Oxbridge Admissions - Profiles

Application

University: Cambridge

College (if made an open application, allocated college): Jesus (open application, allocated college)

Course: Archaeology & Anthropology

Year in (not for!) which you applied: 2002

Final outcome: offer made

Applicant

Qualification: A-levels

When did you apply in terms of your qualification? pre-qualification

Are you a home/EU/overseas applicant? N/A

What is your country of origin? N/A

What type of school/college do/did you attend? Independent - selective

GCSE or a similar equivalent taken: yes (5 A*,5 A)

A-levels

A2: Classical Civilisation (A at AS; predicted A; gained A at A2)

A2: Economics (A at AS; predicted A; gained A at A2)

A2: History (A at AS; predicted A; gained A at A2)

Details about the offer

Type of offer: conditional

Other conditions: AAA

Have you accepted the offer? yes

Have you applied to other universities you consider very close, 'on par' or even better than oxbridge? (Ivies, Sorbonne, LSE..others for different subjects) N/A

Have you met the offer? offer met

Decisions about the application

For what reasons did you apply to Oxbridge?

Always wanted to from young age

How did you decide between Oxford and Cambridge?

Always wanted to go to cambridge and was born their

Why did you choose this college/make an open application?

Was asked by school wot i'd like, replied medium size, old and new, good facilities, off tourist route large ground so they suggested jesus because it met that and seemed strong for arch and anth

Preparation

Did your school/college give you any extra tuition or help prior to your interview or application? yes

2 practice interviewers (very difficult) and told me to do some background reading and go on a dig or two

Do you have any advice for future applicants in terms of preparation?

The form: don't worry too much about box 10 (personal statement) both my tutors didn't seem to have read mine before the interview

The interview: go on a dig, read some background books

Interview

Did you have to sit any pre-interview exams (LNAT/BMAT/..)? no

Did you have to submit any written work prior to the interview? no

Did you have to take any exams as part of your interview(s)? no

How was/were in general your interview(s)?

course specific one was first. thought it went well as got offered to go on a dig the tutor was running. at the general interview mainly spoke about my sporting interests (rugby and rowing) and how i shouldn't do both at same time at cambridge

What questions were you asked during your interview(s)?

course specific interview; was surprisingly general about my interests and dislikes of the subject, my strengths and weakeness in my opinion, how i saw my alevels going and why the college

What did you wear to your interview(s), and why?

black trousers, white t shirt with jacket on

Impressions

What was your general impression of the college that you applied to/any others you visited?

clean, tidy and larger than i expected. very pretty

How did you find the tutors in the college?

relaxed, easy to talk to and seemed to want me to do my best. they were very likeable and made me keen to get into the college

Generally, what were the college students like (from what you saw of them)?

as my interview was in late december i didn't see any. i assumed they must have been on holiday

Final stage

Please describe what happened when you received the letter/the call telling you whether you had a place or not.

Got a slim envelope but even though had been told rejects came in a slim envelope i opened it right away and was overjoyed to get an offer. read it about 10 times during the day and didn't stop smiling inanely for days!

Looking back

If you were to re-live that year of your life again, would you still apply?

yes definately as wouldn't want to wonder what if

What advice do you have for potential applicants based on your experiences?

don't be phased by how much more other applicants appear to know.

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