Oxbridge

Oxbridge

All of our aspiring Oxbridge students will benefit from the following support:

• Specialist tutor group
• 1-1 support throughout the sixth form through personalised tutorials
• 1-1 support writing personal statements for applications
• Alumni connections - our alumni can support via advice, guidance and interview practice
• Entrance examinations support
• Interview practice
• A rich extra-curricular programme including UKROC rocketry competition, the Gold Arts Award, UKMT, BPhO Senior Physics Challenge, Cambridge Chemistry Challenge, UKBC Intermediate Biology Olympiad, and debating to build confidence in public speaking
• 1-1 Careers advice plus opportunities shared regularly via the Careers Online Classroom
• Visiting speakers from university
• Direct links with Worcester College, Oxford and Selwyn College, Cambridge. We promote attendance at College programmes such as the Lucy Cavendish Academic Attainment programme and Selwyn Colleg's Higher Education Extension programme
• Essay competition support, promotion of summer schools and other opportunities to engage with Oxford and Cambridge
• A Character and Culture programme designed to develop a broad knowledge and opportunities to debate and discuss
• Access to online lecture courses, recommended reading lists

Heidi Cruft - studying English at Cambridge

• The key areas of interest I pursued are Science Fiction and Neomedievalism
• Staying consistent and organised with studying. Being passionate about my subject were the keys to my success
• Top interview tipss - Kepp calm, trust your presentation, and let your passion show
• What's it like to study at Oxbridge - It's very rewarding.
• There are loads of societies and subject - speficic events to get involved with! 

Joe Watson-Long - offered Law at Cambridge

• Attended a series of virtual lecture run by Selwyn College, Cambridge (organised by school)
• Entered an essay competition run by Trinity College, Cambridge ( suggested by Miss Kent)
• Competed in debating competitions in and out of school
• Attended work experience with a solicitor's firm
• Read a boo outlining some historical landmark legal cases
• Started writing my personal statement early to giver me time to perfect it 
• Planned my time to help me best prepare for each stage of the process (personal statement, entrance exam and interviews)

Lucy Cade - Studying Psychology & Philosophy at Oxford

• I asked my teachers for help with entrance test and interview pracitce so that I was prepared to tackle these elements of the application process
• I read a few books and listened to a few podcasts that truely interested me, so that I came across as passionate about my subject in my personal statement - it is better to talk about a few academic sources in depth rather than list lots on not a lot of detail!
• I was organised and prepared in the A Levels, making sure that I revisede, understood and remembered the contents as well as possible in order to get the grade that I needed to meet my offer.
• I looked into Oxford colleges and worked out which would be best for me to apply to based on location, reputation, size, accommodation and facilities - it is important to feel comfortable and prepared in the terms of living at the univeristy as well as studing there!

What studying at Oxford is really like:

• The workload is (unfortunatley) as difficult as it is out to be - but with good organisation, time management and focus it is possible to mangae the workload and be successful with it.
• Tutorials are the most valuable contact hours as they act as mini group discussions where you can really get to grips with a topic, think about your views, and ask tutors about anything you are unsure about.

Niall Bolton - Offered Medicine at Oxford

• Read books, fiction especially.
• Know the A level content well.
• Build your conversational and presentational skill.
• Good GCSEs were important in my application.
• Understanding the interview format itself. I talked to people who had done the interviews in the past and I did a brief course with St Hugh's College.
• Feeling like to actually want to go there. I think it is important to show passion and you have to actually want what you're working for.
• For Medicine, I had to be very analytical of data in my interview and it really pushed what I knew. You have to be able to think deeply and a little out of the box about problems.
• Be friendly with the interviewers and it'll make it lot easier.