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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]DCUMers: [b]What would you choose? Oxbridge or HYP? For, say, Math/Physics/Economics?[/quote][/b]

HI PP,  I have a kid at Oxford.  I'll try to answer

Does your kid want a USA four-year rah rah liberal arts experience along with the math/physics/economics?  If so, then HYP (I'm assuming you know how difficult it is to get into those three places?).  Or do they just want to do pure research?  Do they know if there is someone at Oxbridge they want to study or do research under (essay fodder)?  Are they aware they have to make a very strong case in the application as to why they should be allowed to come and study that particular subject at Oxbridge?  Then there are the oral interviews (there are entire books on how to pass these interviews).,  Oxford also has high AP test requirements.  Last I knew, your student needed to take 3 AP test and score 5 on all three.  Here's a start for the application process. https://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/courses/admission-requirements/admission-requirements-table.

If your student does get an offer, it will most likely be a "conditional offer" meaning that Oxford wants to see the AP exam results and the end-of-senior-year grades before a full admission.  (also a financial status submission proving you have the money to attend).  Oxford is unyielding on the conditions.  If you don't meet them, they move on to the next person on the list and your kid goes to community college for a year.

Does your child want to teach?  Do they want an MPhil or DPhil?  The Oxbridge DPhil is not pedagogical.  It is purely research-driven.  That can be a plus or a minus.  If your child wants to teach back here in the U.S., it is usually better to get the (much longer) U.S. doctorate because it includes pedagogy.  On the other hand, in the right department, you can get an Oxford DPhil faster than a U.S. one.

Is your student familiar with "rusticating"?  This is when students who are not doing well voluntarily leave Oxbridge or or told to leave for at least a year.  It has happened to a number of my DC's friends.  There is a Facebook page for parents of Oxford students.  Rusticating is discussed there a lot - ironically, a lot by British parents, not as many Americans.  But many kids just can't cut it and are rusticated.  You need backup plans should this happen.

Also, there is the risk of going the full three years for undergrad and not passing.  Or, in the case of some of my DC's friends, two years were lost towards a MPhil but in the end they didn't pass (one exam; one paper). The Oxford 100-point grading system can be brutal to Americans.  Anything over a 70 is considered a miracle for an American.  69 is passing.  Those who were sent home without a degree scored in the 50s.   So they have nothing for their two years there.

And of course there is no hand-holding, as you undoubtedly know.  If your child is a self-starter and gets good tutors and can self-advocate then they may succeed.  It is not like the US system where you can hide in a large classroom all term and never do the reading or never discuss a topic.  When you meet with your tutor it is expected that not only have you read all of the material but that you have "mastered" it and can speak with some eloquence in the area of study.

It's a tough place.[/quote]

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