Hellohellohello! 

My name is Nadia and here is my first (and also potentially my last!) Cambridge blog post! I really want to document my time at university and to give you some insight into the uni experience, and since I am not photogenic enough for vlogging, and I need more accountability than a diary can give me, here I am! We are just a few days away from Results Day™ (Thursday 13th August) so I thought I would drop by with some background information about my offer, the current situation, and my plans. 

Basically, I have always been obsessed with Cambridge, to an arguably unhealthy degree (ha, get it!) I used to visit the city as a child and dream about studying there. When I was little, I wanted to be a scientist, but as I got older I realised that my true passion was literature. So, when the time for applying rolled around, I went through the truly wild process of trying to get in to Cambridge. To my absolute shock and delight, I succeeded! I have an offer to read English at St Catharine’s College, right in the heart of the city. In order to meet that offer, I need A*AA, with at least an A in English Literature. I did A Levels in English Lit, History, French and Drama and in a normal year, I’d be agonising over my exam performance right about now. But, this is not a normal year. 

In fact, my A Level exams were cancelled. For practically the first time in history, none of us sat exams. Instead, my grades will be determined by my past performance, teacher predictions and the historical performance of my school. Needless to say, everyone is very anxious and confused. At the moment, if I do not meet my offer, I do have the option to appeal, but I cannot do it individually- only the school can. I am also under the obligation to meet my offer by August 31st, and I do not know how long the appeals process will take. I do also have an insurance offer of AAA at UCL, but if I miss my Cambridge offer, it is more than likely I will miss that one too. However, I do have one final option. Cambridge has said that if we miss our grades, we can take exams in the Autumn, whatever they will be, to try and secure grades. If we do, we can then take up our places in 2021. This, of course, is not a position I want to be in, but it will probably be the route I go down if the worst happens. I cannot bear to loose my place at Cambridge because of this pandemic. 

Of course, if I do get in, the experience is not going to be a typical one. The university has been a little bit vague on the details for October, but let’s just say that no one will be going clubbing, or having house parties, or interacting with others, any time soon. But, despite the headlines, I will actually be living and studying in college. After six months at home doing nothing, all I can say is that I am absolutely desperate to get to university and begin my life! 

Thanks for reading, and I really hope that the Results Day Gods allow me to continue this blog, which will hopefully document my time at the greatest university in the world! (Oxford??? Don’t know her.) 

Best wishes, 

Nadia x 

rich-garners 

Melissa speaks with award winning careers adviser Liz Reece about how to write a strong personal statement. In the fourth episode of this short series we discuss how to build the structure of your statement. 

Impetus Coaching specialises in supporting Oxbridge candidates in applying to university, but the videos are relevant to anyone who’s applying through UCAS.

If you’re preparing to apply to university at Oxford or Cambridge, or you’re still unsure whether it’s a good idea, it’s useful to hear from others who’ve gone before you. Here’s the sixth of our Oxbridge experience posts, where we hear from a Cambridge natural sciences graduate about college life.

How easy was it to settle into your Oxbridge college?

Pretty easy. I remember on the first day of freshers’ week, sitting in the pub and being surprised and happy that there were so many people who took great pleasure talking about their subjects. I made a friend who’d spent her gap year in Mauritius doing field work in the jungle, discovering a new species, and actually contributing to proper, grown-up science. I had wonderful friends at school, but only a handful of us were enthusiastic enough about our subjects to talk about them. In comparison, at college, I felt like I’d come home.

As for the practicalities of living and studying in a new place, getting used to the way things worked felt clunky to start with, but everyone was in the same boat. I managed to fall ill during freshers’ week and missed the first week of lectures (not recommended). I slotted back in with some help from my new friends. We also had college ‘nannies’*, who were students from the third year who were tasked with keeping an eye out for us. We were referred to as ‘nannettes’.

*The college lingo was a bit weird and while some embraced it wholeheartedly, for others it was used grudgingly (if at all) with a sardonic eye roll. It’s not as big a deal as you might think. 

It’s tempting to think it’s possible to work out the perfect UCAS choices from behind a pile of prospectuses, in the comfort of one’s own bedroom. But while information is important, so is the feel of the course, the institution, and the people you’ll be interacting with.   

Go and speak to some current undergraduates about college life, ask the admission tutors what they are looking for, and chat with lecturers about what the courses are like. To make this easier and less daunting, each spring, both Oxford and Cambridge universities round up a bunch of their staff and students and bring them together for the benefit of Year 12 prospective candidates, for free. If you are in the least bit curious, this is a great place to start.

It’s very possible that you absolutely, definitely, totally have the brains to make it at Oxford, Cambridge or another top university. However, if you are invited to interview, you will be one of thousands of others who look similarly good on paper. How will you show the interviewer you’re one of the few who’s really got what it takes?

Three points to start considering now are: 

What are your strengths? How do they make you well-suited to studying your subject? How have you demonstrated these strengths in the past (in a way that you can casually weave into the conversation)?

How do you cope when you don’t know the right answer? They aren’t really interested in what you know (it’s clear from your grades you know what you’re meant to know). They want to know how you operate when you’re outside your intellectual comfort zone. 

Where have your shown your commitment to your subject? Talking about how immensely passionate you are about medicine/classics/computer science is not going to cut it. Show, don’t tell. Practise talking about how you’ve walked the walk. 

The thought of an interview might already make your mind blank and send your stomach sideways. It’s ok, you can still make it. Shyer and more chaotic folk than you have won Nobel prizes.  

If you know you have the right qualities to succeed at a top university, but are worried about whether you can convey this at interview, you might want to check out our open workshop here: https://universityinterviewsuccess.eventbrite.com

We’re sharing first person accounts of people’s experiences in applying to Oxford and Cambridge Universities, in a bid to help sixth formers who are hoping to take the plunge. All our Oxbridge experience posts until now have been from graduates. This one is different. It comes from a current student, an Oxford historian who completed her first year (with distinction) this June. She has a great deal of wisdom to share. 

Why did you decide to apply to Oxford?

I went to visit Oxford when I was about 15 or 16 on a day trip and I absolutely fell in love with it then. I fell in love with the city as it’s so beautiful, but also the intellectual culture that I sensed. This might sounds completely wacky and might not make sense, but I got a sense of the atmosphere and I felt I really fitted into it.  

That was one reason.

Also because I felt I wanted to continue to push myself to the highest academic potential I could reach. All throughout school I felt I was pushing myself and wanting to be the best I would be. I think Oxford was a way that I could continue that.

How did you choose your college?

I originally applied to Pembroke but it was a random choice. I thought whatever college I apply to, they all have their own special thing and there’s no way it will be awful. I knew I wanted a smaller college and somewhere pretty.

Then, I got reallocated before interview. I’d done my HAT and sent my piece of work off, and they sent me a mysterious email saying my application has been reallocated to xxxx*. They explained it by saying there was a disproportional amount of historians applying to Pembroke, compared to xxxx so you’ll have a better chance there. They put it in terms of giving everyone a fair chance. 

In my opinion now that really was what they were doing, but at the time I interpreted it as them saying I was not one of the better candidates who’d applied and I got quite upset. Knowing what I know now, I can see I was wrong. I ended up going to xxxx for my interview. I’d visited the day before as I’d never even heard of it.

I really have fallen in love with xxxx and I’m so lucky I was transferred there as it has a unique atmosphere.

I think the lesson is no matter where you end up for whatever reason, you’ll fall in love with any college. So it doesn’t matter.

If you found this helpful, let us know by liking or sharing it. For more thoughts on choosing a college, check out the following article.

I want to wish you all the best of luck with your applications. This is the beginning of a long and emotional road, one which I have personal experience with, and I hope the outcome you get is the one you want.

My ask box is always open for advice and help with any university application queries, and I’m thinking of doing an interview advice post sometime in the future, which will be particularly relevant to you guys.