her sports, but we don’t have any direct contacts with Oxbridge experience. Any tips or guidance would be much appreciated. Thanks so much for your kindness and help!

Reply 1

melancollege

Why are you starting so young? If she's doing well that's great but it will be years before she needs to start thinking about it or even know if she's well-suited for Oxbridge. Wait until she's older and don't put so much pressure on her. I've noticed that the kids that were pushed tend not to do so well here.

Reply 2

Stiffy Byng

I agree with melancollege. I hope that your daughter enjoys her time at secondary school.

PS: Once your daughter is starting Year 11, the university websites will show the then current information about access programmes, summer schools, open days, and so on; and perhaps @Oxford_Mum's excellent threads about admissions will still be running here.

Reply 3

xyz1234567

It’s great that you are supporting your daughter and that she is doing so well.

Oxbridge admissions is not really a mystery and there aren’t secrets. The information on their websites is all you need to know. Nearer the time, you and she can go to open days and ask questions there too. What they are looking for is bright, highly motivate, and teachable students with the skills and aptitude needed for their chosen course. There aren’t special criteria or things you have to do beyond that, and definitely not anything that needs planning from age 11.

Also: try not to fixate on two universities, especially this far ahead. She may not even want to go there (or she may want to do a subject that isn’t offered there). Even if she does, setting it up as a goal so many years ahead could make it harder if she doesn’t end up getting in.

Reply 4

username6110703

First of all, it’s so amazing when parents want to encourage their children to be everything they can be. But, speaking as a current Cambridge student, the people who are happiest here and do the best are people who are here because they’re passionate about their subjects and chose the degree for themselves. The best thing you can do is to encourage your child to love learning and love their subjects, rather than it becoming a chore, as well as teaching her how to have a good work-life balance. There are so many good routes to success other than Oxbridge, including lots of amazing courses at other unis. If someone comes here rather than going to a uni or doing a different course they’d prefer, they very often end up with lots of mental health difficulties and complicated feelings abot going home. Just be the best support and advocate you can be, and your daughter will get here if she’s meant to be here :smile:

Reply 5

emily-05

Hello, I applied for Oxford last October and got all the way to interviews but unfortunately did not receive an offer although one of my friends did. We have both attended comprehensive schools our entire lives and had not decided to apply to Oxbridge until the end of year 12. This means at 11, you do not need to be too concerned as we decided effectively last minute and still had a chance. I would say to go to the open days and look around to inspire your child and ascertain whether that is absolutely the path they wish to take. I would say to teach your child study/revision skills and people skills as well as being part of the community. I think the reason that I did not pass interviews is because I have been naturally awkward and lacked social skills since the start of secondary school. Do not buy into all these silly Oxbridge shortcuts or whatever, your child just needs passion, dedication and confidence. My firm choice is now Durham, and after my experience I realise that the stress Oxford would have placed on me personally would probably have been too overwhelming. Your child will change a lot through secondary school so who knows what they will ultimately decide to do, but I think supporting them academically, socially and mentally (exam stress is terrible lol as someone going through A-Levels at the moment). The most important thing would be to convince your child that they are good enough/worthy of going to Oxbridge (that's something I had to learn) but also to make sure that they aren't going to be completely heartbroken if something doesn't work out. I hope this helps :smile: