I know there’s a similar thread on studentroom, but I thought I’d make one here!
Post your grades/scores, schools you’re looking into, and any questions you have.
Hey!
I Iooked through Imperial’s curriculum for Computing, and I fell in love and decided to research more UK universities. Not only does going international appeal to me (I’m from California), but the idea of doing CS and only CS (no GEs) does too. If you can’t tell, I’m really passionate about CS. Here are my stats:
SAT: 1450/1600 (Will take again in the fall b/c I didn’t study at all for this the first time around) (Math: 780, Reading/Writing: 670)
SAT 2’s: (haven’t gotten them back) Math, Physics
AP Scores:
5: Calculus BC, Physics E&M, Mechanics
4: Physics 1, Human Geo
Will be taking the following in the spring:
AP Chem (can’t predict for now)
AP Statistics (5)
AP Econ ( 5)
AP Computer Science (5)
I’ve also done quite a few community college classes in CS:
Software Dev. in Java: A
Data Structures and Algorithms: B
C++ for Java Programmers: A
Advanced C++: A
Here are the UK schools I’ve been looking into:
- Oxford (gotta study hard for that MAT exam haha)
- Imperial
- Edinburgh (I find the fourth year for CS quite unique, and like the focus on math)
- -- I'm not sure yet --
- Manchester University (GO MAN UNITED)
Questions:
- How should I go about choosing my coach/referee? Does it have to be my current teacher, or can I choose my 10th grade teacher?
- For the whole score prediction thing, what if I am self studying some courses, does that affect anything?
- What do you think my chances would be at these universities as in "Reach, Target, Safety"
- You can choose your referee
- You have to provide a prediction, even if you are self-studying. Be sure to predict realistically- b/c it may become the condition for an offer.
- Unless you have a poor LoR or Personal Statement Manchester & Edinburgh should be solid. With a strong LoR & Personal Statement, Imperial should be solid. Oxford is impossible to 'chance': you have the scores to qualify, but as you know the MAT is crucial for getting invited to interview, and all bets are off once you get to interview (genuinely, there is simply no telling, and anybody who says otherwise doesn't know what they are talking about).
I would only get a recommendation from a 10th grade teacher if you did an AP class with them.
Note that by the 4th year at Edinburgh Informatics, you’ll be taking essentially grad-level classes, so it’s great that you love CS.
First year (and maybe all years) of Imperial CS is 30 hours of classtime a week or so. This might be de rigueur for CS in England.
In the US, where in good CS programs, 1 class = 3 hours lecture/week + 10-20 hours for project/homework/study a week (and taking 3-4 CS classes in the same term is seen as a tough schedule), that would be considered an insane amount of classtime. English CS programs may not feature as much project work, though.
THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR GIVING A+ ADVICE, LOVE YOU ALL!
Thanks! @collegemom3717 that’s some strong advice. 
Is there anything else I should keep in mind, since you seem like you have quite a bit of knowledge regarding this matter!
@Conformist1688 While I understand why this may be true, I still must explain my situation in order to get a more personalized answer. My best work/ethic has always been shown in STEM courses, because I naturally am interested in those subjects. So therefore I’ve only taken AP/honors courses in those subjects. That really narrows down the list of teachers/referees, since I’ve only taken two AP’s and two Honors courses. So basically, I really believe that I’ve built a strong relationship with my soph. year Precalculus Honors teacher, and she is one of the most intelligent women I’ve ever met. I have a neutral/goofy relationship with my Calculus teacher, which would have been OK if he wasn’t so busy. All these teachers have to write so many recommendations that’s its truly overbearing on the teacher. My calc teacher probably wouldn’t say no, but I feel the referee has to be more involved. I also don’t think he knows me as well as my pre-calc teacher. My AP Physics teacher is really lazy, so I wouldn’t think about considering him.
Another option I have is to talk to my CC professor for C++ (I had the same teacher for both courses), but again I don’t know how well that would work because he is NOT a high school teacher, instead a COLLEGE professor.
@Conformist1688 let me know what your opinion is? And thanks for your perspective!
@PurpleTitan Exciting, right?! Wow that’s quite a bit for a college, though in high school I end up spending 35 hours of class time a week. But still HS != college. A factor to consider is that while this may seem overwhelming, I would not have as many hours spent on projects/hw (I think). While this may cut down time to work on personal projects in CS (such as building applications/other tech stuff), I think the longer vacations might make up for that. I might be naive, but 30 hours of CS instruction a week sounds quite appetizing HAHA
The biggest negative about Edinburgh is that it’s in Scotland. And Scotland’s football league is worse than MLS (American soccer league). Yes, I’m into football. Really into football. Sigh their CS program is soooo good tho. I guess I won’t have to worry about that decision for a while!
I understand your dilemma, but the point of the teacher rec is that it’s an academic one, about your ability in the highest level courses you’ve done to date. You’re right that it should be one from a STEM teacher, though, because you’re applying for a STEM subject. I’m not sure if the college prof would work as he/ she isn’t at your school - I think perhaps an e-mail to the colleges you’re applying to might be worthwhile as this is a relatively unusual situation. Were the classes a Dual Enrolment, and so part of your HS record? that might make it easier.
You might want to ask your counsellor to solicit input from the teachers and produce a letter of rec.
@Conformist1688 Not part of my high school record, however the classes that I will be doing this school year are dual enrollment. But that’s irrelevant.
Have you seen the price of a Man U ticket?
@elguapo1 it’s under 40 euros per game (under 20). And then season isn’t too bad under 700 euros depending on the seats you choose. Ok yeah it’s expensive. But this year it’s gonna be hella worth, because we’re gonna win everything.
I attended both Manchester’s and Edinburgh’s open days in June and went to the presentations for the computer science departments. Of the two, I liked Manchester’s the best. Manchester’s program is more engaging (and fun in my opinion), while Edinburgh’s is more theoretical - it does not even have a team project until the 3rd year. Also check out Glasgow’s CS program. We attended Glasgow’s open day and really liked their CS department/course.
@KaffeineKitty’s post #11 makes is really important point: when choosing a subject in the UK (and to some extent) you need to learn about the specific course at a specific university. Oxford Law and Cambridge Law are both super prestigious- but they are not interchangeable. TCD’s mechanical engineering team is quite innovative, led by somebody trained at Stanford- but some of the other engineering teams are teaching the same things the same way they have for decades.
*to some extent…Ireland
Hi!
I had entertained the thought of going to school in the UK because of the exciting opportunity of going to a university with such a great location. Recently I have been reconsidering the idea of going to school in the UK, specifically England, but I’m not sure I would be able to get into an academically competitive university there because of my AP scores. I have pretty high grades; to give you an idea I plan on applying to very competitive schools in the US with <25% acceptance rates and some Ivies as well. I have an unweighted GPA of about 4.0 (I’m still waiting on my official transcript) and a 33 ACT composite score. I’ve taken the most challenging courses my school offers, all AP and honors. Unfortunately my school is a very tiny, public school that doesn’t offer many courses. Because of this I only have 4 AP scores thus far. However, for some reason I find it hard to perform well on the AP tests so my scores are only okay. As the academic prestige of whichever university I end up going to (US or UK) is incredibly important to me, I am wondering if I have any shot at some of the top universities in the UK. I just can’t help feeling that the fact that I only have 4 AP scores and that they’re only mediocre will keep me out of the top schools in the UK.
By the way, it is probably helpful to know that I am a rising senior who will be applying to schools this fall and I am taking 5 AP classes next year. I am also planning on being pre med in college; depending on where I go will decide my exact major.
Thanks!
Well, your first issue is that if you really want to go to medical school in the US the UK is not your best bet: only some medical schools accept internationally-educated students, and they typically want you to have done the core classes in the US.
The second issue is that for the top UK colleges you will need all 5s (at least 3-5 of them, depending on the uni), in subjects relevant to the subject you are applying to study. You don’t have to have finished all the exams before you apply though- you can get an offer conditional on your senior year AP results. If you are looking at Oxford or Cambridge, there are additional entry exams and of course the crucial interview.
The third issue is that (with the exception of the Cambridge Natural Science tripos) you have very little course choice: if you apply to study biology, you study biology. You want to be very, very sure that you want to study that subject.
Looking at University of Nottingham
I know for a fact that I want to study Aerospace Engineering. I saw that this school has a decent program and that they also have a China campus. (Taken 4 years of Chinese). I’m curious about the University, but I’m lost in the admissions process and I’m not sure if I’m even competitive. Let me know if there are any other schools that have Aerospace and are within my grasp (no Oxford lol)
ACT: 31 first try, no study. Retaking in September
GPA: 4.14 unweighted, 4.34 weighted
AP: 4 AP World, 4 Bio, 4 Calc AB (I’ve taken A LOT of AP courses, but for the American schools I’ve been looking at, they don’t offer credit even if I get a 5)
Course Rigor:
AP World, AP Bio, AP Physics 1,2,C, AP Calc Ab and Bc, AP gov, AP Mandarin, AP Lang
As I’m applying for a STEM major, I would like to point it that I have taken every science class offered at my school
I’m not sure if extracurriculars are important but here’s a list:
200+hrs service
4 years hockey, 2 Varisty, 1 state championship
2 years lacrosse
2 years rugby, 1 state championship
First Team All State Academic x2
Department Award for Excellency in Foreign Language (Mandarin)
Scholars award for being a leader in and out of classroom
You are in the running for Nottingham but if you get an offer expect it to be conditional on getting a 5 in Calc BC & probably physics. None of your ECs are relevant so for your PS be thinking about how you are going to show a serious aptitude for & interest in AE.
We get out AP scores in June. That will be far too late for me because we need to tell colleges where we are attending sometime in May. What do I do now?
You accept a US school or ‘firm’ another UK school from which you have an unconditional offer (plenty of students do this every year). Be aware that your math a 4 on AB) is (imo) just not strong enough to go into engineering in the UK at anything like a reputable uni. Go look at the specific classes you take on the AE course- they will expect you to start effectively as a sophomore (hence the importance of APs). For example, all your first year courses are compulsory:
Aerospace Design 1
Airframe and Materials 1
Aerospace Aerodynamics and thermodynamics
Dynamics and Flight Mechanics 1
Professional Engineering and Project
Aerospace Electrical and Electronic Engineering 1
If you don’t have calc already you won’t make it through.