The Student Room Group

Reality of oxbridge

Scroll to see replies

Reply 20

Original post
by MeghanBridges
Hi there!
I am currently in year 11 and achieved these grades in my November mocks:
English Language - 8 (2 marks off a 9)
English Lit - 5 (but know where I went wrong and am predicted an 8)
History - 7
Maths - 7
Biology - 7
Chemistry - 6
Physics - 6
French - 9
Drama - 8
I am hoping to get these all to 7+ by the time of my exams. Am I crazy to hope to get into Oxbridge? I would be wanting to study history/ law of some kind. I honestly have no idea, and don't want to set my expectations too high, but also have dreamed of getting into Oxbridge since I was little. Any opinions would be much appreciated! thank you xx
EDIT: my school gets an average of grade 3s/4s across the board and I go to school in a very deprived area. not sure if this changes anything x

Hi @MeghanBridges ,

Firstly, those are some excellent mock grades. You definitely have the potential to reach those top GCSE grades and you are on the right path for your goals.

I highly recommend for now you focus on your GCSEs and get the best grades possible before focusing on supercurriculars. You will have time for these during the summer months and during year 12. However if you are eager, you could begin researching and planning certain university pathways, summer schools (sutton trust), books, work experiences, MOOCs, and more that would be beneficial for you application. When deciding which extra curriculars to do, prioritise those that are meaningful to the course you are interested, rather than generic, therefore when you get to the point of writing your personal statement in a couple of years time you can truly show your passion.

I hope this helps, please feel free to ask me any questions,
-Sophia (University of Lancashire)

Reply 21

Original post
by LancashireRep4
Hi @MeghanBridges ,
Firstly, those are some excellent mock grades. You definitely have the potential to reach those top GCSE grades and you are on the right path for your goals.
I highly recommend for now you focus on your GCSEs and get the best grades possible before focusing on supercurriculars. You will have time for these during the summer months and during year 12. However if you are eager, you could begin researching and planning certain university pathways, summer schools (sutton trust), books, work experiences, MOOCs, and more that would be beneficial for you application. When deciding which extra curriculars to do, prioritise those that are meaningful to the course you are interested, rather than generic, therefore when you get to the point of writing your personal statement in a couple of years time you can truly show your passion.
I hope this helps, please feel free to ask me any questions,
-Sophia (University of Lancashire)

Hiya, thanks so much! OK, that's good to know, I am definitely keen to get the best grades I can. Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it x

Reply 22

Original post
by Anonymous
that careers interview seems very long to me, mine was capped to 5 minutes and it wasn't even about careers I was just asked if I'd applied to colleges and if I know what a levels and apprenticeships are.
You should still be grateful even if your school isn't the best in the UK, you still get free education up to the age of 18 which many countries lack.

oh wow. that's crazy. Yeah, I am of course grateful for my education, sorry if it didnt seem that way :smile:

Reply 23

Original post
by Anonymous
Also don't listen to the person who said you should lower your university expectations as you can still get into a good uni such as Cambridge. However, you should know getting into Oxbridge or even Russel group is not the final goal (I think many students on TSR forget this). At the end of the day, you do all this work to get a job and many employers don't regard the 'prestige of Oxbridge' over a person who has actual experience (e.g went down the apprenticeship route).

Ok thank you, that is really great advice that I should probably listen to! Thanks again ❤️

Quick Reply

How The Student Room is moderated

To keep The Student Room safe for everyone, we moderate posts that are added to the site.