<p>From what I hear admission for us "overseas" people is based on interview and APs. I am applying for the Philosophy, Politics, and Economics degree at Oxford and whatever similar degree at Cambridge.</p>
<p>AP Gov and Politics 5
AP Calculus BC 5
AP Micro Economics 4
AP Macro Economics 4
AP Italian 4</p>
<p>I dont know if this helps me, but I am a first generation college student of Colombian heritage. Also a first generation American.</p>
<p>And I speak Spanish fluently. lol.</p>
<p>I heard that you can apply to only one or the other</p>
<p>GiggitusMaximus is correct. You can only apply to one...and you probably have a better chance at Oxford. You're AP scores may get you an interview, but one or two more 5's would really help. Also, SAT scores and GPA do matter so keep that in mind.</p>
<p>UK admissions are highly numbers-based. Your heritage won't help you. They don't offer financial aid either, so I hope you can fund your education. With the falling dollar the cost of a British education is highly numbers-based.</p>
<p>Well Im most interested in applying to Oxford.</p>
<p>Really? Everything I read says that SAT and GPA dont matter when applying to UK schools.</p>
<p>Either way I think I will have those in check. I heard you can send them predicted scores and you can get a conditional offer.</p>
<p>My question is this: could I get a conditional offer based upon AP scores received next May?</p>
<p>It is true that you can only apply to Oxford or Cambridge in a single admissions cycle. Remember when you are applying that Oxford give interviews in NY, while Cam doesn't interview in the US and tends to just to judge you on paper.</p>
<p>SAT matters for Oxford. They recommend at least 700s in each subscore or a 32 ACT. Cam doesn't give stats for American applicants (to my knowledge). SAT use is a school by school basis, some schools look at it in the UK and others dont (most dont). GPA from American high schools doesn't matter, I dont think some colleges even make you send in your transcripts. </p>
<p>Yes, you can get a conditional offer for completing AP scores in your senior year. Your teachers will have to give you predicted scores as part of their reference (hopefully you would be predicted 5s in like 3-4 subjects). Often they will give you a conditional offer of something like 555 on three AP tests. Hard part is that they are extremely strict about these offers since the schools are very competitive, so even if you got a 554 chances are that you may not be given a final acceptance but this is a case by case basis and depends on the subject. They are going to be less lenient for something like PPE than they will be for Physics or History</p>
<p>Also, the only distinction they make for nationality is UK/EU students and the rest of us (overseas).</p>
<p>Another poster is correct in that there is not financial aid in most cases, so be prepared to pay the full rate of tuition (which is like 11.5 thousand GBP). I think there are some things that overseas students can get, such as book or study scholarships but nothing that would even begin to make a dent in the total price of studying in the UK.</p>
<p>i've said this elsewhere, but i'll post here again to get rid of some of the popular misconceptions wrt studying in the UK</p>
<p>firstly, the cost of studying in the UK is nowhere as astronomical as most ppl think....unless u receive significant financial aid, chances are UK universities will always be cheaper their US counterparts for internationals, for e.g.</p>
<p>Oxford University - US$42 per annum inclusive of living expenses (126k for 3 years)
UC Berkeley - US$40k per annum inclusive of living expenses (160k for 4 years)
U Chicago - US$52k per annum inclusive of living expenses (208k for 4 years)
Yale University - US$54k per annum inclusive of living expenses (216k for 4 years)</p>
<p>most ppl paint an overly rosy picture of the financial aid situation in US universities....its great if you fulfill the criteria for significant financial aid or a full-ride, but many kids like me from middle-class families (too rich to qualify for financial aid but too poor to pay the full ticket) are seriously shortchanged, esp since the cut-off used for financial aid is gross family income and not income per capita (so if your family earns say 100k per annum but you have 5 siblings, good luck)</p>
<p>YourFired, oxbridge does offer financial aid in various forms</p>
<p>1)Bursaries given out by the main university - you will receive the bursary form together with your letter of acceptance, as long as genuine need is demonstrated, they willl make you an offer (i received US$16k per annum, or 48k for 3 years, which basically covered more than 1/3 of the entire cost of college)</p>
<p>2)Bursaries given out by your college - this one is a little more arbitrary, it depends on the level of endowment of your college (some rich colleges give up to US$16k per annum, the poorer ones don't give a dime)....the criteria for offer differs as well, some require you to excel in the exams, some require demonstrated need</p>
<p>3)Various form of study/book scholarships or awards for excelling in the exams - its possible though unlikely for an international student to meet all his/her financial needs via these 3 means, but rest assured you will receive aid one way or another</p>
<p>what i've mentioned above are applicable to all international students (meaning non UK/EU)</p>
<p>for Classics, PPE, English, History Oxford is harder to get into than Camb, everything else Camb wins hands-down =)</p>
<p>The Complete PPE Guide - from Application to Exams
<a href="http://www.the">www.the</a> studentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=109491</p>
<p>^ remove the space between the and studentroom, stupid CC don't let me post the link</p>
<p>I am so confused about GPA. From what I understand, they look at it but it's not important. Am I correct?</p>
<p>If you're applying for PPE at Oxford (I'm also planning on doing so), I'm fairly certain that you have to sit the TSAT, which is roughly similar in terms of scope to the SAT I. Is there a simple way to find out where in the US the exam is offered?</p>
<p>What's TSAT? I don't think you need to take any exam like that. Look at the Oxford website. It says that the only required written exam, other than SATs, is the PPE test.</p>
<p>I sent an e-mail to someone at Cambridge regarding US qualifications, so I know at least a little about the subject. Cambridge generally makes conditional offers of three grades of 5 on APs (or 5, 5, 4 if there's less competition for places), so, while what you have now is not bad, you don't exactly have a guaranteed in. I've gotten conflicting information regarding SATs; I think their importance depends on which college you apply to. Several US offerholders have told me that they don't matter for much, or if they do matter it's only to give you an edge over a very similar applicant. Others, however, have told me that they're a very significant portion of the application. They lady from Cambridge (Pembroke, for reference) said that they expect a 'good' score; their website defines this as a 1300, it seems. SAT II counts for zip, so don't worry too much about that. I don't know whether Cambridge really considers the ACT, but from what I've gathered Oxford-bound kids can substitute it for the SAT, so its importance depends on where you want to go. Unfortunately for me I prefer Cambridge and did exponentially better on the ACT...</p>
<p>Anyway, what's best to keep in mind is that UK schools care a LOT about dedication to your subject. They don't care if you have ridiculous ECs and are president of 80 different societies totally unrelated to your potential course of study; whatever ECs you tell them about should ideally relate to your subject, and if they don't... well, make the mention brief. Also, your personal statement is VERY important, and the expectations of UK schools are also different from US schools on this front. I would suggest going to The Student Room, as someone else up there said. They've got a forum completely dedicated to personal statements, as well as forums for Oxbridge students and hopefuls which I found very helpful.</p>
<p>Also remember that you've got a better chance of being interviewed at Cambridge, but a better chance of actually getting in at Oxford. Interview is reeeeeally important though! Anyway, this has been long-winded enough, so I'll be off. Good luck with your application!</p>
<p>Quoting from Oxford's</a> requirements page:</p>
<p>
[QUOTE]
All applicants for Economics and Mangement or PPE are required to sit a Thinking Skills Assessment test on 5 November 2008. You will need to register with Cambridge Assessment to take this test. If you are still studying, you can register through your school or college. Details on registration, and a sample test, can be found at the test website.
[/QUOTE]
</p>
<p>Also, keep in mind that the interview is an actual interview, unlike what is standard at American universities. It's primarily an academic interview to ascertain whether or not you know what you're talking about.</p>
<p>So begoner, if I was to do Math + Economics or Law I'm expected to know a significant amount of the topic (basically 1st year college) right? Well how should one prepare for that in Law or in Economics? Is AP Economics sufficient prep, AP BC Calc good enough for Math + Economics? And for law I'm stuck...</p>
<p>Also does not requiring financial aid at all help in any manner? I'm just curious as I think I'd need financial aid but am not sure (We get financial aid for Andover which is a New England boarding school but not entire)</p>
<p>Bridgehead - please can you direct us to any information about all this money for internationals on the Oxford web-site. I have never known any international get money from a UK school (apart from occassional small Oxbridge college awards for books or travel) and I have been here 7 years. If this exists, the vast vast majority of international students still get zero.</p>
<p>There is no real concept of "financial aid" in the UK like there is in the US. You don't apply for it when you apply for admission, so it cannot be taken into account. However, since most of the lower UK schools really needs you cash, if you can pay in many places you can get in (outside the top 10 or so). It is different for UK and EU students. </p>
<p>
[QUOTE]
So begoner, if I was to do Math + Economics or Law I'm expected to know a significant amount of the topic (basically 1st year college) right? Well how should one prepare for that in Law or in Economics? Is AP Economics sufficient prep, AP BC Calc good enough for Math + Economics? And for law I'm stuck...
[/QUOTE]
Look up A-level maths papers on the web. This is the stuff UK students know, so if you know it you're ok.
Don't worry too much about preparing for law because they accept any A-level subjects for entry, but don't recommend A-level law! In other words, none of the other applicants will know much either. Just be aware of general issues/popular press. If you go to the student room, some actual law students can give you advice.</p>
<p>I am also really interested in applying to Oxford.
My SAT is 2190 (CR 760, M 690, W 740)
My AP Scores are as follows:
AP World History (5)
AP U.S. History (5)
AP Statistics (5)
AP Microeconomics (4)
AP Macroeconomics (4)
AP Language and Composition (4)
Senior year I will be taking AP European History, AP Art History, AP Literature and Composition, and AP Calc AB. </p>
<p>I'd either want to major in something like History or Sociology. My problem is that in 11th grade there were no available history courses (which is why I took Econ), I took World in 9th, U.S. in 10th, and Euro will be next year. I've heard that Oxbridge interviews are very subject-based and are basically tests, and I'm afraid that I won't be able to be successful in a fact-based interview, especially because I'd probably want to do in particular European History, but I haven't had any actual classroom experience in the subject.
The same goes for Sociology, I've never even taken a class in sociology, and the only experience I will have is a semester course that I am taking senior year! How would I ever be able to sit for an interview about a subject I've never even studied in a classroom?</p>
<p>To alamode
Oxford doesn't offer Sociology</p>
<p>History options are
History
History (ancient and modern) - this is basically the same as History with options to do ancient history courses from the Classics dept.
History and Economics
History and English
History and Modern Languages (French, German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Russian, Czech, Celtic)
History and Politics
History or Art</p>
<p>I don't think it will matter that you haven't done AP Euro history yet. The interview are a not a round of quick fire questions on the subject or anything like that. They are more about getting you to solve problems. For example, they might give you some eyewitness accounts of a historical incident to read, and then discuss them with you. Applicants will come from all over the world and have many different educational backgrounds, so yours will not be unusual. Remember UK A-level students won't get their grades until August 2009 so they have not finished their course of study either.</p>
<p>On the Cambridge web-site there is a video of some interviews which may help (Oxford ones are very similar)
University</a> of Cambridge - CamTV</p>
<p>If you are not SURE about the subject you wish to study, I strongly advise you not to aply to the UK. It's close to impossible to change unless you drop out and start again in the first year, and that's an expensive mistake to make.</p>
<p>I was thinking Human Sciences and thanks</p>
<p>My D's SAT score is 2300 (770M, 740CR, 790W), three SAT II tests (800 Math 2, 750Chem and 690 Literature), she is a National AP Scholar after junior year (8 tests, all 5's). Would she be a shoe in at Oxford and/or Cambridge (relatively speaking of course), will she be required to take a test? </p>
<p>She is interested in physical sciences and/or engineering. Would these universities be a good fit for her, how do US employers view Oxbridge education?</p>
<p>She's not necessarily a shoo-in for admission, but she shouldn't have a problem getting an interview...how she performs in the interview will determine whether or not she receives an offer. As far as Oxbridge being a good fit with regards to physical sciences and engineering, it depends on the specific field. If your D hasn't determined exactly what she wants to study in college (i.e. ChemE, MechE, physics, etc.) then she may not be ready for a UK university.</p>