Reapplying to Oxbridge (physics/natsci)

So I've just been rejected from Cambridge NatSci (Trinity college) pre-interview, which I'm pretty disappointed by. My ESAT was bad, so I'm not wholly surprised by it. However, I'm also worried about my chances with Imperial, because they use the ESAT for Physics as well.

I'm very passionate about physics and I think that my ESAT results were not representative of my ability in the subject. If I don't get an offer from Imperial, is it worth reapplying to Oxbridge/Imperial next year? Also, if I do that, should I applying to Cambridge or Oxford? I'm in Year 13 btw.

GCSEs: 9999999887
A Levels (predicted): A*A*A*A*
ESAT:
m1: 3.4
m2: 4.5
phys: 3.8

Reply 1

PS Reviewer

I would recommend that you plan to go to one of your other choices in the first instance. This means that if you don’t get the results you hope for that you aren’t forced into a panicked decision, using clearing and the stress of sorting out accommodation and finance at very short notice (which if you are already dealing with the disappointment of getting lower grades is much more likely to lead to an unhappy and stressful first year at university).

Then in August if you do get the grades that you are hoping for you will always have the option to cancel your place elsewhere, your accommodation and your finance to reapply to Oxbridge/Imperial etc with good results in hand. Working through the process of visiting other universities, finding out more about first year content etc etc will only strengthen your re-application.

Reply 2

PositiveEIectron

Original post by yra.70

So I've just been rejected from Cambridge NatSci (Trinity college) pre-interview, which I'm pretty disappointed by. My ESAT was bad, so I'm not wholly surprised by it. However, I'm also worried about my chances with Imperial, because they use the ESAT for Physics as well.
I'm very passionate about physics and I think that my ESAT results were not representative of my ability in the subject. If I don't get an offer from Imperial, is it worth reapplying to Oxbridge/Imperial next year? Also, if I do that, should I applying to Cambridge or Oxford? I'm in Year 13 btw.
GCSEs: 9999999887
A Levels (predicted): A*A*A*A*
ESAT:
m1: 3.4
m2: 4.5
phys: 3.8

hey im ina similar situation, do you wanna talka bout this tgt cos im tryna look for som1 in a similar situationn

Reply 3

yra.70

Original post by PositiveEIectron

hey im ina similar situation, do you wanna talka bout this tgt cos im tryna look for som1 in a similar situationn

yeah that sounds good, i've just messaged you

Reply 4

A Light Lilt

Original post by yra.70

I think that my ESAT results were not representative of my ability in the subject.

I recommend asking yourself why exactly this was and trying to be as honest as possible with yourself. Are you perhaps not that strong under pressure or exam conditions? Did you need to spend a lot more time preparing specifically for the ESAT than you did? Was it actually just bad luck (I would not discount bad luck playing a role but recommend thinking deeply on if it is true). Are you just weaker in a short time format exam? Maybe you were tired on the day, or maybe you were thrown off by some rare irl event (pet just passing away or something).

The reason why these questions matter is because there are candidates who do really well on the ESAT without much work, and there are candidates who are just (for whatever reason) good at exams and who perform better under pressure / are able to work very fast. You may think "well do exams really matter" and for academia, I would say no. However, Cambridge do run their undergraduate on very intense exams which require you to work very quickly and efficiently. If you get in you can expect more of "this".

The way Cambridge operates is intentionally quite competitive; there is a set % of grades (1st, 2i, etc) for natsci and you are competing against the cohort. I had friends in NatSci who were (to be blunt) weaker / needed a lot more time to revise and practice / were worse at exams / whatever you want to call it. They really struggled at Cambridge and I think it dawned on them after first year just how big the gaps can be. Everyone can have off-days but realistically the comparison between students is meaningful when it comes to basic aptitude tests. It's a cruel statement and perhaps I'm overreaching (maybe the ESAT is terrible) but i think this rejection means you are already not going to be near the top of the year if you could get in, the fact is that there are some very bright students who basically dont need to do any work, and there are also a lot of very very hard working students who would have worked their way out of possibly doing badly on any test.

But I would seriously meditate on this, think about why the ESAT didnt go well and think about if you really want to go to Oxbridge given the answer to that question. I'm not going to say what the answer is, its totally possible that you really got thrown by something out of your control for the ESAT.

I would also raise a question over non-ESAT rejection reasons.
You are doing 4 A-Levels, are you doing Maths/ FMaths/ Physics/ Chemistry ? If you are missing one of those you are making the application for NatSci much much more contingent on being very strong on paper. Cambridge easily get enough applicants with that set of A-Levels. Not having Further Maths is a very big problem. No Chemistry is something Cambridge say is fine on paper, but it limits first year options a lot and the question is always going to be "ok then why not apply for Maths with Physics" as well as "ok well if you want to do physics only we're going to directly measure you against the other physics-only applicants". Maths/FMaths/Physics is much more in line with a Maths or straight physics degree set of A-Levels than NatSci is. (to be clear here, you can get in with that for natsci, but it hurts your chances slightly).
I also don't know what your 7 at GCSE was in. I'm guessing its in "a subject that doesnt matter" because if its something relevant that may have played into the rejection

If I don't get an offer from Imperial, is it worth reapplying to Oxbridge/Imperial next year?

That's a complicated question and one you need to figure out. I think unless you can identify why you did badly on the ESAT this time, its quite likely that history will repeat itself next year (either directly and preventing an interview or indirectly and you get an interview but the ESAT score was low and that forms part of the reason for a rejection anyway) You need to think about this also; people getting rejected, then getting 3/4/5 A*s, then reapplying and getting rejected again is a common scenario. How would you feel about being rejected twice, would you feel like you wasted a year by doing this? Do you think you would handle that well emotionally? Do you have non-reapply plans for a gap year? You'd probably be putting more pressure on yourself when you apply next year especially if "this" is the reason you take a gap year at all.

How keen are you to actually go to university? Would you much rather go immediately? You can definitely go to imperial or oxbridge for a masters or PhD (ior even more) later on, these doors aren't closing forever. Getting a First "somewhere else" with a good reference to say this student works hard, etc is a great way to get in then.

You don't need to answer any of those questions that soon, you have months to think about all of them.

I agree with PQ that regardless, you finish your A-Levels first. I would not recommend reapplying with anything except 4A*s to be brutally honest, and I will say that 4A*s does not "stand out" like some schools probably think; everyone I knew in NatSci had results like this or better and from what I'm aware of, most rejected candidates also get straight A*s in STEM because the % of A* grades is dramatically higher than the % of places at a "top uni".

(edited 2 weeks ago)

Reply 5

yra.70

I believe there were multiple factors that led to the ESAT not going well, especially as I was ill at the time. However, I do think that the other points you raise are valid, and I'll definitely have to think about what I'll do over the gap year (if I do take one).
Having spoken to a few people, I do think my A-Levels were better suited to a straight physics degree as I'm doing maths, fm, physics ad computer science, as well as AS chemistry. If I do end up reapplying, maybe Oxford is the way to go.