Oxbridge Applications: What’s Involved?
When you’re thinking about applying to Oxford or Cambridge it can be difficult to know where to start.
The fact you have to write a Personal Statement might already be familiar. But some parts (SAQ? Admissions Tests? Interviews?) are unique. It’s important to have an overview of what you have to do so you can plan your preparation. You can find more details on each of the individual bits in other blogs, so don't worry if it seems like a lot to take in at first!
This is your introduction:
GCSE Grades
For most students, GCSEs are the exams they have taken most recently. This makes them the most ‘trustworthy’ academic measure the unis have.
They’re not the most important part of your application, but they are important. You should discuss with your teacher if you have significant numbers of 7s or below.
Predicted A-level Grades
These are set by teachers based on how you do in mocks, assessments, homework, etc... They make up a pretty small part of the admissions tutors' decision. This is because most predicted grades are wrong. Seriously! About 70% turn out wrong.
This means that although weak predicted grades can be negative, strong grades are not the most important. They’ll be similar for most students.
Teacher Reference
Your teacher or teachers write this and submit it through UCAS. They may or may not include you when they're writing it - it depends on the school.
This is a less important because although your teacher will (hopefully) say positive things about you, so will everyone else's. So it doesn't help you stand out!
UCAS Personal Statement
This is the only part of the application that shows who you are as a person before the interview. You aren't just a series of numbers and letters, and this is where you show that.
For Oxbridge it is less important than it is at other unis because they collect loads of other information. But this is where you get to show your interest in the subject.
While good personal statements won't guarantee you a place, a bad personal statement would definitely be weighted against you.
The SAQ
The Supplementary Application Questionnaire is a form you fill in with extra information for Cambridge only. It includes module grades, mitigating factors, a Cambridge specific personal statement. The opportunity to add the Cambridge personal statement is useful for students applying for different courses at different unis.
The SAQ is a great opportunity for students with exceptional module results. You might want to consider avoiding it by going for Oxford if you're taking resits or have weaker modules.
Admissions Tests
The Admissions Assessments are taken by all applicants to science courses at Oxbridge. They aim to test your lateral thinking and problem solving skills. They aren't designed to test particularly advanced content, so it's almost all AS-level or below. But the questions should make you think and see how you deal with an ‘Oxbridge' style of thinking. So they can be difficult in a different way! This is one of the most important parts of your application.
Interview
Oxford & Cambridge interview the majority of their applicants. This is important as your opportunity to showcase your academic knowledge and perseverance under pressure. You should ensure you 'think out loud' and show your thought process. Admissions tutors base interviews on the supervisions (or tutorials) they use to teach their students. So questions, discussion and problems left unsolved are all a standard part of the process.
So there you go! If it seems like a lot, it’s because there definitely is more to it than most uni applications. But if you take a closer look at what you’ve already done, and which bits don’t involve you at all, it really is very achievable.
It’s important to remember that your application’s success is determined by a combination of these. So even if you’re starting later on you can always improve your odds by preparing for the next step.
