Applying from India (Expert Oxford & Cambridge Application Advice)
Oxbridge hosts a thriving community of students from South Asia. Every year, a large number of Indian students travel to Oxbridge pursuing a variety of graduate and postgraduate programs. However, in recent years there has also been a steady inflow of students on their undergraduate degrees, a phenomenon which has become common only lately with a change in the academic requirements at Oxbridge. CBSE and ISC, the two common boards of secondary education are now accepted at both universities in at least some manner. While Oxford accepts CBSE and CISCE results by themselves, Cambridge usually accepts them alongside other additional qualifications. An undergraduate degree from Oxbridge does not only give you world-class education but also an amazing international exposure. If you’re considering where to apply for your undergraduate degree, Oxbridge should definitely be on your list!
The applications for undergraduate programmes are made through UCAS, which is the common application system for all UK universities for almost all undergraduate programmes. A student can apply to as many as 5 colleges in one application, but can only make one such application every year. But more importantly for those considering Oxbridge, you can only apply to one of the two universities, which means you must start your research early in order to make sure you’ve considered all things and have had some time to look over things again before you finally make a choice.
The application deadline for UCAS is 15 of January but Oxbridge, in particular, has an earlier deadline of 15 October. Most high school students in India miss out on the opportunity of applying to Oxbridge because, by the time they are considering the question of applications for further education, the deadlines have usually already passed.
The UCAS applications have at least three crucial elements that any applicant should spend time considering. This includes a statement of purpose, a letter of recommendation from one of your previous tutors/teachers as well the required academic qualifications. Indian students applying for their first undergraduate course are unlikely to come across all of these three steps in their applications to Indian universities and therefore it is important to take the time to familiarise yourself with the process and ensure you’re on the right track.
Course requirements
When considering what course to pursue, you should look at the admissions page of each university that outline course requirements. This would normally include information regarding any pre-admissions tests that you may have to sit, minimum academic grades as well as any other requirements that you may have to fulfil.
Admission tests
Most courses require students to sit admissions tests. Oxford and Cambridge often have separate assessment tests, such as LNAT for any of the law courses at Oxford and the Cambridge Law Test at Cambridge. These tests may vary significantly, both in substance as well as the method of assessment. It is important to consider the implications of these on your application, and to some degree on the choice of university. For instance, it may not be possible to sit some exams (such as the Cambridge Law Test) in India.
If you’re considering applying, LNAT is the most common law admission test for UK universities, including Oxford, and it is possible to sit the test in India. The test is conducted by Pearson VUE which has more than 30 test-centers across India. Registration for the test is done online on the LNAT website and starts on 1 August 2019 (for 2019-20 application cycle). If you’re applying to Oxford, the last date to sit the test is 20th October 2019 and the test must be booked latest by 5th of October. For all other universities, the last date to sit the test is 20th January 2019 and the test must be booked by 15th January.
Academic requirements
As mentioned above, Indian schooling qualification is accepted in both universities in varying degrees. At Oxford, for courses requiring A*A*A, students with Indian qualifications will be required to achieve 91% or above in 4 out of the 5 papers they sit under CBSE(Four A1s and one A2 ), and 95% or above in 4 papers (and 90% or above in the rest) if they sit for the CISCE board examinations. Similarly, for courses requiring A*AA, year XII qualifications for CBSE and CISCE are accepted with three A1s and two A2s for CBSE, and at least three papers with 95% in case of CISCE.
At Cambridge, however, the Indian school qualifications while necessary are not by themselves sufficient. CBSE and ISC qualifications are accepted but only if combined with additional qualifications such as College Board Advancement Placement Test or, if applying to certain science and engineering programmes, a less than 2000 rank in the IIT-JEE(Advanced) tests. Some courses, including economics and mathematics, might also require applicants to take the STEP examination alongside other requirements before being offered a place to study.
English language requirements
Students applying to study in the UK from countries where English is not considered to be the first language, including India, are required to display proficiency in English language skills. This usually takes the form of meeting English language requirements by taking an exam like IELTS or TOEFL although this isn’t required to be completed before the application, and therefore, applicants have time to meet this requirement once a conditional offer has been made. A conditional offer would also clearly mention the score you’re required to get in order to meet with the language requirements for your course, though generally, this will range from an overall score of 7-8 on the IELTS and an equivalent score in TOEFL.
However, in some cases, this requirement may be waived if an applicant can show that they have been educated full time in English medium throughout the two most recent years before the application deadline and who will remain in full-time education conducted in the English language until the end of the school year in their home country. Applicants must apply to the relevant departments in the university they are applying to in order to request for such a waiver which is usually considered on a case by case basis.
It is more common for Oxford to waive the language proficiency tests and applicants applying to any courses at Oxford will be well advised to write to the university well in advance in order to find out if this may be possible.
Interviews
Interviews form an integral part of the admissions process at Oxbridge. Sitting for an interview usually gives an applicant useful insight into how teaching will be organised and conducted. They usually follow a similar pattern to that of tutorials, which will be the focus of your undergraduate degree. Interviews are mostly conducted in the first two weeks of December and are organised by colleges that students apply to, though occasionally one may be asked to attend interviews at another college. This means that most students who are invited for interviews travel to Oxbridge for their interviews, meeting other candidates and experiencing the life in colleges which could be their home for the next couple of years!
However, interviews are also conducted remotely, for students who cannot travel to the UK to attend their interviews. Oxford conducts interviews via Skype for those who are unable to attend interviews in person. They take place on the same days as all other interviews and follow an identical pattern. Therefore, candidates will normally have two separate interviews, and if there is any preliminary reading to go along with the interview it will usually be e-mailed to your academic referee. It is a misconception to believe that those interviewing over Skype are at a disadvantage as compared to those interviewed in-person, and should not be a reason to worry for any applicants. If you’re invited to interview at any college, you will be provided with further guidelines for an online interview, which will generally require you to organise that the interview takes place in your current academic institution.
Cambridge works slightly differently in that instead of having online interviews, it conducts a series of overseas interview schemes. Interviews are conducted in different cities around the world and applicants will have to travel to one of these cities, usually the one closest to them. For 2020 entry, the interviews are likely to take place in 7 cities, including Mumbai, which is where most Indian candidates are likely to be interviewed.
Fees and funding
One aspect in which undergraduate applicants are at a disadvantage as compared to their graduate counterparts from India is the availability of funding. Most scholarships available to Indian students are targeted towards those pursuing postgraduate courses. There are some scholarships like Oxford and Cambridge Society of India and others available on a means-tested basis like the Reach Oxford scholarship, for which some students might qualify but most are likely to be required to be able to fund their education themselves. Most international students are also required to pay college fees, alongside the university tuition fees as well as the living costs. The annual cost of studying an undergraduate degree is likely to be between £28,000-£36,000 depending on the course you choose to do.
While there may not be a lot of scholarships for undergraduate study at Oxbridge, students are able to get support from their colleges, in the form of vacation grants, book grants as well as different kinds of bursaries. This is where researching about different colleges at Oxbridge might be particularly useful. Some colleges will have better student support networks and may be able to provide means-tested grants, while some have a strong system of bursaries. Larger colleges are likely to have more accommodation and may be able to provide accommodation across vacations more easily. In any case, these will only cover a part of your expenditure, the majority of which you’ll still be expected to cover yourself.
Visa requirements
Students who have received unconditional offers are able to apply for a Tier 4 student visa. But it is best to start working on your visa applications once a conditional offer has been made as this will give you enough time to complete your applications and submit them so as to be able to receive a visa in time for October arrival. Visas usually take 6-10 weeks, although if you’re short on time, you may be able to use the FastTrack service.
The most important thing to remember is to start early, complete the application requirements, and be prepared for pre-admission tests by September. However, if you’ve already missed the deadline or you think there is insufficient time, then you may still want to consider applying next year. One way for you to do this is to enrol in an Indian university and complete one year before starting your undergraduate course at Oxbridge. Your results from the first year at an Indian university may, in some cases, suffice as the additional qualification for Cambridge requirements. In any case, this is likely to give you ample time to make your application and help you make your application stronger. It is also likely to be helpful in getting a waiver on the English Language requirements and the need to sit language proficiency tests like IELTS/TOEFL.
Let us know if you have any questions about this article or anything related to applying from India.
