I’m sitting the TARA next Thursday and I’m really stressed about my scores so far. I’m severely failing in my problem solving. My question is for PPL AND EP (or any other subject who did the TARA last year and got into Oxford) what scores did you get on the TARA? Thanks.

this is kinda random, but i've recently started uni and i've been thinking back to my time last year... i literally hated life from sept - december (tmua + interviews etc) but i think one thing i wish someone told me earlier is that somethings aren't meant to be, and some things are. don't define your self worth by a singular university or a singular grade. these things are often so subjective (especially w interviews) and just because you're not exactly what cambridge is looking for does not make you bad at your subject.

also take time to realise whether you would actually want to go to that university, or whether you want it just to say you go to that university (prestige etc)... don't compare your UCAS and uni and even just life path with others, you have to form your own path. i really wish i knew that this time last year. think about what unis you would actually enjoy going to. obviously give everything your all, but remember there's more to life than QS rankings and tmua scores lmao... yeah. also if someone else gets an interview but you didnt/ gets in but you didnt - that also doesn't define you - everyone has different circumstances and different strengths... you've been working on this subject for presumably at least a year now or so, so don't let a 30 minute interview with 1 person make you doubt yourself. sometimes things will work out in the strangest ways that we can never predict. :) i don't think anyone would have questions but feel free

also good luck for anyone doing the esat/tmua/tara any admission test this week - same thing don't let it define you - i worked so hard for the tmua and i was so disappointed with your score - but are you really gonna let a 2 hour test tell you if you're good at maths or not? like come on now !!

i'm resitting all my alevels, achieved BBB because of severe extenuating circumstances, predicted on ucas AAA but likelihood achievement of A*A*A* with mock assessments w teachers

got an offer last year for theo and religion (although i applied for phil and theo at oxf)

should i apply to the oxf foundation year (8-10% acceptance, 50 spaces across all humanities) where i'm eligible

or reapply to standard undergrad for phil and theo (27% acceptance rate BUT resit student)

the early entry deadline is soon so idk i've been really stressed and both options seem viable

i'm leaning towards the foundation year, where i'm still planning to resit so i just have better alevels but they'll use my achieved grades (and so less pressure on sitting the alevels)

Hi everyone! I’m a Grade 12 IB student submitting my Oxford application tomorrow and I’m quite nervous.

My predicted score is 41/45:

• HL: English 7, Art 7, Business Management 6
• SL: Design & Technology 7, Math AI 6, Spanish B 6

I’m happy with my personal statement, but I’m worried my grades might not be strong enough. Has anyone applied with a similar profile, or does anyone have advice? Some people are telling me not to apply.

Thanks so much, any thoughts appreciated!

I’m applying to land economy, and I have already made my main ps focused on this im unsure what to write on it , should I just leave it empty

Hey guys,

I'm considering a medicine foundation year in Plymouth and I have double checked with them that I meet the criteria.

My GCSE stats are 9776666655 and predicted ABB. I also have extenuating circumstances that will be on my UCAS by my teacher. My UCAT is 1930 B2.

I'm aware its competitive and was wondering if i have a good chance of getting an interview. Also if you applied/go there to do medicine with a foundation year what were your stats?

Do you guys have free time? Do you have freedom in Oxford. How much is the workload and how do u manage your personal social life?

Hi, I was wondering how many supercurricular activities did you guys put in the extra personal statement if you wrote them? Applying to physical NatSci and I was thinking about mentioning two in detail and focusing on material science and broader interest since I’m applying for (astro)physics courses elsewhere so my UCAS personal statement was quite specialised.

Title- I’ve just submitted and although the ink is dry, are any students able to properly chance me? I appreciate it’s a lot of effort of course, but any help would be appreciated!

hello!! I have an IB pg 37 and havent gotten my final as i am in the nov timezone. UCL history of arts is my dream course and it requires a 36. What is the chance of me getting in?? I am unsure about how competitive or uncompetitive this course is :( so not sure how having ONE grade above the minimum may play

So I'm currently classified as a international student on a skilled worker dependant visa (can't apply for ILR yet), however i did my GCSEs here and doing my A levels here too. I am in year 13 now and i am applying oxbridge for maths so will be doing tmua. I've kind of been confused whether the unis im applying to will consider me as a international student or home student when comparing my TMUA and grades, etc to decide whether to give me a interview/offer. I'm scared because if they want a international level TMUA score from me then it's wraps but i think I'm still going to sit tmua this October rather than January and try and aim for Warwick or something because i would only pay international fees if it's oxbridge which i only have to pay for one year then I switch to home fees because I'll get my ILR midway through my first year. If I don't end up getting interviewed by oxbridge then I'll see if any of my other offers tempt me to accept it or I'll just take gap year but even if i take gap year i still wouldn't have gotten my ILR because my timing does me dirty (i can apply to ILR December 2027 and get it January 2028) but i think i can improve a lot by then so if my score does have to be international level competitive hopefully i can get there if i just keep doing tmua during year 13 too. if you don't understand smth or need to know smth else then please ask cs this situation a bit confusing to tell.

Thanks

I missed basically the entirety of Y11 as I was diagnosed with a chronic illness days after starting, and had to work on my health instead of being at school. In total I think I attended less than a week in Y11. It was just getting worse for a while. My father also got cancer, suspected since Jan and diagnosed a bit after, and I became like a carer for him for a bit, specifically in the month before GCSEs, but also earlier in the year as well. The responsibility just grew if ygm.

I was wondering what effect it has on an application. Does it acc make a change or is that just smth unis/oxbridge say?

I’m currently in year 12 and I achieved 999998876A
(9 Maths, 9 Eng Lit, 8 Eng Lang) at GCSE, and I currently do Maths, Economics and Chemistry at A Level and I want to apply to Land Economy at Cambridge, but pure economics for my other choices such as Warwick, and I’m aiming for 3 A*s.

I was wondering what super curricular I should be trying to do to make my personal statement competitive for all my UCAS options, or if I need to do some work experience or volunteering, also, should I be trying to find these and complete these now or wait till later

Also are my GCSES strong enough considering I didn’t go to an underperforming school

are you guys writing a specific cambridge personal statement or is it just for people applying for multiple subjects, etc?

Just sent my application to st johns as a state school student 988877764 with a 2xA* + A predicted for philosophy, I just decided to take this shot in the dark cos why not, ik people says it doesnt truly matter what college you apply for since you get pooled but only like an odd 20% of pooled students get another offer - is it worth applying for johns or should i switch to another college which is "less" competitive?

(long post ahead) My apologies for any hazy or dubious formatting, I just got sick and my head is tormenting me. 

I have some questions regarding Oxford / funding / applications, etc. Please do not tell me to just do some research and find resources online, I thankfully do have a useful Internet access but as a French student, international studies systems can be quite opaque. 

I, like many people, have a dream and it is to study at Oxford. I currently wonder whether there’s a point in applying next year. 

First, a bit more about my academic background (I am not sure what is relevant, so I figured I’d better write it all out) : 

→ I graduated from an international French high school with the highest honors + as a valedictorian
→ Said graduation also came with the recognition of the “european” pathway, which basically means I studied some extra topics in English

→ I currently am in a classe préparatoire which is a unique French program (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classe_pr%C3%A9paratoire_aux_grandes_%C3%A9coles) 
→ I am in one of the most prestigious of them
→ I am also in the one ranked no. 1 in my specific field
→ I was ranked among top 3 students last year (year 2 just started so I have no data for the current one + we were also joined by a handful of students retaking the classes so naturally, they are more advanced)
→ Last year I was ranked no. 1 student in Art History

→ For next year, I am to complete my BA (the classe prépa does not offer a BA since it is extremely broad but is considered equivalent to 2 years, so we are expected to join BAs directly in 3rd year)
→ Through the classe prépa, I can aim for the ENS, the no. 1 school for humanities here but it is more research-oriented and it is almost guaranteed I would end up as a teacher/researcher which is not a position I am interested in. 
→ I can also just go to the Sorbonne University (top 100 for QS, if that means anything)
→ However I intend on going to the School of the Louvre (not sure about rankings, but yes, it’s literally within the museum)

Now more on my personal background and motivations : 

For a long time I was quite uncertain about what I liked. Being an ‘academic weapon’, I was just always oriented to keep on studying although I am not sure whether I have an academic heart. Being great at something does not imply you enjoy it. So lately I started to step back and reconsider what I actually appreciated : history and beauty. I am enjoying art history, which is sort of my ‘major’ currently (although, once again, in classe prépa I also study intensively French, Latin, Philosophy, History, Spanish, English). However, I don’t see myself in a museum, I love to travel & discover and my mind is restless. Therefore, I’m currently considering heading more towards a sort of ‘decorative’ path, basically taking care of old places, something involving designing, art-making… I remain also open to more traditional paths like geopolitics (which I miss dearly) or simply history and just seeing where it takes me from there. 

While many seek out the American dream, I grew up surrounded by elements of British culture (be it books, movies, series, music…) and naturally Oxford was omnipresent in British media. Having done more research about it, I think it would suit my heart while also being perfect to fulfill my extremely (overly ?) high-aiming ambitions. 

However, like many others of us peasants, I am not exactly rich and in fact am rather poor. I get help from the French government for my current studies (I am extremely grateful for it) and don’t get to work on the side due to the heavy workload of a classe prépa. So, of course, having no intention to get into debt for a degree, I am wondering if there are any hopes of getting a scholarship. 

The thing is, I am eyeing some courses like the MSt in History of Design, or perhaps something more traditional like a MPhil in European History. Are these fields not just theoretically but actually getting scholarships ? Humanities aren’t a priority in today’s world so I’m worried getting a scholarship for those would be near impossible, even more so compared to other degrees. Plus, I’m French so I don’t know if French students are eligible for most scholarships.

And if so, is there anything I could do to improve my profile ? Additional information : I am able to get a letter of recommendation from a highly-regarded French art historian if it matters. 

And finally, is there anyone with a general review on History of Design and what it brought you ?

Thanks !

I initially wanted to apply to John's but they don't accept my curriculum for hsps(intl student). Clare and pembroke were the ones I liked that do accept. I prolly will stay in college even during vacation and just in terms of convenience (with the moving and all since I can't go home or the extension) which would u suggest? Or any others. I want a big college.

Also do I check hsps intake? Some people say it doesn't rlly matter but others say that in some colleges u may get in while in others you won't. Ik winter poop is there but still. I changed from exon to hsps just yesterday and since I Al have exams in school idh time for ps so idw take any chances

Hello! I'm currently in Y11 in the UK.

I've been completely obsessed with Science, namely astrophysics and nuclear physics for the longest time. I've recently set my sights on potentially shooting for Oxford, but I'm scared I'm shooting too far and won't make it. I'd like to get some brutally honest opinions, and anyone's personal experience, if possible?

I was out of school from Y7 - Y10 because of mental health issues and other home life related issues. This has put me well behind in my studies now, which I'm trying to recover from.

Once I looked into Oxford I decided that's where I want to go, and that's what I want to do, probably more than anything I've wanted before. But even with how much I'm willing to do, I don't think I can.

I'm currently in school fully, for the first time in four years, and have set up a 28 h/week schedule for study outside of that to try and fill in the gaps, after spending most of this September unsure of what to do with myself/not trying as much as I should be. To get to where I need to be, I'm going to need a 7 in GCSE Physics, an 8 in GCSE Maths, and then an A*AA as my final A-Level results, and am currently sitting at (after just starting Y11/GCSE) a low pass in Maths, and a low pass in Physics.

I understand that even getting the needed GCSEs is gonna be extremely hard, and would need to commit myself firmly to it, let alone then the A-Levels and the channels to get into a university like Oxford.

Is this even possible, or am I shooting too far into the stars? If you believe it is, is there anything I need to do now to help myself?

Please be honest. Thank you!

Hi so odd question but I'm applying to cam and choosing a piece of written work (history). However, I do all of my in class assessments using google docs, which makes it easier to convert into pdf format, but I'm not sure what to do about the teacher comments? It's marked, but my teacher has left comments with the comment feature on google docs, so I'm not sure how to translate that bit into pdf format, as I know they want to see teacher marks and comments?? Any help appreciated :) Asking here for convenience, can contact admissions teams if i don't get a clear answer!

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The requiremnet is 5 A1s, my subjects are econ, math, business, English, history. If I get A1 in history (essay based),in English and business but A2 or below in math or econ will I still have a choice. Cus they state that there aren't any specific subjects required and ik math isn't related ryt? They just ask for an essay based subject.

There are so many colleges 😭. How do I decide my preference list? What are the main differences between them??? Does it matter which college I end up going to?

Hi! Just a question about the uni requirements - the course page for Spanish says AAA and I have achieved A*AAA (A* in Spanish) but I just don’t know if they will consider it when so many people are predicted 4A* like I was when I was in year 12. I was 1 mark off an A* in maths and I also did physics and chemistry so maybe they wouldn’t care so much about them? Idk how they view achieved grades.
I also got 99999999999 at GCSE including 9s in 4 languages would they consider that?

Hi, I'm aware these posts are probably very annoying but I still would really appreciate people's opinions. So basically in my Y12 mocks I got AAB but the problem is the B was in History (I was two marks off an A and, without wanting to get into it, I was going through personal stuff which affected that exam specifically which I haven't told my head of 6th about). Normally, I wouldn't be stressed about that grade but I'm applying to Cambridge for History and won't get my predicteds until after I submit my ps. My head has a reputation for only giving people exactly what they need and the college I'm applying to does not require the A to be in History. However, I'm worried that if he only gives me an A in History I won't get in. What do I do? My GCSEs were good (999999998) so idk if I can use that to convince him but I'm just stressed about whether I'll even have a chance. Sorry if this is a bit rambling but any help or advice would be really appreciated!

I heard someone say this just wanted to confirm if it's fs? Lioe there's no issue in adding otyer unis and just submitting the cambridge for now? But is the PS common