What will you be doing over the Easter break? >>

English lit at university

Hello people, so i am in year 11 and i think i might want to pursue english literature into university. For my dream university i was thinking oxford because like its highly regarded good teaching ( from what ive heard ) and its aesthetic so yk anyway but the thing is about oxford its so competitive and my grades are average or just below, right now im working at a 6 for eng lit gcse aqa and i want to do 4 a levels and a epq and i want to improve my gcse's before my actual exams so yea. Also i was thinking to apply to cambeidge if i dont pick oxford as they dont look at gcse's as much ( i heard that correct me if im wrong ) so yea any suggestions what to do or thing about oxford requirements/suggestions? Thanksss

Reply 1

Stiffy Byng

Original post by Liamgriff18

Absent strong mitigating circumstances, you will not be a competitive candidate to read English at Oxford or at Cambridge if you do not obtain an 8 or 9 in GCSE English. Neither university is likely to offer a place to a candidate whose academic profile is average or below average. In general, to obtain a place at either university your academic performance must be well above average.

I recommend that you take three A levels. Taking four will confer no benefit, and the increased workload and stress might have a negative impact on your grades.

There is a persistent myth about the approach of Oxford and Cambridge to GCSE grades. In reality, each of the universities applies a broadly similar approach, which is explained on their websites. GCSE grades are considered as one part of the totality of information about a candidate. You will be expected to perform well in English at GCSE and A level if you wish to read English at Oxford or Cambridge.

Please look at the course descriptions at the universities which you are thinking of applying to. Applying to Oxford just because of its reputation or its architecture may not always be a good idea. Would you be interested in learning Old English and reading Beowulf in the original, as Oxford requires you to do? Would you be interested in reading every word of Shakespeare, as Oxford requires you to do? Would you be willing to write three detailed essays a fortnight, to debate those essays one to one or one to two with a fiercely clever, enormously well-read, and usually demanding tutor, and to work about forty hours each week in mostly solo study? If yes, great, but please check the courses.

I suggest that you visit several universities during year 12 to get an idea of the student lifestyle at each.

Here's Beowulf, by the way -

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43521/beowulf-old-english-version

Reply 2

heidinorah1

hi, i’m year 13 and got an interview to do english literature at cambridge! just waiting on the offer results for now lol.

my biggest piece of advice is to look into lots of different universities and their english courses. i totally understand wanting to go to oxbridge, because that was/is me, but you need to do some research because you might find they’re not for you! their teaching style and environment is different from a typical russell group university, and so i’d recommends doing some research into that!

secondly, if you’re doing essay based subjects at a-level, i would not recommend doing 4 subjects and an epq. i do three heavy essay based subjects and an epq and it’s already overwhelming - you’ll spread yourself too thin i reckon if you do four. it’s better to work hard at 3 and do better across the 3!! but that’s just my recommendation, i’d speak to advisors at your school and see what they recommend as well, just be prepared!

if you’re wanting to do english literature at oxbridge, a 6 at gcse isn’t necessarily going to be a sign of immediate rejection, but the workload and the level of work at oxbridge is incredibly high and you need to be prepared for this, and i very much recommend you try to get around a 8/9 at english literature to show not only to the university but also to yourself that you can achieve highly and dedicate yourself to the subject enough to do it at a university level. it’s not the be-all end-all, but that’s my personal recommendation.

i’m not an expert at all, but i thought i’d offer some advice because i’ve been in a very similar position and was achieving 6s/7s in my english literature mocks and then worked hard enough to get a 9 at the actual exam and i’m now in the position of possibly receiving an offer at cambridge (emphasis on possibly loool) so that’s just my experience and recommendations based on my experience. i would 100% talk to career advisors at your school and do plenty of research into oxbridge and different universities!! good luck for your exams, you’ll smash them!!

Reply 3

Liamgriff18

Original post by heidinorah1

hi, i’m year 13 and got an interview to do english literature at cambridge! just waiting on the offer results for now lol.
my biggest piece of advice is to look into lots of different universities and their english courses. i totally understand wanting to go to oxbridge, because that was/is me, but you need to do some research because you might find they’re not for you! their teaching style and environment is different from a typical russell group university, and so i’d recommends doing some research into that!
secondly, if you’re doing essay based subjects at a-level, i would not recommend doing 4 subjects and an epq. i do three heavy essay based subjects and an epq and it’s already overwhelming - you’ll spread yourself too thin i reckon if you do four. it’s better to work hard at 3 and do better across the 3!! but that’s just my recommendation, i’d speak to advisors at your school and see what they recommend as well, just be prepared!
if you’re wanting to do english literature at oxbridge, a 6 at gcse isn’t necessarily going to be a sign of immediate rejection, but the workload and the level of work at oxbridge is incredibly high and you need to be prepared for this, and i very much recommend you try to get around a 8/9 at english literature to show not only to the university but also to yourself that you can achieve highly and dedicate yourself to the subject enough to do it at a university level. it’s not the be-all end-all, but that’s my personal recommendation.
i’m not an expert at all, but i thought i’d offer some advice because i’ve been in a very similar position and was achieving 6s/7s in my english literature mocks and then worked hard enough to get a 9 at the actual exam and i’m now in the position of possibly receiving an offer at cambridge (emphasis on possibly loool) so that’s just my experience and recommendations based on my experience. i would 100% talk to career advisors at your school and do plenty of research into oxbridge and different universities!! good luck for your exams, you’ll smash them!!

Thank you so much, that was really insightful and yea how did you get a 9 that's crazyy what was your exam board for eng lit mine is AQA

Reply 4

heidinorah1

Original post by Liamgriff18

Thank you so much, that was really insightful and yea how did you get a 9 that's crazyy what was your exam board for eng lit mine is AQA

no worries! mine was aqa too and i just revised a lot! watching videos to recap knowledge, quote revision, historical context revision, practice analysis and a lot of timed exam questions! that’s probably the most helpful revision tool, if you do timed exam questions and get your teachers to mark them, you’ll be able see what you need to improve and what to target!!!! :smile:

Reply 5

MillieeM2

I think time essays can help and handing it to your teacher for feedback plus tilf.io can automatically mark essays and give feedback. You could use YouTube and google scholar/jstor/academia.edu to find analysis. Mr Bruff, Mr Salles, and Mr Everything English are helpful YouTubers. Studocu can be good, lit charts and know unity. You could make essay plans that you can add to (short bullet if it’s too time-consuming) and maybe get someone to look over them.