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So, the October 15th deadline fast approaches, I was wondering, who else is applying to Universities this year? What kind of courses?
I'm looking at doing a Physics/Maths and Physics/Natural Sciences courses, at Cambridge, Imperial, Warwick, St Andrews and Southampton... I've also been considering Nottingham, and Birmingham to possible tag-team with Southampton and maybe swap in instead....
Anyone else stuck pondering??
Just remember when you're applying for a top flight uni which demands 17 As and a team captainsy in Rugby, Football and Rowing as well as spending all your social time working for a local charity, that you're well advised to have a back up which is achievable by a mere mortal (just in case...).Quote:
Originally Posted by DevilMayCry42
:surprised:I'm only doing 3 A2's and 2 AS's!!! I can't play rugby or row, and i'm hopeless at football!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by Salazaar
Nah, from what I hear, all the stereotypes of Cambridge people are kinda misguided...Anyway, that one's a dream Uni, my expectations of an offer are quite low tbh....
I'm hoping more for Warwick and St Andrews...
So does that mean no-one else is applying???
The deadline for most places is in Janurary (at least was when I did it a few years back), it's only Oxford and Cambridge, and Medicine courses that have the earlier deadline IIRC.
That's probably the best way to approach it, but you should still have confidence in your ability to get to/pass an interview. Most people who apply to Oxbridge do so 'on the off-chance', and some people have to get in. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by DevilMayCry42
And don't knock Southampton on the head, it's fantastic.:mrgreen: I recommend you at least visit the campus since it is really nice, but then again I would say that.:rolleyes: I have to admit I haven't visited Birmingham or Nottingham so I can't really compare.
Thanks goodness i'm not applying for oxbridge. I've still not got my personal statement all sorted out.
I'm thinking of applying for Imperial and Southampton too, as well as Edinburgh and Strathclyde up here in scotland. But to do an MEng in Electrical + Electronic Engineering. Not really sure if it's the type i want to do tbh, but i'll see what comes out of the first/second year of general stuff. (MEng is 5 years in scotland)
im applying to uni s in sheffield as dont want to leave and dealine is june but im going to do my personal statment this week and try and have mine off by end of october.
The problem with Oxbridge (and a few other of the top unis) is that since pretty much all their applicants are loaded with top grades they have to look for something else to differentiate their candidates; sports, culture or whatever.
I highly recommend Warwick, great results but a lot more laid back than Oxbridge, you've got more time to be a student! Plus by the time you get here it'll have the flashest SU in the country!
The most important thing is to visit as many as possible, look round the campus, find out about what goes on at the Union, what clubs and societies are available (and how much they cost!) and what the departments are like!
A friend of mine went to Warwick after flunking his Oxford interview, he loved it.Quote:
Originally Posted by RavenNight
In my experience they just used interviews and a test to differentiate between candidates. I'm pretty sure the days of being thrown a rugby ball as you walked into the interview are over.Quote:
Originally Posted by Salazaar
I'm sure it is a little more in depth than that but the point is that they are looking for something in your life above and beyond just your academic qualifications.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lanky123
Well, I'm hoping that a Duke of Edinburgh Gold, Taekwondo, debating and Model United Nations will be enough to get me through....Quote:
Originally Posted by Salazaar
If not, one of the other uni's HAS to make me an offer, right?
I wish I could visit...The problem is I live overseas (think --> other side of the world:crazy:), so its kinda difficult to do that...I got to see UCL and Imperial last summer because I have cousins who used to study there, but I didn't see any other unis because I had no clue what I wanted to do/where I wanted to apply...Quote:
Originally Posted by RavenNight
Physics at Warwick started this year :D
It's awesome!
Applied to: Oxford, Imperial, Exeter, Warwick and Edinburgh
Cocked up the oxford entrance test, so that was out. Imperial never actually replied until they declined so.. whether they lost my application or what :P Exeter was really nice, Edinburgh was too far and Warwick was a little bit nicer.
Pick where you feel most comfortable. Warwick has a very nice campus, all the physics students here i've spoken too are friendly, the tutors are generally good and it's a nice atmosphere. It's also very well respected by employers - especially with a Physics degree. Don't be put off by people saying "oh that's in coventry isn't it", employers know who they are.
Oxbridge is a mixed bag, some people fit in well, some people hate it. Getting rejected was a bit annoying, but i don't think i would have enjoyed it nearly as much. Obviously the teaching quality is excellent, and you will probably have a great time there if you get in. On the flipside, you might get a more "real world" experience if you go to a slightly more standard university. You'll also have a higher workload in a shorter amount of time - and from what i hear a good number of people arrive in the 0th week and end in the 9th, so they don't really have shorter terms.
Imperial - my gran is friends with the ex-director of Physics there. His view about it is that it's a good university, but it's better for postgraduates. They also have a fairly "sink or swim" attitude towards students so if you have problems they're not fantastic about sorting it out.
Imperial, as well as Warwick, is very popular with international students, so you'd fit in well with either.
Here's an example of my week:
Monday - Maths for Scientists, Physics Foundations, Relativity
Tuesday - Maths, Foundations, Tutorial, Relativity
Wednesday - Foundations, Relativity, afternoon off
Thursday - Seminars (read: problems classes)
Friday - Labs 10-4pm
Weekend off.
Workload is a problem sheet + some web work for every lecture per week. Really not that much. There's not a great deal of reading (yet) so you can get it all done in a night and not have to bother doing any extra work for the rest of the week if you want (so long as you're comfortable with the information).
Warwick's MathPhysics course is VERY competitive i believe - i think there are maybe 10 people doing it. It's a very heavy workload as you have to do the physics core as well as the maths core. However, it's an impressive degree to do!
Any questions about Warwick Physics just give me a shout :)
SiM did MORSE here if i recall right. RavenNight, are you still here?
:O_o1: I read somewhere that Warwick was well known for its Science and Technology!!Quote:
Originally Posted by Whiternoise
Quote:
Originally Posted by Whiternoise
:surprised: Warwick was my main (realistic) hope, but methinks [judging by its competitivness] my hope of that is out the window...! I applied to Maths and Physics at Warwick!!!
Oh, and I'm going for home student, BTW, British passport, born and raised there etc. so I'd better get that status!
What about UCL? I don't know how good we are at Physics, but its a really good uni, people are really nice and friendly, and it does not have the sink or swim attitude of Imperial. Adding to that we have a large variety of good looking girls :naughty:
Definitely worth putting them on your ucas form as third option after Warrick (if thats your second choice). The only things is that its quite expensive as its London.
The best advice I can give you is to go to a uni that you feel you will enjoy the most :)
Well i assume it's competitive, certainly out of the 120 or so students in our year, there aren't that many mathsphys students. However, i imagine a lot of people are put off.. Bear in mind that you'll need the grades basically for the maths i think. I assume you're aware of how high the maths entry standards are? Physics is easy in comparison (i did further maths and they offered me ABB - not bad for Warwick) don't get me wrong, it's a very good department, but bear that in mind.
Good luck though, if you don't make MathsPhys, why not ask them if they'd consider you for straight physics?
I've sent the UCAS just earlier today!!!
I took AS Geography last year, this year doing A2 Chemistry, Maths and Physics along with AS Further Maths, all predicted As....
I was looking at straight MSci Physics, but the wobsite said that MSci Maths and Physics students have the option of switching to straight MSci Physics or Maths at the end of the first year, so It'd give me more flexibility later on....
Do you mean afterwards, if I'm rejected or something??
Yeah you shouldn't have a problem really. I think it's only straight maths that get asked for STEP :P
And yeah the way Warwick Physics - not sure about maths works is this..
First year: Core modules + 3 options
Second year: Core modules + lots of options
Third year:Core modules + lots of options
Fourth year: Project (i think) + lots of options
So basically you do the core stuff anyway, the options are relativity, particle and astronomy, so you're not really missing out (hence why you can switch).
I think you'll do fine :D I just mean that they should consider you for both, as places on the course are limited. Like how oxford let you apply for Physics + Philosophy but will consider you for physics if your phil's not up to scratch.
*victory dance*
Yay!
What a relief!
What I hate (already) is the waiting!!
Because I live overseas, I gotta fill out an extra 8 page form for Cambridge and had to mail a paper copy, which got delivered to them today...Now I'm waiting for their letter of acknowledgement, AND replies from the other unis...
The worst part is, I've been told I'll be waiting until mid-November EARLIEST!!
Haha all this talk, you'll probably just get into Cam :P
That, deserves a million thanks :D
Zomg, I'm like thanking you for everything you say, are you always this helpful!?!?
Cheers for the info though, I'll be sure to ask the many moar questions that are bound to arrive...
Whiternoise - Yeah I'm still slaving away at Warwick, Second Year - Automotive Engineering
DevilMayCry42 - If you've got any questions about Warwick, social/sports/accommodation/location I'll be happy to do my best to answer them!
I'll be sure to, thanks for the offer.....Quote:
Originally Posted by RavenNight
I have one main worry.....I can't cook!
As a student you don't have to be able to, in fact, as a student if you can afford to live above subsistense level you're a rich bastard.Quote:
Originally Posted by DevilMayCry42
....And if you're not?Quote:
Originally Posted by Salazaar
Bear in ind that cambridge want to know how your extra-curricular stuff is relevant to your chosen courses.Quote:
Originally Posted by DevilMayCry42
You'll learn to cook for yourself pretty fast, but I'd recommend learning some basic things before you come! Remember that all accommodation at Warwick is self-catered! There are some great places to eat around campus though, and the extra money you save cooking for yourself can be spent on more important things!
A student or a rich bastard?Quote:
Originally Posted by DevilMayCry42
I've long ceased being one and am struggling to become the other!
Ok.. with regards to cooking, so long as you can do stuff like pasta, baked potatoes, chili con carne you can get away with quite a lot.
Think of it this way, if i have sausages, all i have to do is cook the veg (shove em in a pot with a little bit of water and steam away) and bung it on a plate.. not rocket science.
What IS worth learning how to cook is biscuits and cakes. You will make lots of friends and a lot of respect if you can cook those properly!
I'll budget food in two week blocks, since i tend to buy enough meat in one go (on offer) to last for a while - so £4 for 2 packs of really nice sausages for instance. But my budget works out to around £15-20 per week i think. Although i spent around £25 the last 2 weeks, a lot of it is stuff that i'm not going to run out of for ages, things like baking powder, herbs and so on. I always buy good meat preferably when it's on offer (you will regret not buying nice bacon) and nice vegetables/fruit but i tend to just get budget other stuff - bread for instance, i just get the 30p loaves.
Don't waste your money in costcutter though, if there's one where you end up, go to a proper supermarket where things are actually value for money.
im currently looking for an industrial placement out in the world of design, as i am on a sandwhich course. i have had plenty of interviews, but the jobs just aint there!i did have the choice of finishing my degree, but i feel that i was ready to go back (im on a tough course, or i like to think i am).