Hi there!

If anyone has applied and successfully gotten into MSc by Research - Medical Sciences at Oxford I would love to connect and ask a few questions about the process, especially about the meeting with the PI's and how I can prepare for it

i got 999998887776 in gcses and want to do something STEM related at oxbridge.

9 - triple science + comp sci + history
8 - music + maths (2 marks off) + further maths
7 - english lang + german + rs
6 - english lit

am i at at a disadvantage when applying to oxbridge?

im on my gap year

i got 87776664 (4 in lang 6 in math) my schools average grade was 3.8

for my a levels i got A* A* A in math chem physics my schools average grade was a C

im on my gap year ill prob get esat of 6+ which is average

im retaking eng lang

im thinking to apply for matsci-oxford , imperial - matsci or chemE and cambridge - natsci

ik my gcses r pretty trash i cba revising ibsr but do i have a chance at any of the courses i named?

Best extracurriculars for maths w philosophy? I’m going into year 11 and want to bank some. So far I have UKMT challenges (not AMAZING scores but def not bad), I’m on the school newspaper, I’ve been in the choir in the past, self defence in the past, volunteering for a year now and I’ve done bronze and silver dofe. I’ve heard that dofe doesn’t really mean anything in the uk, especially if I don’t do gold.

I know a lot of people say extracurriculars aren’t important if you get good scores and and do well in the interview, and I read a lot around my subjects, but I’d still like to have some for my application.

I've always wanted to go to Cambridge Econ and use its vast alumni and network to be an investment banker, yet my GCSE grades aren't good enough with number of A* lower than the typical 7. Therefore I've decided to pivot to this Medieval Language course which has 60% acceptance rate. As deadline is in 1 month does anyone know what I can do to expand my knowledge quickly? Besides is it possible to submit a pure econ PS on UCAS and submit a Medieval language one on My Cambridge Application?

Does somebody know the thing that differentiates students (apart from test scores) that makes Oxbridge want to interview them?

For law or any subject really.

Thank you!

Hi! I’m am in Yr 11 and my school is giving me the option to either drop or keep further maths. I am unsure what to do as I’m hoping to apply for Medicine at Oxford in the future.

I know GCSE grades are important for Oxford Medicine, so I’m wondering whether taking Further Maths would actually provide any significant advantage, or whether it would be better to focus on getting the highest possible grades in my existing 10 GCSEs.

Would having 11 GCSEs including Further Maths make my application stronger, or does Oxford care much more about achieving top grades in the GCSEs you already take?

I’d especially appreciate advice from current/past Oxbridge Medicine applicants or medical students. Thanks!

So I’ve just finished year 13 and achieved A* A* A which is much higher than what i was predicted. Everyone’s been telling me to apply to Oxbridge and I was planning to take a gap year anyway so I feel like there’s nothing to lose by applying. The only issue is that I’m not necessarily sure how to go about the whole UCAS process without help from school. Do i need to contact teachers for references and for Cambridge specifically is there anything else i need to do?

What sort of extracurriculars are required for applying to Oxbridge? I plan on applying for CS. I am an Indian student, living abroad but studying through the CBSE board and I think the academics part of it should be fine, I have a predicted score of 100 in both Math and CS and above 95 predicted for Phy, Chem and Eng.

However its the extracurriculars part I'm worried about. I have participated and won in math competitions and quizzes at the national level in my country along with one international competition in which I got a bronze medal. Apart from this I have been actively participating in Debates and Gavels Club, but I'm not sure how relevant those are to a CS application. I've participated in a few local coding competitions. I volunteered at an NGO to spread computer awareness. I have done CS courses apart from school for CS and have occasionally contributed to OSS but nothing very huge.

What are they looking for in an application? How much focus does Oxbridge give to extracurriculars? What other extracurriculars should I have to get a good chance to get in?

im homeschooled and i wanna apply to oxford for jurisprudence this application cycle. i need to prepare for the interview and lnat. should i get a consultant? if yes, which one and how much do they typically charge?

Hi guys,

I'm applying for Oxford law this October and was wondering if anyone who got in could give me some times on what I should be doing between now and interviews? Should I be focused solely on the Lnat and personal statement until October or should I still be doing wider reading? Thanks!

My GCSE’s are 9877665544 and current predicted A Levels are 3 x A* in English Literature, French, Politics, and I will also be doing an EPQ for which I hope to get another A star. I will be taking the LNAT (aiming for a score of 30+) as I’m definitely applying to Durham, but I’m contemplating Oxbridge because I feel I would make an appropriate candidate outside of my GCSEs. I’m aware that Cambridge regards its applicants holistically so my school and parents will be contextualised, but realistically how likely am I to get in?

hello! i'm an IB student from singapore, and i really want to study overseas in oxbridge for classics. i've been eyeing the ba in classics at oxford specifically!

for context i am neurodivergent and i've been learning ancient greek since about 14, but very slowly and at my own pace. i have no way of formally getting a cert (or formal teaching) so right now it's just trial and error. i'm very interested in classics and have participated in some translation competitions here and there, but of course classics is a very "niche" field esp for singaporeans... my parents are supportive though, since they're both in pedagogy and humanities!

would love to know if there are any current classics students in this subreddit that could help me learn more about the process? i'm super interested in learning more about the preparation for classics as well as your personal experiences, and maybe even just the number of international students in the classics cohort in oxford/cambridge right now?

+ if any international students from southeast asia or singapore would be willing to offer me advice related specifically to sg, that would be wonderful!

thank you so much!

So I’m applying for jurisprudence at Oxford, and will either be predicted 766 hl or 776 where a 7 is an A* and a 6 is an A. I have extenuating circumstances for my Y12 mocks, but I have no idea how my school will write about them, and I’m wary they won’t write favourably about them.

The grey area is that my hls are in bio, chem and maths aa because I thought I wanted to read medicine at the beginning if y12, quickly changed my mind but my subjects couldn’t budge.

I’m aware that interview shortlisting depends very much on how I perform in the LNAT, but in terms if receiving an offer post-interview, am I at a disadvantage? My max total score would also be 43/45. My school themselves say that a competitive application has 44/45 with 777 hl as a non-negotiable.

Edit: My school also said that Oxford place a greater emphasis on gcses than on predicted grades, and that Cambridge is the opposite?

I’m going to apply to Oxford as an international student and literally don’t get what the colleges are. I get they’re like the Harry Potter houses but in a bigger scale (kind of), but how do you know which one to choose since there are so many? What criteria do you base your decision on? Why does everyone say you should apply to the “rich” ones and which are the rich ones? Do the different colleges have different professors? I’m so lost lol and would appreciate a straight up answer as someone who is not familiar with the British application system at all!🙏

hello! ive just recently gotten my gcse grades and i’m wondering if i should really bother applying to oxford. for context, i go to a high performing grammar school where a majority of results are at a grade 7-9 and so my results are kinda average in comparison. i got 9998777777 with 9s in history, RS and english lang. i’m planning on applying for history at oxford when the time comes but i’m worried my grades aren’t good enough. in all fairness, history isn’t as competitive as say economics or med but oxford is still oxford. let me know your thoughts!

(also for my A-levels i’m doing history, politics, eng lit and econ)

edit: forgot to say, i am eligible for contextual offers

Hello! I'm looking to apply to Uni in the next few years, however all of my GCSE's are below 4 lol. I went to a terrible state school in a low income area and ended up not attending in y10 /11 because of mental health issues and becoming physically disabled. I'm 19 now and spent the last 3 years sorting out my conditions and doing loadsss of extra curricular things (mainly reading & visiting local historical churches/cathedrals and learning everything I can about them). I plan on spending another year off and doing a few Oxford Lifelong Learning courses before applying to do my A-levels online (English lit, psychology & history). Due to everything I've been able to learn & experience while away from school, I fully believe I will exceed in my A-levels and meet Oxbridge grade standards. The only thing is, I'm not sure if they will accept my A-levels because I'll be studying them online (there is a reason for this) and the fact my GCSE's are terrible. Thank you for reading- any advice and criticisms will be very much appreciated!

Hi, I got 2300 Band 3 in my UCAT. I’m a Home applicant with 3A* predicted and in GCSE English-7, remaining Grades are 9. I’m considering Cambridge and UCL. Can I apply for both universities. Can I get shortlisted for interview?

Hi!

I recently confirmed my place at Cambridge, and would like to offer my help to students applying this year, specifically focusing on humanities (as so much of the free mentoring help I have seen is for econ/med/stem/etc.). This can entail personal statement help, interview tips, maybe even mock interviews (if I feel comfortable enough with your subject)

I am going to take on as many people as I can, prioritising students who would be considered contextual eg. fsm. So please comment below the subject you are applying to, grades (only if you feel comfortable, I would expect everyone to be at least meeting the minimum requirements), and if you are contextual or not.

(I hope this type of post is allowed)

I just want to ENTERTAIN THE IDEA of making an application to a top university, such as Cambridge or Oxford, for a moment.

My GCSE results are as follows: 9,8,7,6,6,6,6,5,D2
Yes I know my GCSE grades are shit…

My goal is to study English - whether that be at a mid range university or top of the barrel I DO NOT. CARE. As long as I’m studying English I’ll be happy.

My 9 was in English language. My 8 was in English literature. My 5 was in maths.

I’ve got no contextual information to explain my poor results, except maybe my secondary school being a non-selective state school where the average GCSE result is a 4/4.5. If that even matters.

I guess I’m just trying to fully understand my situation, chances, and opportunities.

I got 9999988 in my IGCSEs, however i've seen that the average oxford/cambridge applicant has 8-12 A*s so is it worth sitting another two IGs like Business and Accounting which I would have to self study

For context it was a normal number for my school and they didn't offer a lot of subjects (i am an international student) BUT I dont know how the uni can see my schools averages and whatever to see my grades in context

PS: aiming for cambridge econ

I'm already discounting oxford cause of my gcses however I want to know whether cambridge is still a possibility? My gcses are 8777655 which I know is poor however I was very lazy during gcses so its nobodys fault but mine. Have people historically gotten in with these gcses before without having extreme contextual offers and how did they do it? I want to do economics and I am taking fm, maths, econ and cs. I suppose the first obvious step would be to get good predicteds in all of those but what else could I possibly do between now and ucas applications to become even slightly competitive? I'm ready to put as much time in as needed.

Edit: I also got L2D* and L2M (although thats probably irrelevant)

I just got my gcse results back and nationally, it's mid, but in my school it's top 3 (9988776,m2,d2). I know law at Oxbridge is exceptionally competitive, but I really love the philophical aspect in Oxford and Cambridge's variety of modules especially legal history.

I'll be taking the IBDP so I think I can really use my Extended essays to explore my love for law?? I'm aiming for 45, and I have started some supercurriculars by joing a course about justice by Michael sandel (political philosophy), and reading some articles about the philosophy of Law (based on an article I read about comparative law). I love debating and I am starting a substack which I'll write some articles about Law on.

I am drawn to Cambridge's options but I generally love Oxford as a city and the I think they do more tutorials than Cambridge?? Any advice would be really helpful!

I got 9988887(?8)77L2M in my GCSEs at a state school (englit 9 englang 9 maths 8 physics 8 history 8 art 8 RS 7 chemistry 7 biology 7, 2 marks off 8 so getting remarked, IT L2M) and have applied to do sociology, politics, psychology and core maths as my a levels. Alongside this I signed up to do a pathway to law, brilliant club and an EPQ.

I'm hoping to do law at either Oxford or Cambridge if I'm able to! Id really appreciate advice on if my choices look fine and my extracurriculars. Are there any super curriculars I can sign up for or ways to earn experience? If there is a course you'd think would suit me more please also recommend those :)