Applying to Oxbridge from the US?

Hi! I'm a current high school junior at a large public school in the US, and I'm interested in reading English in the UK for undergrad. I'd really really love to be able to go to Cambridge, but I'm not sure how realistic that is for me. My school's academics are not that great, and I'm in a pretty crappy English class (AP lang), where my teacher doesn't assign us work or ever really make us read anything. I read a lot in my spare time, and the school I went to my freshman and sophomore years had a great, pretty intense English program, which I think has given me a good basis of literature understanding. I also took AP US government my sophomore year, and got a five, and this year I'm taking AP lang, AP art history, and AP US history (predicted 5s on those as well). I'm taking the SAT next month and my practice scores have all been 1500+.
My main areas of interest are romantic and Victorian literature, as well as early feminist literature. For my personal statement, I'm thinking of talking about A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf, the Memoirs of Mary Robinson, and perhaps a third piece of literature, but I'm not entirely sure.
Other than reading a ton, I don't have many supercurriculars to show---I took an editing course last summer, and I'm currently volunteering as a beta reader for an upcoming novel, but I feel like neither of those show that much about my ability to do well in a course as competitive as Cambridge's.
I'm aware this is super rambly, but basically, what I'm asking, has anyone made a successful application to Oxbridge for undergrad from the US who could share any tips for strengthening my application? Also, are there any current English students who could give me any advice for supercurriculars or helpful books to be reading?
Thank you!

Reply 1

jasmineva3128

Hi. When it comes to applying to university in the UK, Oxbridge included, supercurriculars matter far more than extracurriculars.

Supercurriculars are activities that you do outside of school that are directly related to the subject you want to study at university, in your case English.

Extracurriculars are any other activities you do that are not related to English.

It is generally advised that only 10% of an Oxbridge personal statement should be on extracurriculars, meaning that your supercurriculars are what's really important.

Mostly, supercurriculars for English are reading. Reading a wide range of time periods, genres, and different types of texts (not just reading novels, but reading poetry and plays too). Reading novels/articles about the ways of studying literature. You can also listen to podcasts or watch TV shows on literary commentary.

I'm sorry to say that your editing course and beta reading are extracurriculars. That doesn't mean you can't mention them, but they're not that important. They do show passion in a different way though, so I wouldn't say don't mention them at all.

I would have a look at the Anyverse YouTube channel and website as they break down how to write a personal statement with examples for different subjects.

With your personal statement, you need to show progression. So one book piqued your interest because of a particular theme, which lead you to read this book from another theme period to see how it explores this theme, and then you watched a documentary about it. To put it simply, there's a lot of "I did _ which made me think _ which lead me to _."

Based on this, you might want to mention more in your personal statement than just the works you've already stated. I also think that once you begin how to craft a personal statement, you may end up finding that you can't really tie in those books to anything else (at least that's what I found).

I assumed that there were some novels that I was definitely going to mention (Mary Shelley's Frankenstein for one), but when it came down to it, I realised it wouldn't work.

I'm applying to university for English and History later on this year, and so I've mapped out a rough idea of what I'm going to mention in my personal statement so that I can see what supercurriculars I still have left to do.

Doing this has led me down a completely different path with my personal statement than I originally thought would happen.

Originally, I assumed I would primarily mention novels, whereas now I plan to mention two poets (one 20th century and one 18th century), three playwrights (one 16th/17th century, and the other two classical Athenian), and one novel on the influences on one of the playwrights I'm going to mention.

You may find yourself doing more than this as you're just applying for English whereas I plan on applying to a joint degree.

I hope this helps, and if you have any more questions, feel free to ask me. 😊

Reply 2

charlotte.cookie

Original post

by jasmineva3128

Hi. When it comes to applying to university in the UK, Oxbridge included, supercurriculars matter far more than extracurriculars.
Supercurriculars are activities that you do outside of school that are directly related to the subject you want to study at university, in your case English.
Extracurriculars are any other activities you do that are not related to English.
It is generally advised that only 10% of an Oxbridge personal statement should be on extracurriculars, meaning that your supercurriculars are what's really important.
Mostly, supercurriculars for English are reading. Reading a wide range of time periods, genres, and different types of texts (not just reading novels, but reading poetry and plays too). Reading novels/articles about the ways of studying literature. You can also listen to podcasts or watch TV shows on literary commentary.
I'm sorry to say that your editing course and beta reading are extracurriculars. That doesn't mean you can't mention them, but they're not that important. They do show passion in a different way though, so I wouldn't say don't mention them at all.
I would have a look at the Anyverse YouTube channel and website as they break down how to write a personal statement with examples for different subjects.
With your personal statement, you need to show progression. So one book piqued your interest because of a particular theme, which lead you to read this book from another theme period to see how it explores this theme, and then you watched a documentary about it. To put it simply, there's a lot of "I did _ which made me think _ which lead me to _."
Based on this, you might want to mention more in your personal statement than just the works you've already stated. I also think that once you begin how to craft a personal statement, you may end up finding that you can't really tie in those books to anything else (at least that's what I found).
I assumed that there were some novels that I was definitely going to mention (Mary Shelley's Frankenstein for one), but when it came down to it, I realised it wouldn't work.
I'm applying to university for English and History later on this year, and so I've mapped out a rough idea of what I'm going to mention in my personal statement so that I can see what supercurriculars I still have left to do.
Doing this has led me down a completely different path with my personal statement than I originally thought would happen.
Originally, I assumed I would primarily mention novels, whereas now I plan to mention two poets (one 20th century and one 18th century), three playwrights (one 16th/17th century, and the other two classical Athenian), and one novel on the influences on one of the playwrights I'm going to mention.
You may find yourself doing more than this as you're just applying for English whereas I plan on applying to a joint degree.
I hope this helps, and if you have any more questions, feel free to ask me. 😊

Thanks for your reply! This is really helpful!
I'm aware of the extra vs. supercurriculars, which is why I was asking about specific books and articles haha.
For the personal statement, I'm planning on talking about the way women have portrayed themselves in their writing and how literature became a reflection for women's thoughts/feelings in counterbalance to patriarchal writings and the societies they lived in. Obviously, it still needs a lot of polish, but those are my sort of main ideas. I'm also thinking of including an earlier text---perhaps one of Shakespeare's female contemporaries, which would connect with the "if Shakespeare had a sister" theory of A Room of One's Own. I'm also going to mention the article I read which led me to reading Mary Robinson's memoirs, and started my journey thinking about the different ways women portrayed themselves through literature.
I've done a lot of spare reading over plenty of different genres (I've read a good amount of Shakespeare, romantic poetry, early American literature, some absurdist and postmodernism, plus a lot of Victorian/Edwardian classic novels). I definitely could branch out though in the authors I read, because I've spent a lot of time reading the more well known ones (Austen, Keats, Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Woolf, Bronte, etc), so thank you for bringing that to mind! I also love watching documentaries, so your idea about English related documentaries is amazing. Honestly, just talking (typing) through the ideas I have has definitely made them seem more concrete and given me a bit more to work with.
If you don't mind me asking, where are you applying for uni? It sounds like we're going to doing our applications at the same time (2027 entry?), so I'd love to hear more about how you think this upcoming application cycle is going to go, or what else you're doing to prepare. I'm applying on my own (I'm not getting any academic support from my school, as they have no knowledge of the UK University system or how to help someone applying) so I'd love to have someone to chat with! If you don't mind, of course. 😊

(edited 1 month ago)

Reply 3

jasmineva3128

Hi, I'm glad I could help.

Yes, I'm also planning on applying for 2027 entry. I currently plan on applying to St Andrews, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Strathclyde, and Aberdeen. I had been interested in Oxbridge, but the fees are too high (although for my course St Andrews ranks higher than both of them anyways).

Hopefully I get the grades I need in my exams in April/May, but I'm on track so I just need to keep up with what I'm doing now.

Sadly, there's no real way to predict how this application cycle is going to go because you never know who your going up against for a space. One year might be much more competitive than the next.

I want to check, do you know that you can only apply to one of Oxford and Cambridge? And, are you aware that in the UK we apply to university through UCAS which allows you to pick a maximum of five universities to apply to? You might want to consider applying to a couple of other UK universities since you only write one personal statement which is sent off to each university (I recommend St Andrews especially for English).

In terms of supercurriculars I'm planning on doing, I want to read Shakespeare's 'Antony and Cleopatra' (among other plays). I read this really obscure book 'Much Ado About Numbers' by Rob Eastaway, which talks about the numerical influences on Shakespeare's work. It's made me want to read his work and apply it through the lens of the society in which it was written, which I'd really like to talk about in my personal statement. The book 'Much Ado About Numbers' was okay (solid three stars) as the information was good but I found it a bit waffly. There was often unnecessary information roped in before actually getting to the point.

I'd also like to read more Robert Burns poetry, and the little I have read has made me want to tie it into my personal statement.

I understand that applying to uni/college in the US is very different, so of course I'm more than happy to chat and to answer any questions you come up with. My DM's are always open, and you could watch my Grow Your Grades thread (called "Jasmin's S5 Gyg"), as I post regularly on there (and am trying to include more about my supercurriculars).

Reply 4

charlotte.cookie

Original post

by jasmineva3128

Hi, I'm glad I could help.
Yes, I'm also planning on applying for 2027 entry. I currently plan on applying to St Andrews, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Strathclyde, and Aberdeen. I had been interested in Oxbridge, but the fees are too high (although for my course St Andrews ranks higher than both of them anyways).
Hopefully I get the grades I need in my exams in April/May, but I'm on track so I just need to keep up with what I'm doing now.
Sadly, there's no real way to predict how this application cycle is going to go because you never know who your going up against for a space. One year might be much more competitive than the next.
I want to check, do you know that you can only apply to one of Oxford and Cambridge? And, are you aware that in the UK we apply to university through UCAS which allows you to pick a maximum of five universities to apply to? You might want to consider applying to a couple of other UK universities since you only write one personal statement which is sent off to each university (I recommend St Andrews especially for English).
In terms of supercurriculars I'm planning on doing, I want to read Shakespeare's 'Antony and Cleopatra' (among other plays). I read this really obscure book 'Much Ado About Numbers' by Rob Eastaway, which talks about the numerical influences on Shakespeare's work. It's made me want to read his work and apply it through the lens of the society in which it was written, which I'd really like to talk about in my personal statement. The book 'Much Ado About Numbers' was okay (solid three stars) as the information was good but I found it a bit waffly. There was often unnecessary information roped in before actually getting to the point.
I'd also like to read more Robert Burns poetry, and the little I have read has made me want to tie it into my personal statement.
I understand that applying to uni/college in the US is very different, so of course I'm more than happy to chat and to answer any questions you come up with. My DM's are always open, and you could watch my Grow Your Grades thread (called "Jasmin's S5 Gyg"), as I post regularly on there (and am trying to include more about my supercurriculars).

Yeah, I'm aware about how you can only apply to either Oxford or Cambridge, and how you can choose 5 uni choices on UCAS. I haven't decided what my fifth option is going to be, but right now I'm planning on applying to Cambridge, UCL, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. I've considered St. Andrews before, but I also want another three year option, because it just makes more sense financially.
And yes, US college admissions is very different! It's far more focused on extracurriculars like sports and leadership positions, and your application is more "why I'm a good person" vs. "why I'm a good student." 😆 I think that's one of the reasons studying in the UK appeals to me---it's far more about being good at your subject than all the things you've accomplished in high school. The testing system is also very different: we take APs for various classes throughout high school, which are graded on a scale of 1-5, then the SAT is usually taken during junior year (11th grade), which is graded out of 1600 (800 for the reading section, 800 for math). So it's definitely a very different system that priorities different things.
That books sounds really interesting! I love looking at classic literature through ideas of science and sociology. I also love Burns's poetry (I recited O My Luve's Like a Red, Red Rose as part of a school Poetry Out Loud competition last year haha).
Anyways, thanks again for all your help and advice!! I really appreciate it 😊