Early Applicants

Applying to Oxford and Cambridge

An Early application

Pupils applying for Medicine, Dentistry, Vet. Medicine and all those applying to Oxford or Cambridge are early applicants. Some pupils applying for Conservatoires (Music) are also early applicants but this is mentioned in our dedicated Conservatoire page .

You can find a link to the recorded webinar about Early applications here

How are Early applications different from other UCAS applications?

Earlier deadlines

The UCAS submission deadline mid-October compared to mid-January In practice,you will need to hand in your application to the school by mid- September so we can check it thoroughly. This means you will need to work on your Personal Statement over the summer to meet these deadlines.

Choices

For Oxford and Cambridge

You can only apply to one of the universities. Pupils can submit their other choices later as long as it is before the UCAS January deadline

Additional requirements

Submitting the application to UCAS is just the first step

Applicants may have to take an pre-admission assessment.

It is important to note these usually take place during the October break of the year you are applying and that Oxford and Cambridge are not really flexible in giving dispensation in case of a school trip or holiday. This is worth bearing in mind before signing onto a school trip taking place during the October break of the year you are applying.

Please find out more information about the admission test on this page.

You may also have to submit marked or additional written work.

You can check if you need to submit written work by looking at the entry requirement on the course page (and check the requirements for each college offering that course as these may differ). The College that assesses your application will also let you know if you need to submit written work. They'll explain how you need to send it to them, and the deadline for doing this which is usually in November. Written work may vary but will often require you to demonstrates your analytical, reasoning, language and writing skills, as appropriate for your chosen degree course. It often needs to be done in one setting and be marked by a teacher so it is worth thinking about what type of work you will be required to send. This may be one of your class essay but you may want to showcase you ability beyond the confines of the Higher curriculum. As this written work often needs to be done in one setting and be marked by a teacher it is worth thinking about it prior to the start of session.

Applicants will have to prepare for an interview.

You will have opportunities to prepare for the interview at our Early applicants club (which runs every week during the first term) and through a formal mock interview

The Early Application Process at GWC

How many subjects do I need to take in S5/6?

Competitive universities like Oxford and Cambridge would typically expect pupils to take 5 Higher in S5 and 3 Advanced Higher in S6. This enables you to showcase you ability to cope with a demanding workload and develop a range of skills, and still places you in a minority of pupils nationally who are able to cope with a such demanding workload.

For some courses, there are specific subject requirements (especially for scientific courses) so it is important to check you have the right subjects at the right level.

Would taking more make me more competitive?

Taking 6 Higher or 4 Advanced Higher courses will not make you more competitive, and there is no expectation from Oxford nor Cambridge to take more than required. Taking more than 5 Higher and 3 Advanced Higher courses also prevents you from engaging with our enrichment programme which often offers a range of super curricular opportunities that can make your application more competitive.

It is also important to recognise the potential negative impact of such a heavy workload on your wellbeing and ability to perform/excel in the final exams.

We do not recommend taking more than 5 Higher courses and 3 Advanced Higher courses in S6, and this would be something we discuss with you when engaging with the S5 and S6 Subject Choice Scrutiny.

What to do to prepare in S5?

Before the exams

Focus on getting the best grades possible in 5 Higher subjects. This is because getting excellent grades is the first step to be considered for a competitive course.

You may want to sign up for relevant newsletters and attend relevant webinars.

Post Exams

Engage with supercurricular activities and relevant work experience

Super-curricular activities are activities that take the subjects you study further, beyond the demands of the curriculum. Pupils can explore their chosen subject in many ways; for example, by reading, engaging with online courses, as well as watching videos online, downloading lectures, visiting museums or entering academic competitions.

To be successful pupils need to critically engage with the material, and form their own opinion and judgement. Don’t be a passive consumer but reflect upon what you are learning.

Supercurricular activities are ACADEMIC endeavours that should be intellectually challenging. They are different from extracurricular activities, such as DofE or being part of a sport team.

This will help you writing your Personal Statement as well as performing during the interviews and in your academic studies at university.

We encourage you to create an 'Early applicant folder' to keep track of your reading and activities.

if you are applying to a medical related course, ensure you organise relevant and meaningful work experience.

Start researching your courses

As soon as the exams are done start researching your options, in particular the course and look into colleges as well. For medical applications, look at the schools website.

Check their entry requirements- will you need a pre-assessment?
Do you need Written work? If so it may be worth contacting a teacher and thinking possible work that would enable you to demonstrate your analytical, reasoning, language and writing skills, as appropriate for your chosen degree course. This may be one of your class essay but you may want to showcase you ability beyond the confines of the Higher curriculum. As this written work often needs to be done in one setting and be marked by a teacher it is worth thinking about it prior to the start of session.
Check the college and their activities

Over the summer

Work on your personal statement: the first draft should be ready to be checked by your Tutor in August
Practise past papers for the relevant pre-assessments
Continue to engage with super-curricular activities/experience and update your ‘early applicant’ folder’ to keep track of your activities

The Process in S6

August-October

Submit the UCAS application on time

(internal deadline is mid-september)

Prepare for the pre-admission assessments and submit your registration form to school if required

September- October

Take the relevant pre-admission assessments. This may happen during the October holidays.

October- December

Check your email regularly and submit any additional work/ documentation required by the university

Prepare for the Interviews (club and Mock interviews)

November/January

Go to the interviews. You may be offered more than one for Oxford/Cambridge.

You will receive a decision from Oxford and Cambridge by the end December/ January

I am an Early applicant and I need to appeal a grade

Early applicants must fill the Non Priority Appeal Request Form here by the 29 August. They are nor eligible for the Priority appeal as these are reserved for S6 Pupils going to university.

However, the school lets the SQA know that they are an early applicant. In the past, the SQA have endeavoured to return the appeal before the UCAS deadline for Early applicants so they could update their grades on their applications. We hope they will be able to do so again this year, but we cannot guarantee that they will.

What does this mean for my application?

Let the Careers team know that you are an Early applicant AND which subject(s) you are appealing.
Please submit your application by the internal deadline (11 September). When you submit your application it is NOT sent to UCAS but it enables the Careers team to check it thoroughly and work with you on making it the best that it can be. We will only send it to UCAS once you have received your appeal if it possible to wait for the result.

What if my appeal has not come back before the UCAS Deadline?

We must send your Early application within the UCAS deadline (16 October) or it won't be consider for an early application.

If you receive a positive outcome on your appeal past the UCAS deadline for submission, you will be able to update your grade by filling a form on UCAS (see here). it may be a good idea to contact the college/university as well to let them know of this update.

Oxbridge: Choosing your course

Choose the right subjects for your course

Most courses will have required subjects. You can check these on the course pages directly.

Oxford has created this useful summary here
Cambridge is also providing some advice here but more details are available on the individual course pages.

Demonstrate a passion for the course/subject

Before engaging with an early application for Oxford or Cambridge, you need to think very hard about the course you want to study. This is the most important decision to make because admission Tutors will want to check that candidates have what it takes and will be able to cope (thrive) with the demands of the university. They want to see

a genuine passion for the course subject.
a breadth of knowledge that extends beyond the curriculum

it is essential to engage with supercurricular material that goes beyond the demand of the school curriculum.

How important are Colleges at Oxford and Cambridge?

There are more than 40 colleges at Oxford and over 30 at Cambridge. (note that some are for postgraduate candidates only).

The college is where the student lives and where they have their tutorials/supervisions. Each college usually has its own bar and dining hall, library, student accommodation, sports grounds, and student nurse.

College Tutors are in charge of setting the specific entry requirements for the course (pre-admission assessments, interviews). They are in charge of the interviews. Note that Colleges may have different requirements for the same course so it’s important to check each college attentively.

Candidates can apply to a specific college or make an ‘open application’. Even if you specify a college pupils might still be shortlisted and offered a place by another college. In 2021, at Oxford, 26% of successful applicants got an offer from a college they didn't specify on their application.

Lectures and exams are organised by the university-wide academic departments. Everyone in the whole university studying the same subject comes together in big halls for those. Pre-admission assessments

Pre-admission assessments

These are designed to help universities differentiate between excellent candidates who all have outstanding academic profiles. They are meant to be challenging and will require practice and knowledge that extend beyond the demands of the school curriculum.

Oxford list here
Cambridge list here

Note that these assessments take place around Mid-October and may take place during the October school holiday (Malawi Trip). If you are going on the Malawi trip, please contact Mrs Robert-Christensen as soon as possible.

What support exists for Early applicants in school ?

The school supports Early applicants in a number of ways

Information to pupils and parents: information meetings, dedicated workshops during S5 Futures week in june
Support from the Careers team and the S6 Tutor
Early applicant club- once a week at lunchtime between August and December
- - - Advice on the application process
    - Interview advice and practice
Rigorous checking of the UCAS application by the Careers team
Mock interviews and mock MMI practice (new in 2023/24)

Support for Pre-assessments

The Maths department has kindly offered to support pupils with the Maths component for MAT, TMUA, PAT, STEP and ESAT.

This takes the form

Regular weekly meetings and after-school sessions in the run-up to the test
Going through the topics covered in the pre-assessments that they have not been taught in the H Maths (or not yet in the AH Maths course)
Help for those attending on the past papers they are working on.

Supercurricular links for Oxbridge

Oxford

Digital resource hub: to support learning and exploration.

Oxplore : free educational website created by the University of Oxford designed to engage 11-18 year olds with complex ideas across a wide range of subjects. The website is organised into a series of thought-provoking Big Questions which take students on a guided journey to encourage their powers of debate and critical thinking

Cambridge

HE+ website: brings you exciting supercurricular resources created and written by Cambridge students and academics including challenging activities, engaging videos, reflective questions and much more.

Unifrog: go to the Exploring pathways section and look at their webinars, MOOC and articles.