About Uni And 6 Th Form

[TheChai]

Hi guys..

i have got a few issues i would like clarify about education:

1) do u think a universtity would more likey pick a student from a bad colledge who has ahieved really well or pick a student from a private/independent school who has achieved similar grades? it would be nice to hear some points about class and maybe ethnicity as to why the uni would be more likely to pick that pupil.

2) i have got a friend whos interpretion(sp) abt oxford and cambridge universities is that there is alot of competition in the school, and what he says (being the top of the top in my school) is that he wouldnt liek to get into any of those uni becos he thinks he would not enjoy it? would that be true? is competition not a good thing? or only in his case as he is a good head above most of the students in school.

3) this is just for me... Which would u rather pick for 6th form psycology or sociology, the other subjects i am definietly doing are chemisty, physics and maths. which do u think would be more compatiable with my combination?

just asking for views..

thanks alot..

andrew

Edited February 3, 2005 by TheChai

[tank_rider]

in terms of your education, i'm pretty sure they will look at what school you are from, however if you take standardised exams and get good results from a poorer school then it shows something about you, i.e you can work on your own initiative, and are clever. Private/grammer schools often boost students performances.

As for unis if you have the grades it is making yourself sound interesting and like you would fit in at uni. Thats where your ucas statement comes in.

[Sameer]

1) A good apple is easier to spot surrounded by bad apples, than by equally good apples. By going to the poorer college, you'll get more recognition - and chances are you'll receive much better references from your tutors, as opposed to if you went to a better school where the standards are a lot higher.

Having said that, most (all?) Uni's will undoubtedly sway further towards people from good schools/colleges, because of the aforementioned divergence in standards and reputation.

2) Dunno, but there's always competition in everything you do. Doubt it matters much in a place like Oxford or Cambridge, since you'll stand much better employment chances than people from other Uni's anyway.

3) Both are really interesting (to me, anyway) but it's a shame they hold such little value in the eyes of most admissions tutors/Universities. Take Psychology, only because Sociology holds seriously very little, and can hinder your Uni application when the times comes.

Good luck.

[Mark W]

a) It matters to some extent, but Ox-bridge have had to alter their entrance demographics because everyone got pissed off that they were only taking the well-off people, so they've been trying to get a wider percentage of people. If you doing AS and A2 levels, they'll just take the grades from that into account, most likely. 2 people from my school managed to get into Oxford and Cambridge respectively, and we're just a little school - saying that, they're not unconditional offers so they're not out of the woods yet. Ethnicity shouldn't really matter, as under the Discrimination Acts that have been put in place, your origins won't really matter as much as they used to. In fact, they're always eager to take people of non-UK sorta backgrounds (people who aren't caucasians, basically), so you might stand a better chance in that sense. However, you'll always have a better chance if your grades are good.

b) You might not enjoy it at all. Nic (Munki) knew someone who went there but had to leave. Basically, try and go on an open day. You really need to to see if you can deal with the attitudes there. The stereotypes people make of Ox-bridge students are more often than not true - arrogant, "Hooray Henry" sorta types, etc. It can be hell. Even though a degree from Oxford carries more weight than one from, say, Lampeter, you've still got to finish the course, and if you're in a shitty environment that demotivates you to work then you're f**ked either way. Just try and go to open days and see which place you like best. A degree will get you a much better chance of getting a job, and on your job app's forms you just say "a 2.1 BA(Hons) degree in yak yak yak" anyway - if they care, they'll ask where from, but a 2.1 in one place is the same as a 2.1 from any other uni.

c) I'd take Psychology. It's slightly more suited to the other subjects, and like Sameer said, people will take it more seriously. Plus, from what I've seen from psych students here, it seems like pretty good fun, really. Before you choose - think ahead to what you want to do in uni, check the entry requirements, and see if they have any say on what subjects you should do.

[Brian Bleech]

I went to college and did a National Diploma in Electronics Eng and did well (not the best) and got unconditional offers from Leeds Uni and Lancaster Uni (Guess whre i went (Y))

I tried to go to sixth at my grammar school, but hated it, but that was just probably my school!

but what i am saying is that you don't need to go to a sixth form and do A-levels to get into a good uni! (though the oxbridge ones will probably want a-levels)!

Your UCAS statement is very important too (Y) and as far as subjects go it is probably best to go for subjects that you enjoy and find interesting (Y) but i wouldn't do sociology though!

mike

[Tomm]

but i wouldn't do sociology though!

←

Agreed. Besides the fact that it probably won't look that great on your UCAS form (Unless you're applying for sociology (Y) ), it'll probably be boring as hell.

As for the whole OxBridge thing... In my experience, people who go there are a different breed. I went to pretty posh grammar school and a fair few of my friends went to Oxford/Cambridge. There's a couple who are doing Classics (Latin and Greek), and they love it. They're ultra-competitive and work all the time (In fact, one of them is helping to compile a Greek dictionary in his spare time (Y) ). Even during the holidays, they've got loads to do. Now I'm sure they enjoy it, but I'm very glad that I didn't apply there! Another friend is at Cambridge and she hates it. Full of posh people who take the piss because she watches Neighbours... So, I would say that seeing as you don't seem very sure at this point, you would probably be better off going elsewhere. You'll have a better time (And you'll probably have some time to go riding!), and if you go somewhere fairly decent, then it won't be too hard to get a job (Y)

[Royaltrials]

All I have to add here is that your friend will enjoy being a student more at a non-Oxbridge uni. He will have to work harder at Oxbridge, but you know an Oxbridge degree is going to open doors later in life.

The people I met at Oxford, there were a lot of turds. All the public school pupils seemed to know this chap from Charterhouse, Eton or Wellington. They were trussed up in their suits. However, there are cool people about, and they're not hard to find. (Y)

Just out of interest, how do you find maths at the moment? Maybe consider doing further maths, it will fit in very nicely with the three subjects you have already chosen.

[TheChai]

got an a* for the mocks so i should be doin ok... whats the use of further maths? wouldnt biology be a better option? i have heard lots abt people trying to do well in further maths and end up doin really bad in normal maths. what jobs would further maths be useful for? being done on top of normal maths?

cheers

[Alexx]

As for the whole OxBridge thing...  In my experience, people who go there are a different breed.  I went to pretty posh grammar school and a fair few of my friends went to Oxford/Cambridge.  There's a couple who are doing Classics (Latin and Greek), and they love it.  They're ultra-competitive and work all the time (In fact, one of them is helping to compile a Greek dictionary in his spare time  :P ).

←

Ditto, 4 or 5 people I know from 6th are going off to OxBridge, and they're all super-mega-geeks. I mean the kind who have read the bible, spend like 14 hours a day solid working, got 14 A*'s at GCSE and straight A's at A-Level, go through textbooks the day they get them with highlighters making notes, and are usually ugly as f**k... :P etc. Not to mention the way they talk down to you / you can't argue with them, their opinion is ALWAYS corrent (well, they think so).. grr lol

*shudders*... man I would HATE to go to one of those places.

:blink:

[mink]

whats the use of further maths? wouldnt biology be a better option?

←

It depends what you want to do.

If you wanna do a subject that involves lots of maths (e.g engineering), further maths will help but isn't essential.

[Tomm]

Further maths is hard though. Don't even think about it unless you're shit-hot at maths. Biology A-Level, on the other hand, is an absolute piece of piss :blink:

[Dr. Nick Riviera]

having gone to a private school and realising that THEY DO favour based on previous school and financial background

which means if youve done yourself well and gotten out of a state school into say a well regarded private one on an 85% scholarship , the techers are gonna make it hard for you as are the pupils

only in my case then :blink: lol

to be honest if you think about it they shouldnt really be concerned at all on your ethnicity and as long as you get the grades required any uni should accept you

[Royaltrials]

Ditto, 4 or 5 people I know from 6th are going off to OxBridge, and they're all super-mega-geeks. I mean the kind who have read the bible, spend like 14 hours a day solid working, got 14 A*'s at GCSE and straight A's at A-Level, go through textbooks the day they get them with highlighters making notes, and are usually ugly as f**k... :P etc. Not to mention the way they talk down to you / you can't argue with them, their opinion is ALWAYS corrent (well, they think so).. grr lol

*shudders*... man I would HATE to go to one of those places.

:blink:

←

Not everyone is like that... I got an offer :P

But yeah, 75% of them are like that. On the other hand, as much as they like to talk down to you, you can sit there thinking "you are a turd" and so always win.

[Mark W]

Ne'er was a truer word spoken. The 2 people from my school who are hoping to go are just turds, a lot of the time. She's going out with him, and he's well under the thumb - we used to hang out all the time, but now he has to ask her permission :blink:\

Anyway, the thing with them is that they only know it if they've read it in a book, i.e. they can't really formulate opinions of their own, so their knowledge is really thin. If they try and argue, people just shoot 'em down really easily purely because of that, which is one of the reasons I think that although they've got more than enough arrogance to get into Oxbridge, they're gonna be let down by the fact they don't really know much in detail.

[Royaltrials]

Being included in the geek mafia (further maths A-Level class) at school, it's clear that these people fall into two categories...

1) Clever people. These people just listen and class and remember it all. They have a natural gift for the subjects they are studying at A-level. They do all their work, but are not geeks and tend to have a social life. Because I went to a state school, most people fell into this category. They often play sport, are popular, are head boy/prefects and have hot girlfriends.

2) Other clever people. These people listen in class, but want to answer every question that the teacher asks. They spend too much time working, and don't have any friends. They tend to hang out in groups of three, so there's always the option of ganging up on one of the other members to feel superior. Also, they can refer to their "friends" as opposed to "friend." They don't talk to girls.

At uni, the 1s cope with the course and workload well, taking it all in, and sparing enough time to enjoy the student experience. The 2s will struggle more as the work becomes more advanced, and they cannot cope with the amount of swatting up required to get by.

In reply to Mr. Chai: Looking at your choice of A-Level subjects, you're probably going to end up doing a science/maths based degree. Have a quick scan of this table, paying particular attention to the 'Helpful' column. Entrance requirements.

Edited February 4, 2005 by Royaltrials

[Alexx]

1) Clever people. These people just listen and class and remember it all. They have a natural gift for the subjects they are studying at A-level. They do all their work, but are not geeks and tend to have a social life. Because I went to a state school, most people fell into this category. They often play sport, are popular, are head boy/prefects and have hot girlfriends.

2) Other clever people. These people listen in class, but want to answer every question that the teacher asks. They spend too much time working, and don't have any friends. They tend to hang out in groups of three, so there's always the option of ganging up on one of the other members to feel superior. Also, they can refer to their "friends" as opposed to "friend." They don't talk to girls.

←

haha, quite true.

I agree with Tomm too about being wank at arguing, based on 'fact' opinion from a book...