I just wanted to know if there was anyone in the know on this, and knew the exact context.

I’ve read on certain admissions pages that it can communicate that you’re not committed. Obviously since that’s a “can” there are situations where the departments won’t think of it as a lack of commitment.

My working assumption is that so long as the courses are from different departments (because they wouldn’t know) and are similar/related in either their content or exit opportunities (because then your intentions and interest can still be thought of as the same), that it should be fine. I would be surprised if any department would think of this as you lacking commitment when there are a few courses which are quite similar and you’re just trying to make sure you’re not left with no options (especially given how competitive the application process is).

For context, I’m thinking of the Mathematical and computational finance, statistical science and economics.

I registered to the MAT through oxfords web page but I didn’t book it through pearsonvue. Does anybody know what I can do. I need the MAT for oxford.

Is it worth it?

As a international student is oxford cs worth it financially if I don't get scholarship ,I won't need to pull out loans but still, and if i deviate from my plan from higher studies how hard will it be to find a job as a international student,also will the brand help me with getting into hfts? I've idealized oxford a lot and would love to study here but I need more information thank you

Hello, I am at an extremely unremarkable public (government funded) highschool in the USA. Going just by Cambridge's description, the reference letter that is required for the application sounds like it should be coming from a headmaster at a private prep school, who is used to writing letter to places like Cambridge. My highschool counselor is very minimal, and would be be able to speak to my prospects as a mathematician. My Math and physics teachers would be able to speak to that, but they lack the knowledge regarding my school as an institution (stats, etc). What exactly should I get for a reference letter? Am I allowed to submit more than one?

I received my IGCSE results yesterday and got mostly A stars, 1 A and a C in English as a first language. Am I absolutely ripped away at a chance at being accepted at Oxbridge because of my English result ? Even if I manage to get all A* at A levels? I am looking to do a science/maths based degree. Please I need some advice and I need to know whether someone’s been in the same situation as me and still managed to get in.

Hi everyone, I’ve recently graduated from Year 13 and have since begun working as a private tutor. I have offers from top universities such as Imperial and Cambridge, for Biology and Natural Sciences respectively, so I know a lot about the application process, as well as what they’re looking for in candidates. I can help you become the ideal student so that you can maximize your chances of an offer. I have a surplus of supercurricular activities and content to offer you. The earlier you start, the better!

I also offer tuition in Maths, Further Maths, Biology and Chemistry. I’ve got top marks in my school for all 4 subjects, and have won the Cambridge Chemistry race for my school. I can help build a strong fundamental understanding of topics, as I believe that reduces the need for revision in the future (so a much easier time leading up to exams) , and also is incredibly important for the interview process ( also is just nice to know! ). For those aiming for NatSci at Cambridge, I help with NSAA prep and conduct mock interviews.

Please do message me if you have any questions, prices are negotiable!

Hope this post is okay for this subreddit. I achieved 9999887776 I've heard that Oxford places a lot of weight on GCSEs, more so than Cambridge. Are my grades good enough? Should I just not risk it and apply to Cambridge instead? I'm predicted AAA*A for A-level, applying for Law, which is hella competitive. Any advice appreciated.

I have supported thousands of students with Oxbridge applications through r/Oxbridge and r/BMATExam (old Oxbridge admissions test for Medicine). To avoid getting multiple threads, I decided to make this to answer frequently answered questions. If your question hasn't been answered already feel free to post a comment here.
In order to prevent unverified education consultants and companies from advertising here, we discourage posts relating to finding tutors, courses, and companies. This is not only because we don't want this place to be full of adverts, but because some companies provide poor services for a high price (i.e. paying tutors £10-20/h but charge £100/h+).

Do I need to pay for X service to get into Oxford/Cambridge?

No. You do not need to pay for a course, review, or tutor to get into your dream course at your dream university. In fact, there are free services for low-income families (such as Apply Cambridge and Target Oxbridge). These schemes allow you to use your time more efficiently and improve faster. If you are guided by someone who is qualified to guide you through the process, you may get access to exclusive resources. However, remember that just because someone is an Oxbridge student/graduate it does not mean that they are a good teacher nor they are qualified to help you with your application. Take claims with a pinch of salt. This is especially true if you decide to pay for a service. Finding one which is really worth it is difficult if you don't know where to look.

What do you think about X company/course?
Most admissions coaching companies pay tutors £10-20/h while charging £30-500/h to clients (over 2/3 goes to company). For resource creation, it varies from £1/page to £5/page. This means that volume, not quality, will be encouraged. Most resources are simply a waste of your time and money. A big portion of the information in them can be found in the university website and/or YouTube.

I have been keeping an eye on private companies and how the best private, state, and grammar schools (quite a few in the top 10 nationally) in the UK and overseas prepare their students. If you have a question relating to how your competitor's schools and top education consultants prepare them, feel free to DM me. More than happy to help. This also prevents spam in the subreddit as people don't have to ask the same question repeatedly.

If you use generic materials, you could make the argument that you are levelling the playing field by using what everyone uses. However, you must change this mindset. Top scores means that you are gifted and/or you know something that most candidates don't. A very small number of top schools, education consultants, and mentors have information which gives their students a significant advantage.

I am in Year 12. Do you have advice on admissions tests?

I scored in the top 1% globally for my admission test and have previously made a video for an Oxford college where I gave advice to students. My success came down to one thing: I tried to get every single advantage possible and compound it during the exam. This included a combination of exam strategies, test-specific strategies, and an emphasis on improving my skills. At the end of the day, these tests are testing your skills so make sure to work on that. You either do this by spamming papers and carefully analysing them, or you get someone to tell you all of the test strategies.

What do certain top state and private schools do to help their students?

From what I have seen over the years, many provide students with past interview questions with model answers. This is particularly useful as some are so detailed that you can use them for realistic mock interviews (many mock interviews from mentoring schemes and courses are honestly too easy or unrelated, this comes down to most people not having an actual clue about advising students).

Another interesting detail is that they provide students with links to the best private education consultants which have their exclusive materials with high-impact strategies. They have done all the research, and a very small number of students benefits from it.

They also have extensive information on work placements, volunteering opportunities, and super-curricular activities. For example, some schools are so familiar with science Olympiads so they know how the last round (Training camp) prepares students. This allows students to do what the camp does before doing the test itself. Simply having the information on what resources actually work goes a long way.

There are other interesting details such as having a dedicated Oxbridge head of applications at their school, external mentors who provide 1-1 UCAS support, help draft and review essay submissions for competitions, etc.

I am an international student. Does the above apply to me?

Yes. However as an international student, you will be expected to work at a much higher standard than an average British Oxbridge applicant. Thus it is even more important to focus on being in the top 5% or better to have a higher chance of having a successful application.

Can I make up for bad GCSEs/UCAS/Admissions Test Scores/Interviews with GCSEs/UCAS/Admissions Test Scores/Interviews?

As with all things, there will be exceptions in the application process. Some applicants with a weaker area (i.e. GCSEs) can make up for it in their admissions test. Some applicants with extenuating circumstances can also compensate for another weakness. The process is highly individualised hence why it is so important to work with someone who truly knows what they are doing. Whether this is at your school, an organisation, or the university admissions team itself. You can make up for anything to a certain extent.

Messages were being filtered due to spam. We have more mod activity now so the posting restrictions have been eased.

If you are applying from 2024 onwards, feel free to join the Discord servers:

We have created Discord servers for Oxford and Cambridge applicants to meet each other. Feel free to join them here:
Cambridge 2024-25 (All Subjects): https://discord.gg/qj9Nbpu8Sk

Oxford 2024-25 (All Subjects): https://discord.gg/MW4qAYjya2

I'm interested in applying to Oxford for a Computer Science undergraduate degree, but music is also a passion of mine. While I recognize the challenges of a full-time piano career, I'm wondering if Oxford or the surrounding area offers piano lessons and if such a demanding hobby is manageable alongside a Computer Science degree.

I’m an American who deeply desires to attend Oxford in particular, have high scores in school and wishes to apply to hope for a spot.

I’ve tried searching it up online but only end up getting more and more confused on how it can be done.

So i come here asking you guys how it can be done.

Thank you so much for reading and if you decide to reply.

I'm considering applying to Oxford for Comparative Social Policy next year. However, I'm unsure whether to apply for just the MPhil program or both the MPhil and MSc programs. While the MPhil program has a slightly higher acceptance rate, it only admits four students. Would applying to both programs improve my chances, or would it give the impression that I haven't made a clear decision?

I’m currently a high schooler and I plan to apply to Oxford. Ik Oxford really isn’t that big on extracurriculars unlike the ivies. So what grades do they really look for then? 10th grade or 12th grade????

As an international student in KSA and a private candidate . I am confused. I am enrolled to a private school which is already financially demanding but it is not an international school though, so I want to have an international taste either AP Exams along with SAT or IGCSE + As & A level along with SAT. So I am thinking about taking IGCSE as a private candidate but it will add extra money demand to the equation soooooo idk

so many exams so many options but which ones to give? and which ones cover the most unis

Please someone, anyone help me out •́⁠ ⁠ ⁠‿⁠ ⁠,⁠•̀ There is this online website called the Oxbridge admissions club. Their content seems satisfactory and kind of reliable ( I have only seen their one hour introductory video explaining everything that they are offering in great detail. Now the problem is they are offering this course for 127 pounds which is quite a huge sum in my country due to the exchange rate. If anyone can confirm their reliability or atleast what they have heard about this endevour it would reduce my anxiety down a major level since I don't want to be duped. I have already been rejected in one round of admissions I don't wish to cause more financial strain for my family. //today is the last day to sign up for it//

Hello,

I’ve received 5/5 offers on UCAS and hope to start my physics undergraduate study at Oxford this fall.

Over the summer, I plan to run some PAT prep sessions alongside A level maths and physics tutoring to help fund my tuition. I will also be guiding applicants with their writing process for UCAS personal statements.

The style of tutoring would be 1-on-1 and will be based on the needs of the individual applicant.

If you are interested in enrolling for these uni admission prep sessions, feel free to DM me and I would be happy to answer any questions.

Good luck :)

I did a 4 year integrated Masters at UCL in physics, earning an MSci with first-class. However, I failed a module in second year in statistical thermodynamics, and again one in fourth year in quantum mechanics. Both were classed as fail-condoned. I got a pretty decent mark in my MSci dissertation of 81%. My final year average came to a 71%.

I want to pursue a PhD in astrophysics at (hopefully) Oxbridge, not in the modules I failed dw :). My question is, do I stand a chance at a PhD at Oxbridge? Or perhaps, am I better off doing a second Master's or MRes in a related subject (like astrophysics) and then perhaps try again next year when I have hopefully better grades.

Any suggestions?

What gcse did u get for oxbridge

One of the best aspects of getting into top-tier universities like Oxbridge is the fact that your teachers become very proud of you and are usually very happy. However, if you get rejected and take a gap year to reapply and then get an offer - how would you former teachers know?

If you are in the situation where you reapplied and got into Oxbridge or any other university you wanted to go to, how did your former teachers or school react?

I am in year 11 and thinking ahead to the summer and know I want to do psychology at uni. I have no clue on supercurriculars for my subject so suggestions would be great!

Thanks

I have only 8 GCSEs: a 9, two 8s and five 7s. I’ve done a ton of super curriculars (-Clifford Chance Ready Set Law Job simulation , Linklater job simulation, Browne-Jacobson Job simulation, Cambridge Model UN 2021, FCDO Next Generation Economist competition 2021, Financial Times Young Financial Journalist competition 2021, BBC Law on Four,Listening in on a trial in Crown Court,Latham and Wadkins acquisitions and mergers job simulation, Oxford Human Rights Law Lecture, Noah Feldman’s Harvard lecture ‘On the nature of evidence’). I’m on track to get all As but I go to a grammar school and my main concern is my GCSEs. Do I have a good shot?

Hi there,
I am year 12 student who takes maths, further maths, biology and chemistry. I am keen to study biological natural sciences at cambridge, however I am thinking of switching chemistry to physics for A level. I know that chemistry is not a requirement for biological sciences, but I have checked and seen that 96% of successful applicants have chemistry. My question is, is this simply a correlation, or is one more likely to get picked with chemistry compared to physics? I understand there is a lot of chemistry in the course, so some have told me that I am less likely to get in without chemistry, is this at all, even slightly true? The truth is that I prefer physics, but if it would even slightly further my chances of a successful application I would rather have chemistry, please advise.

I’m an international student from a country with a curriculum not accepted in the uk. This requires me to go through a foundation year. My question is , does Oxbridge or specifically Oxford accept foundation years ? If they do, which universities’ foundation years do they accept ?

Does Oxford or Cambridge care that much about gcse grades?? I was wondering that getting mid grades seriously impacts your chances of getting in either of these universities. For my GCSEs I got all 7s and 8s except a 4(french) and 6(RE). I wish to pursue a computer science degree, meanwhile I study maths, fm, CS and an ICT btec. If I do exceptionally well in all my subjects etc - do my GCSE grades act as a barrier to get into these unis?

Currently a gcse student who flopped in English language mocks, and was looking for ppl who made it in to share their gcse experience. Kindly tell me what gcse’s at what subject you got and abt the system/qualification of level 1/2 merit, etc, etc, which one do I need? (Doing libf finance)

Hi, I’m an international student and was wondering if Oxford or Cambridge look for international equivalents of GCSEs. I was looking at their websites and to me it seems they don’t, but just wanted to check.

Hi everybody. Would anybody have any advice on what I could do about this? It’s not that the CV had incorrect, it’s more so that the focus was more on my professional experiences (which aren’t very related to the course) as opposed to my academic experiences (which are much more related to the course). I definitely think the difference in versioning would have an impact on my application, so if there is anything I can do, I think it’s worth doing.

I have 3 options:

1. Upload the new CV to my application as an additional supporting document (flagging in the name that it is an updated version), but then not contacting the department directly.

2. Contacting the department and asking them if there is anything I can do to get the CV switched.

3. Upload the new CV as an additional supporting document, then email the department immediately afterwards flagging this.

4. Withdraw my application and reapply.

I am significantly ahead of the final application deadline, so I’m hoping that would earn me some leniency. Any advice?

I got 6 7s 3 8s and a 9… - if I get all 4 A*s in my a levels will I be able to have a good chance of getting in?

(My a levels are politics maths physics and economics) - I was wondering if possibly an epq is better to have than one of these a levels as well for my application.

ANY HELP IS MUCH APPRECIATED

How hard is it to socialise with or make strong friendships/relationships with people in other colleges?

I know that societies and lectures exist, but most of a student’s time is spent in their own college. So, does that mean that it is hard to hang out with people in other colleges?

Is it true that some people rarely leave their own college?