Rejecting Oxford

As an Oxford student, go to Manchester, the workload is fine when everything's fine, once you start to slip, it's very easy to go from top student to failing, as I'm currently finding out lol

Thank you so much, that's good to know. I hope your situation gets better and you do well at uni, and obviously a huge congratulations on getting in and going to Oxford, even if you're not loving it right now. Do you think your friends and other students agree? Also just wondering what course you're on?

OP, you must choose your happiness over all other things at this stage in your life. As an Oxford history graduate, I naturally think that you might be missing out on something precious by not studying at Oxford, but that doesn't matter. Manchester is and always has been an excellent university for history. Manchester, UCL, and St Andrews are perhaps the best places for history along with Oxford and Cambridge. The Oxford course, by the way, is so broad as to be almost bespoke. Almost no two undergraduates do the same degree. But the workload is high. You should follow your instinct and, if that tells you to go to Manchester, go there. If you love the Manchester degree, and wish for further academic experience, you can always apply to study as a graduate at Oxford. Best of luck!

Sorry to hear about the difficult times you've had with your anxiety, and that it's led to some A&E visits. You are very wise to be thinking about whether the Oxford environment would be a good place for you currently, rather than just blindly firming Oxford and hoping for the best. Health has to absolutely be your priority here and I think Manchester would be the better option for you. As one of the other posters have alluded to, Oxford is not always a fun or healthy place to be if you fall behind with the workload (for whatever reason) I'd definitely go with your gut decision here. If you do want to give Oxford more consideration (though I don't think there's any need in this situation), then you should aim to find out everything you can about the support you can expect from Oxford for your anxiety, and what concessions, exam arrangements, and extenuating circumstances would be able to be made for any exams. (For example: I was told my psychosis could not be taken into account in the exam marking for my third year Finals exams, even if it affected my ability to do my exams. I felt this was unfair but there wasn't much to be done.)
Good luck with your upcoming exams and deciding what to do!

Thank you so much, and I'm so sorry you went through that at uni.

Hi all, I've never posted on here before so I don't know how likely I am to get a response but I thought it was worth asking what you think.
I've got an offer from Oxford to study History, and an offer from Manchester to study Politics and Modern History. They're both AAA, so no difference there. I think I want to firm Manchester. I've heard different things from everyone I've spoken to, so maybe someone on here has some insight.
I prefer the course at Manchester, and I think it suits my interests more than the course at Oxford. I really like Manchester as a city, but that's not the main reason I'm leaning towards it, just another factor. The main reason is the workload and term structure. Having given it a lot of thought and spoken to some Oxford students, I don't think I can cope well with the amount of work there. I also don't love the idea of 8 week terms - cramming all that work into 8 weeks, then going home for the holiday only to have to study even more. I knew Oxford would be very intense, and I knew all of this before I applied, but I hadn't thought about it much until recently.
For some background in case this still sounds crazy to anyone, I've struggled with anxiety surrounding school for about 4 years. I've had physical issues caused by stress that made me go to A&E, and recently had an incident caused partially by anxiety surrounding exams that also sent me to A&E. I'm working through these problems, and have been for over 2 years, but I don't think I'll magically "fix" myself before uni. Wish I could though lol.
Anyway, if you read all of that you're an angel, and please let me know what you think. I am more than happy to answer any questions or explain anything I may have been unclear about.

One word...Oxford!!! 😉

Hi all, I've never posted on here before so I don't know how likely I am to get a response but I thought it was worth asking what you think.
I've got an offer from Oxford to study History, and an offer from Manchester to study Politics and Modern History. They're both AAA, so no difference there. I think I want to firm Manchester. I've heard different things from everyone I've spoken to, so maybe someone on here has some insight.
I prefer the course at Manchester, and I think it suits my interests more than the course at Oxford. I really like Manchester as a city, but that's not the main reason I'm leaning towards it, just another factor. The main reason is the workload and term structure. Having given it a lot of thought and spoken to some Oxford students, I don't think I can cope well with the amount of work there. I also don't love the idea of 8 week terms - cramming all that work into 8 weeks, then going home for the holiday only to have to study even more. I knew Oxford would be very intense, and I knew all of this before I applied, but I hadn't thought about it much until recently.
For some background in case this still sounds crazy to anyone, I've struggled with anxiety surrounding school for about 4 years. I've had physical issues caused by stress that made me go to A&E, and recently had an incident caused partially by anxiety surrounding exams that also sent me to A&E. I'm working through these problems, and have been for over 2 years, but I don't think I'll magically "fix" myself before uni. Wish I could though lol.
Anyway, if you read all of that you're an angel, and please let me know what you think. I am more than happy to answer any questions or explain anything I may have been unclear about.

Oxford is, however, full of normal people. The idea that everyone there is a ginormous nerdy brain in a bubbling jar is incorrect! I prefer London to Manchester, but Manchester is a pretty fun city.

@Stiffy Byng which History degree would you choose between Oxford and Manchester if you was not applying in the 1980s but in the 2020s? 🙂

Oxford is, however, full of normal people. The idea that everyone there is a ginormous nerdy brain in a bubbling jar is incorrect! I prefer London to Manchester, but Manchester is a pretty fun city.

Hi all, I've never posted on here before so I don't know how likely I am to get a response but I thought it was worth asking what you think.
I've got an offer from Oxford to study History, and an offer from Manchester to study Politics and Modern History. They're both AAA, so no difference there. I think I want to firm Manchester. I've heard different things from everyone I've spoken to, so maybe someone on here has some insight.
I prefer the course at Manchester, and I think it suits my interests more than the course at Oxford. I really like Manchester as a city, but that's not the main reason I'm leaning towards it, just another factor. The main reason is the workload and term structure. Having given it a lot of thought and spoken to some Oxford students, I don't think I can cope well with the amount of work there. I also don't love the idea of 8 week terms - cramming all that work into 8 weeks, then going home for the holiday only to have to study even more. I knew Oxford would be very intense, and I knew all of this before I applied, but I hadn't thought about it much until recently.
For some background in case this still sounds crazy to anyone, I've struggled with anxiety surrounding school for about 4 years. I've had physical issues caused by stress that made me go to A&E, and recently had an incident caused partially by anxiety surrounding exams that also sent me to A&E. I'm working through these problems, and have been for over 2 years, but I don't think I'll magically "fix" myself before uni. Wish I could though lol.
Anyway, if you read all of that you're an angel, and please let me know what you think. I am more than happy to answer any questions or explain anything I may have been unclear about.

Hi all, I've never posted on here before so I don't know how likely I am to get a response but I thought it was worth asking what you think.
I've got an offer from Oxford to study History, and an offer from Manchester to study Politics and Modern History. They're both AAA, so no difference there. I think I want to firm Manchester. I've heard different things from everyone I've spoken to, so maybe someone on here has some insight.
I prefer the course at Manchester, and I think it suits my interests more than the course at Oxford. I really like Manchester as a city, but that's not the main reason I'm leaning towards it, just another factor. The main reason is the workload and term structure. Having given it a lot of thought and spoken to some Oxford students, I don't think I can cope well with the amount of work there. I also don't love the idea of 8 week terms - cramming all that work into 8 weeks, then going home for the holiday only to have to study even more. I knew Oxford would be very intense, and I knew all of this before I applied, but I hadn't thought about it much until recently.
For some background in case this still sounds crazy to anyone, I've struggled with anxiety surrounding school for about 4 years. I've had physical issues caused by stress that made me go to A&E, and recently had an incident caused partially by anxiety surrounding exams that also sent me to A&E. I'm working through these problems, and have been for over 2 years, but I don't think I'll magically "fix" myself before uni. Wish I could though lol.
Anyway, if you read all of that you're an angel, and please let me know what you think. I am more than happy to answer any questions or explain anything I may have been unclear about.

Which college do you have an offer to read BA History at Oxford?
I wonder is it a newer college? Or indeed an older college with tradition? 🙂 lol
Because some colleges pressurise students to achieve high 2.1s and firsts?! 😧