Why did you want to go to oxbridge?
I’m just curious because I may consider it in the future. I just want to know how did you know you were ‘good enough’ to apply for it and what makes it better than other universities
Reply 1
Original post
by ToomanyennyI’m just curious because I may consider it in the future. I just want to know how did you know you were ‘good enough’ to apply for it and what makes it better than other universities
I think it's largely predicted grades. If you have good A level predicted and good gcses, most people think why not. Obviously some people don't like the very traditional way that Oxford teaches most of their courses and that puts them off but if you think you could survive being under a fair amount of pressure, have good gcses/predicted and you like the course, that's all you really need to know.
Reply 2
Original post
by ToomanyennyI’m just curious because I may consider it in the future. I just want to know how did you know you were ‘good enough’ to apply for it and what makes it better than other universities
This is my point of view as an applicant:
I don’t think I’m good enough at all. But the promise of a safe haven for nerds really sold it to me, because I love the subject I want to do at uni and love waffling about it. If you’ve ever felt like everyone thinks you take your subject too seriously or that you care too much about academic things that no one else seems to care about, Oxbridge will lure you in.
I know I would’ve kicked myself later if I didn’t at least try. That was why I applied. But there are other equally brilliant universities that I would be happy to go to.
Reply 3
Original post
by ToomanyennyI’m just curious because I may consider it in the future. I just want to know how did you know you were ‘good enough’ to apply for it and what makes it better than other universities
Reply 4
There are better and worse reasons for wanting to go to Oxford.
Good reasons are wanting the stimulation and stretch of the tutorial system and the level of personal attention it gives you. Wanting a very intense and challenging academic experience with a lot of essay writing (for Humanities). And also having researched the structure and content of the course and feeling it is an excellent fit for your interests.
A less good reason is “because it is Oxford and that is prestigious”.
Lots of people do apply for that reason, or because their teacher or their family told them to. The risk is that if you get in having only applied on “name” grounds you realise that the course they chose isn’t right for you, or that you don’t want a short but highly intense teaching term, or that you won’t thrive on assessment which is heavily exam based, or that you hate the idea of being put on the spot in tutorials.
So do look into Oxford in a rounded way and think about the experience of being there, not just the badge or having it on your CV. Read up about the courses, including the structure and teaching and assessment methods. Think about whether it feels like a good fit for you.
Good reasons are wanting the stimulation and stretch of the tutorial system and the level of personal attention it gives you. Wanting a very intense and challenging academic experience with a lot of essay writing (for Humanities). And also having researched the structure and content of the course and feeling it is an excellent fit for your interests.
A less good reason is “because it is Oxford and that is prestigious”.
Lots of people do apply for that reason, or because their teacher or their family told them to. The risk is that if you get in having only applied on “name” grounds you realise that the course they chose isn’t right for you, or that you don’t want a short but highly intense teaching term, or that you won’t thrive on assessment which is heavily exam based, or that you hate the idea of being put on the spot in tutorials.
So do look into Oxford in a rounded way and think about the experience of being there, not just the badge or having it on your CV. Read up about the courses, including the structure and teaching and assessment methods. Think about whether it feels like a good fit for you.
Reply 5
12
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wanted to be challenged
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wanted to meet other people who love my subject (maths)
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very good for jobs afterwards especially since I'm interested in finance
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wanted the prestige!
I never "knew" I was good enough per se- I don't think very many people do. I've always been top or almost top in my school but its not very competitive; at other schools just being in the top set might mean you're good enough. If you want to go and you meet the requirements there's no harm applying!
Reply 6
I did not go to Oxbridge but there are a few very good reasons to go:
The one massive career negative I see with Oxbridge grads, is the amount of amazingly capable people who choose to pursue short term financial gain and go into a career in something like capital markets etc. where they make no meaningful contributions but do make a very good salary in there 20s, despite having the potential be leaders in industries changing the world for the better.
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the exit opportunities, you immediately have access to a set of destinations that it is much tougher for others
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Internationally recognition
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Access to globally respected research and researchers who are genuinely changing the world
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Network, ability to build a network for your whole life
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History & ambience
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University resources
Reply 7
Original post
by thegeek888Oxbridge is the 'pinnacle' of academic achievement. 😉
Noit isn't - discovering a cure for a common disease is or something similar.
Oxford isn't even the bet university for a number of degrees.
Reply 8
I am a bit sceptical about rankings, but I notice that Times Higher Education has ranked Oxford as the best university in the world for the last nine years. Whether or not that ranking is accurate, I can see why that sort of thing might encourage people to apply to Oxford.
The current THE ranking is as follows -
1 University of Oxford
2 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
3 Harvard University
4 Princeton University
5 University of Cambridge
6 Stanford University
7 California Institute of Technology
8 University of California, Berkeley
9 Imperial College London
10 Yale University
You could probably re-arrange those ten universities in any order you wished, and it may be invidious to say that one is definitely better than any of the other nine, but the names in the list are unlikely to be surprising to most higher education nerds.
If we were picking non-Anglophone universities to rave about, might we say Paris, Salamanca, Humboldt, Jagellion, Charles, and a few others? I wonder what the University of Bologna is like these days.
The current THE ranking is as follows -
1 University of Oxford
2 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
3 Harvard University
4 Princeton University
5 University of Cambridge
6 Stanford University
7 California Institute of Technology
8 University of California, Berkeley
9 Imperial College London
10 Yale University
You could probably re-arrange those ten universities in any order you wished, and it may be invidious to say that one is definitely better than any of the other nine, but the names in the list are unlikely to be surprising to most higher education nerds.
If we were picking non-Anglophone universities to rave about, might we say Paris, Salamanca, Humboldt, Jagellion, Charles, and a few others? I wonder what the University of Bologna is like these days.
Reply 9
Original post
by ToomanyennyI’m just curious because I may consider it in the future. I just want to know how did you know you were ‘good enough’ to apply for it and what makes it better than other universities
I won't comment on whether Oxford and Cambridge are better than other universities, as it's hard to define what better or best mean in this context.
Two things make Oxford and Cambridge different to other universities. One difference is the tutorial/supervision system of small group teaching by dialogue. Oxford and Cambridge students usually have a lot of contact with the academics who teach them, and the universities attract distinguished scholars.
The other difference is the collegiate nature of each university. As for this, please see the attached thread.
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7561491
For historical reasons, Oxford and Cambridge have more resources than all or most other UK universities (although fewer resources than places such as Harvard). The relative wealth of Oxford and Cambridge and their constituent colleges enables them to provide more extensive libraries, labs, sports facilities, and so on than some universities can provide. The colleges provide relatively inexpensive accommodation and catering, and social facilities, as well as more libraries.
Oxford and Cambridge are university cities somewhat unlike any other in the UK, because in each city the university and its colleges are a big presence, with their buildings located in amongst non-academic buildings all across the city centres. Visitors sometimes ask "where is the university?", to which the answer is that it is all around you.
The cities are popular with tourists because of their architectural distinction, history, and (in Oxford's case) association with the Harry Potter films, which used several locations in Oxford; and to a lesser extent the Alice books, the Narnia books (written by Oxford Dons), and the works of JRR Tolkien, another Oxford Don.
Oxford also has a large car factory making the BMW Mini. The factory used to make Morris cars and then British Leyland cars. East Oxford is an industrial city. There used to be more car making at nearby Abingdon (MG cars, now a Chinese badge-engineering brand). Oxford Brookes, the smaller and newer university in Oxford, has close ties with motorsport.
Reply 10
17
Bologna is 146th on THE and 133rd on QS World Universities. And they're still Italy's top ranked university on THE (QS has Sapienza one position higher). European universities in England, Switzerland, Germany, Scotland, France, Belgium, Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark, Austria, Norway, and Ireland, rank higher than Bologna.
(edited 1 year ago)
Reply 11
While remaining sceptical about the value of rankings, I see that the names in THE's UK top ten come as no surprise -
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/best-universities/best-universities-uk
Again, you could probably arrange these names in more or less any order you like. THE puts them in the following order from 1 to 10.
Oxford
Cambridge
Imperial
UCL
Edinburgh
KCL
LSE
Manchester
Bristol
Glasgow
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/best-universities/best-universities-uk
Again, you could probably arrange these names in more or less any order you like. THE puts them in the following order from 1 to 10.
Oxford
Cambridge
Imperial
UCL
Edinburgh
KCL
LSE
Manchester
Bristol
Glasgow
Reply 12
Original post
by PicniclPart inspiration for Oxford University, Bologna is 146th on THE and 133rd on QS World Universities. And they're still Italy's top ranked university on THE (QS has Sapienza one position higher). European universities in England, Switzerland, Germany, Scotland, France, Belgium, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Denmark, rank higher than Bologna.
Bologna is, I think, the oldest surviving university, with Oxford the second oldest, but these days it doesn't appear that Italian universities punch very hard internationally.
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