I’ll be attending Dartmouth in the fall, and want to apply to Oxford for entrance in 2018-2019. I would be studying Modern Languages (French and Beginner’s Italian). My biggest concern is that I have 5s on 7 AP exams, but will likely be getting a 2 or 3 on AP Physics 1 despite having a 97 in the class. I know I need to submit all scores, but I’ve seen conflicting things on whether or not this score would hurt (since it’s outside my intended course of study). I have strong subject test scores (800 on US history, 800 on Math 2, and 750 on French) that I think I can submit instead, but I’m worried because Math 2 is outside my course of study. Any advice? Thank you!
They’d care about your Dartmouth GPA.
But why would you want to start at Dartmouth and then switch to Oxford?
Dartmouth really wasn’t my first choice, and I’m 100% willing to give it a try, but want to have another option just in case. With Oxford (an absolute dream school for me), I wouldn’t really have time to get acclimated before deciding if I want to apply, so I’m just going to go for it.
I personally am a fan of the broader American college education.
Why is Oxford your dream school? What will you do after a degree in pure languages?
I want to work in the UK after graduation, love the tutorial system, want a more focused education, think the course itself is perfect for me (near fluency in just a year + mandatory year abroad that can be spent working), love the way the university is so closely integrated into the city, and love the traditions.
I’m not too concerned about the usefulness of getting a Modern Languages degree. I’d be getting a pure liberal arts degree no matter what, and the Oxford website is very comforting with respect to finding a job after graduation with near-native knowledge of two foreign languages.
Good news is it looks like on average 87% of applicants get invited for an interview for your course. If you do well on the MLAT and have good written work to submit, my guess is that the one mediocre AP(particularly Physics 1 which is off course and where something like only 5% of test takers get a 5) would not keep you from getting shortlisted for interview.
You will know if you are shortlisted by Thanksgiving time and have your offer (where you will likely have satisfied your conditions already) by mid January, so you could react accordingly at Dartmouth.
Figure out early where you will go to take the MLAT - will probably involve some travel to either Boston or NY. Also take a look at which colleges offer your course. Good Luck!
Thank you! Still wondering if it would be better to just submit SAT 2s instead. Thoughts?
Unless you’re a UK citizen/resident, working in the UK after graduation may be difficult.
You must enter all your education results from secondary school onwards. You may not pick and choose. Take heart that it is unlikely that many UK applicants for languages will have advanced level physics.
From UCAS : Full education history -
You must enter all your qualifications from secondary education onwards – whether you have the result (even any that were ungraded) or you’re still awaiting exams and results.
The Oxford international section says much the same thing and does not allow superscoring.
Good luck.
I think you need to submit all your standardised score, both SAT and AP. Biut in your case I really don’t that physics score will be a problem at all, so don’t worry about it.
@PurpleTitan You’re entitled to four months in the UK to search for a job after graduating from a British university.
Yeah, but landing a job as a non-resident is a different story.
The policy is very clear: you MUST submit ALL your APs/SAT/ACT/Subject tests. Cheating by not sending your AP scores is enough to get you rejected or an offer rescinded. So my thoughts are that it would be foolish to cheat.
Fwiw, your physics score will not be why Oxford doesn’t accept you for Modern Languages.
Thank you for clarifying. I was confused since the Oxford website says, “Grade 5 in three or more Advanced Placement Tests in appropriate subjects OR SAT Subject Tests in three appropriate subjects at 700 or better,” but UCAS definitely makes it clear.
Those will be the conditions of your offer if you receive one. My son’s offer letter said the same exact thing (plus the 32 or better on the ACT). Doesn’t impact the UCAS rules of score reporting. Do well on the MLAT and then be prepared for the interviews. That should be your focus at this point.
Thanks for the advice, everyone. One last question: I’m taking “Intensive Italian” at Dartmouth this year, so I would be ready for literature classes by the time the school year ends. Since I’ll only have some basic knowledge of the language by November, would I take the LAT or Italian section of the MLAT?
Take a look at the Oxford ML website. If you are going to apply for French and Beginning Italian, it looks like you will have to take both the language aptitude and French sections of the test.