I thought you were doing IB full Dipl.
I am doing full IB but my school allows you to sit AP exams without taking the AP class. These tests are of course significantly more difficult with a full IB than a full AP as the tests aren’t designed for a full IB curriculum. But it is still possible for you to self study for anything you might not have gone over in the IB for AP.
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Yes, the OxBridge system is straightforward: you submit your achieved & predicted subject test scores (APs/IB/etc), 1 LoR, a personal statement (an academically-oriented essay about why you & the course are good fit for each other), and you take the test. The department evaluates those + your test scores and decide whether or not to invite you for an interview (note that Cambridge interviews a much higher % of applicants- ~80%- but has a higher reject rate; Oxford aims to interview 3x the number of applicants as places, so the big cut is earlier, but their overall acceptance rates are similar).
There is no ‘qualifying’ for the PAT, etc- anybody can sign up- so the commenter you mention must mean that getting a qualifying score on the test is hard, which is true.
re: community college: when you enroll in a 4 year college the vast majority of other students are doing what you are doing- mostly 18-24 yo students going straight through from HS, aiming for a degree. At a CC you have all kinds of people taking classes for all kinds of reasons. I have both taken classes and taught at CCs, and you see everything. It can be a great launching pad to college- you will always find a strong cohort of students who are essentially doing their 1st 2 years there, mostly b/c finances or their HS record didn’t allow them to go to a 4year school. But you also find a lot of students who are there for 2 year practical qualifications (in everything from xray technician to boat repair), students who are filling in a missing course or a pre-requisite, students who are up-skilling for their jobs, people for whom 3rd level education wasn’t an option when they were 18, but now at 50 it is, etc., etc. The range of ages, goals, motivations is wonderful- but it’s not like a typical 4 year college. Also, the standard of classes is even more variable than it is at 4 year universities.
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ps, I don’t think that OxBridge will accept Physics 1 + Physics C as 2 APs. I would only sit the APs if it makes sense- the curricula overlap but not completely.
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One other thing to do is to make sure you’re studying for the PSAT. You’ll take that in October and if you do really well could qualify for National Merrit Finalist.
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Oh yeah I was wrong. They ask for 2 tests for it to count as one I believe? They ask for AP Physics 1+2, 1+ Mechanics, or 1+ Electricity. Well I still have an AP Bio test I’m sitting this year so that should count as my final somewhat related AP test correct?
Yes, I believe that the PSAT takes the same format as the SAT but shorter so I’m confident that just practicing for the SAT would also help me practice for the PSAT
Oh yeah, I tried to find the SAT practices you recommended but I couldn’t find any mentions of “preptly” and also the bluebook app for me has been broken ever since I installed it. Yes I have tried to trouble shoot it and it’s not just working. Is this something normal or should I contact customer support?
yes. The PSAT maxes out at 15 something and will also be digital starting this year. You need to score in the top percentage of the kids in your state to get the recognition. So look into what you’ll need in CA to possibly qualify. I’m sure it will need to be in the 1500’s or close to that.
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Yes, but the timeframe is shorter – you take the PSAT fall of junior year. And if you score high enough and get to be a National Merit Finalist, that will really help your applications.
Yes, I believe the CA qualifying score last year was a 1500 or a 1510 and I’m fairly certain it’ll be the same this year. I think I can do it but once again I did go down 100 points just by changing from paper to digital so who knows.
Will this really help at T20 schools and Oxbridge?
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Well, it would be one of the few quantifiable items on his application. And it will get him starting to prep, hopefully, instead of just talking about it.
And since I, like most of the other posters, don’t think he’s going to get into T10 or Oxbridge, National Merit will definitely help him get into other schools he might like, or get merit scholarships.
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AFAIK, being an NMF only really helps at schools that award merit based on this designation.
Else, it doesn’t tell a school anything new - assuming such students submit their SAT scores.
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OP- I’ve got two concrete pieces of advice for you (since you asked for concrete).
1- Make schoolwork your A priority for now. Despite what you may have heard about EC’s, standing out, being unique, having a story to tell, at the end of the day, US universities are primarily educational institutions. Having a solid academic background (taking each class seriously, asking questions when you don’t understand, doing all the homework, even the boring stuff, acing every test) is the single most important qualification for a US university. So start taking your schoolwork seriously. Covid, online, bored, not challenging, school too easy and other students mediocre- not relevant. Focus and start to learn.
2- Forget about college. Make yourself a popup reminder (or use a red magic marker on a physical calendar) and mark September 15th 2023 as the next time you are going to think about college. Between now and then you are going to become the best version of you that you can possibly be. That means academics (above), volunteering for only causes that you really care about, spending time on music if that’s what you love, etc. Someone wants you raising money for refugees from a part of the world you aren’t interested in? Say no thanks. Doesn’t matter what kind of essay you could write about it-- focus on what you care about, what makes you YOU and not what other people think you should be doing. Finish what you start by doing only the things you care about instead of starting five things which are hanging out there. Don’t sit around wondering how to find a mentor- either get cracking, if it’s important to you, or drop that activity from your list.
People tend to complete the things they care about. I see your procrastination and the list of “I plan to” or “I haven’t yets” as signs that these are not things you care about. So stop worrying about college and start becoming YOU.
I promise you will find a college which is challenging and broadening and provides you meaningful intellectual challenge. But you have to stop making “finding a college” your goal in life. It’s not helping you.
Is that concrete enough?
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From the Oxford website:
The following combinations of Physics courses can be counted as two separate qualifications for the purposes of meeting your offer:
Physics C: Mechanics, and Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism
Physics 1 and Physics 2
Physics 1and Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism
Physics 2 and Physics C: Mechanics
If you are taking both Physics C courses, or both Physics 1 and Physics 2, you will not be able to count any additional Physics courses towards your offer requirements. In addition, only the specified combinations of Physics 1/2 and Physics C are permitted.
I would start looking at past PAT papers to see where your strengths and weaknesses are on the material.
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I will be looking at those papers when I’m done with DP1. I do not want to start doing those papers until I’m at least halfway done with my physics education in high school
The most helpful thing that you can do is to start with the basics. Improve your grades dramatically. Study for and execute strong test scores. The schools you list are largely reaches for everyone, including people with top academics, test scores and extracurriculars. As of now you don’t have any of these “basic“ things that would put you in the running. Even for those kids who check all those boxes, a top 20 school is still a reach.
It seems to me that you are looking for a shortcut, vs the hard work of getting straight As from now on in highest rigor classes. These basics are what will be most helpful to your application for all schools.
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