applying to Cambridge

Hi,
I m a yr 12 student doing chem, bio, math and have predicted A*. I want to do natural sciences. I do extracurriculars but I dont know if my personal statement will stand out enough or how ESAT will go given I haven't started preparing yet.
Honest opinions pls, do I have any chance of getting into Cambridge or other top unis?

Yes. Only way to not know: not apply.

that was motivating thanks

yh hopefully I will be able to sort things out before the deadline.
are u currently applying to unis?

I'll be applying next year - hopefully to Cambridge as well!

what course

Hi,
I m a yr 12 student doing chem, bio, math and have predicted A*. I want to do natural sciences. I do extracurriculars but I dont know if my personal statement will stand out enough or how ESAT will go given I haven't started preparing yet.
Honest opinions pls, do I have any chance of getting into Cambridge or other top unis?

Just a note that the overwhelming majority of offer holders from Cambridge colleges for economics have Further Maths A level which rather rules you out of being a competitive applicant. For NatSci, it's common to offer four science/maths, particularly for physical NatSci but offering chemistry, biology and maths leaves several routes open.
Regarding economics and FM, see here

why have you brought up economics? they've said they're doing natsci

Hi,
I m a yr 12 student doing chem, bio, math and have predicted A*. I want to do natural sciences. I do extracurriculars but I dont know if my personal statement will stand out enough or how ESAT will go given I haven't started preparing yet.
Honest opinions pls, do I have any chance of getting into Cambridge or other top unis?

oh, it was you who was talking about economics, wasn't it? I've amended my post. For what it's worth, when I did NatSci, we had to do QB, and I wouldn't have wanted to do it without a good maths background (they had a separate course called EMB for biological NatScis who didn't have maths A level, but I think they've got rid of that now).

Oh fine, no worries haha I'll be doing FM i think. I'm dubious of unis (especially Warwick, Oxford and Durham) whose websites state FM is not at all helped for the admissions process, my careers advisor at school said there is definitely a benefit to doing it. Maybe it's just that the courses themselves are very mathematical, but the stats show that most people getting in do FM. Maybe it's just an example of correlation vs causation, however my careers advisors are genuinely very knowledgeable, and have worked in uni admissions

Yes, I think you're right with this. I had several friends doing economics at various colleges, and I'm pretty sure all of them had FM - they were very proficient mathematicians in any case. Basically, if you can cope with FM, from both a workload and an aptitude point of view, it's never going to hurt your application. And yes - economics at Cam is notoriously mathematically rigorous, as you'd sort of expect. A great course

Thank you! Yes, I do wonder why these universities websites are somewhat misleading..
Anyway, I may not even apply to Cambridge economics and do land economy there instead, and apply to economics at other, slightly less rigorous/competitive unis! We'll see - I just want to keep my options open

It's difficult, because a lot of colleges and schools still don't offer FM and, bizarrely, timetable it against 3 sciences and 'plain' maths A level, making it impossible for some to choose it. There's always the wonderful ASMP programme, but it's not quite the same as doing an actual taught course at your college or school.
You sound very sensible in navigating a course to keep your options open - always the best strategy. 🙂 Unfortunately, there has always been a sizeable TSR contingent who believe it's Oxbridge or bust, which of course it isn't - they're not the be-all and end-all university-wise.

Of course, I will still apply to them, but am still debating whether that high pressure environment is what I want vs a slightly less pressurised and prestigious environment (such as bristol, warwick, edinburgh etc.) where there would be more opportunities to socialise, do sports etc. Anyway, I might not even get into cambridge, so no point worrying about it now haha

There's no doubt that Cambridge is intense - the eight-week terms make staying on top of the work hard, and you've got to be very disciplined and organised. That said, there are a billion clubs and societies at the university, both college and in the wider uni, and it's perfectly possible to have a 'normal' student experience wrt clubs and extra-mural activities at Cambridge than at any other university. I think people worry sometimes that accepting a place at Cambridge necessitates a trade-off between a 'normal' student experience of university and the 'prestige' of a Cam degree, but it doesn't have to be a binary choice like that (I know you're not suggesting it is).
You seem to have a healthy attitude towards it, in any case.

Yes, thank you for the advice, it’s been very helpful! Out of interest, did you go to Cambridge? You mentioned knowing some Cambridge grads (i think)