Do I have a chance at Oxbridge?

Student Lounge International Students
1

<p>Hi everyone!
So, I fell in love with Oxford. I love the tutorial system, the campus, how you only study one course, and pretty much everything about it. </p>

<p>I'm a really "lopsided" person who is much stronger in the humanities than in the sciences. I want to apply for English Language and Literature. However, I won't have very many scores and my school puts a harsh limit on APs (even self-studying- if you get caught, you could get suspended). </p>

<p>Here's what I have so far:
Last year- AP Physics- 4
This year:
AP U.S. History- predicting a 5
AP Microeconomics- (not sure school will give me permission to go and take it)
AP Statistics- unsure, probably a 4 or a 5 </p>

<p>Next year:
AP Government
AP Literature
AP Calculus BC</p>

<p>I got a 800 in SAT Literature and US History. I'm planning on taking SAT Math Level 2 during June.
So far, my SATs are at 2210 (770 Reading, 690 Math, 750 Writing), but I'm planning on retaking it during October (predicting a 2350ish). I will probably put my score as "pending" on the UCAS. I am also planning on taking the ACT before the UCAS is due and might put that score on (34+). </p>

<p>My ECs directly relating to English are very few. I'm wondering if these will count:
TASP
MUN/Speech and Debate awards
Club that focuses on writing for the underprivileged (Community Service)
Other humanities-but-not-English things</p>

<p>Do I have much of a chance at all, considering I don't have many AP scores+my SATs will be pending?</p>

<p>I have a huge bunch of other questions:</p>

<p>Will I be able to send in my score late? Should I send my SAT score anyways although it is low? (Since my reading is okay, and that's what is related to my major)</p>

<p>Will I be able to put predicted scores for APs I might self study in senior year? Should I even bother?</p>

<p>Will my AP Literature score not count since it's a "repeat" of SAT Literature?</p>

<p>[Is it okay that I didn't take AP English Language and Composition? I was unable to this year (not offered at all in my country). Should I bother trying to self-study it next year and putting it on the form or will it not really matter? I might be able to take it if I talk to the centers a year early and make a compromise for next year.]</p>

<p>Would they take into consideration AP Psych, AP Stats, or AP Economics scores? Are they somehow related to English?
-I've heard of people getting condition offers such as "get two more 5's", which leads me to believe that I might as well take as many APs as I can, even if they are unrelated. </p>

<p>Can I apply for multiple courses in the same uni? (I'm also interested in philosophy, social sciences)</p>

<p>Finally, would it help if my teachers or counselors informed Oxford of all the AP restrictions I faced?</p>

<p>I don't have three scores related to my major as of now. I'm afraid this will kill my chances :( I've heard of people getting rejected even after a great interview and ELAT scores because they didn't have enough scores. I'm wondering if I should just give up my dream and focus on US unis this year. </p>

<p>Thank you for reading through all of this and I'd be very grateful for any advice. </p>

2

<p>Oxford is a stretch for everyone, even the very best students, so don’t feel too bad if you don’t get in. It won’t justy be the scores; it’s that they have so many great applicants they can’t admit all of them. (And maybe they didn’t come across as well in the interview as they thought :wink: )</p>

<p>It’s common to apply before you do your AP exam - if you get an offer it may well be conditional on getting 5s in relevant subjects. I’d obviously go ahead with Lit; English Language is not essential - not many UK applicants will have done that at A level, so I really wouldn’t bother - especially if you might get suspended! History is good; Government’s probably good. Have you done any languages? A modern language AP would be an appropriate addition if you can be sure of a good score.</p>

<p>Stats and Economics won’t be much help; does the Psych involve essay writing? If so it’s probably a reasonable choice.</p>

<p>In theory you can apply for multiple courses at the same university, but it’s only going to make you look unfocussed, not committed to English, and not really a good candidate for Oxford. Much better to use your otehr choices to apply for good Eng Lit courses at other universities.</p>

3

<p>You can only apply to one course at either Oxford or Cambridge in any one year for undergraduate (unless you are an organ scholar. I will assume not).</p>

4

<p>What do you do outside of the classroom that speaks to a love of literature or writing? is there a genre / period that excites you? have you read widely and deeply in that genre / period? or are you a writer, who writes substantially and regularly beyond classroom assignments, submitting work to relevant publications or competitions? TASP, depending on the one you did, could be relevant. Will your counselor have substantial material from your English teacher that will reinforce that this is a field for which you have both a passion and a talent? </p>

<p>Honestly, whether your SAT is a 2210 and a 2350 is not going to make the difference, and your math SATII is completely irrelevant. Your bigger challenge is that you won’t have 3 writing based APs / SATIIs. Even if your counselor notes that they forbade you from taking both Lang and Lit, you will be applying with 1 history AP and 1 english SAT II- and you will only have US Gov (a 1/2 credit AP) and a duplicate of Lit to add to that. So, 2 1/2. That’s why the above matters so much: if you really have a passion for English Lit it will have found a way to show itself, and that is what you need to show the tutors. They could, in theory, let you through with US Gov as your ‘3rd’. </p>

<p>ps, Oxford doesn’t have a ‘campus’ -each of the 44 colleges & private halls has their own grounds. The town of Oxford could be considered the University’s campus (the way NY is NYU’s ‘campus’), but the phrase isn’t used.</p>

5

<p>You’d need to take a foreign language or Latin, plus AP Euro History if you can, as those would relate to AP English Lit. </p>

6

<p>Pretty sure the OP wouldn’t need a foreign language or Latin - not unless he was applying for Classics or Modern Languages.</p>

7

<p>If you like Oxford, you might also want to consider Cambridge, which has the same system of small group tutorials etc and is very similar in a lot of ways. Note that you can only apply to one or other other though, not both. </p>

<p>Details of their English course + film
<a href=“Study at Cambridge | University of Cambridge”>Study at Cambridge | University of Cambridge;

<p>Most Cambridge Colleges ask for 5 AP’s, but a useful tip if you fancy the Cambridge course is that King’s College,Cambridge asks for 3 AP’s (Google King’s College Cambridge entrance requirements to see the page on their website and they are helpful if you email them with questions. Read their page for international students too). </p>

<p>The AP’s you’re taking next year can count - you’ll apply with predicted grades,and they are happy with Calculus BC etc for English applicants as long as people also have at least one strong essay subject as well. They want good academic subjects but not necessarily all essay subjects. Doing lots of reading beyond your curriculum is emphasised as something they look for to show your genuine interest.</p>

<p>Cambridge interviews most people so you’d need to be available to travel to the UK for interview in early December, assuming whot they invite you. In interviews they will discuss literature with you, so they’ll see your ability directly
<a href=“Study at Cambridge | University of Cambridge”>Study at Cambridge | University of Cambridge;

<p>Good luck!</p>

8

<p>Oxford is only interested in your academic performance, so whatever you do outside of school is irrelevant to them. They say it on their website (something like, “we are very happy that our applicants are involved in wonderful extracurricular activities, but we make our selection based on academic excellence alone”) . </p>

<p>Also, once you are short-listed and invited to an interview, this means you have passed the academic record part, they will not go back to your grades anymore and compare you with others. At this point, your performance in the interview is what will make it or break it. Except for the fact that if they make you an offer it will be conditional (it’s like that for everyone who hasn’t finished high school). And the condition will be a certain GPA (they’ll specify it) at graduation.</p>

<p>Best of luck to you. Oxford is a wonderful place! </p>

9

<p>The condition will NOT be a certain GPA! the offer will be written as “conditional on attaining scores of [x] on on [specific APs / SATIIs for which you submitted predicted marks]”. </p>

<p>As complies says, they want to know how good you are <em>at their subject</em>. That is why the interview is so crucial, and why your reading outside of school is relevant. ECs are relevant - to the extent that they reflect on your interest in, or talent for, the subject. ECs in this instance refers to anything you do outside your school curriculum, so if you stay up nights learning Old English because you like reading Chaucer, that counts. Starting forward on a sports team, not so much.</p>