Hi all. I plan to apply to Oxford, but I do not want to waste my time if I have no chance of getting in. I would apply for a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. There are no required AP courses, but math is recommended and a history background is listed as useful. Outside of subject requirements, I would have to score well on the TSA and do well on the interview (if I’m selected). Outside of the TSA and interview, are my AP scores and ACT score high enough to even be considered?
AP Calc AB- 5
AP US Gov- 5
AP US History- 5
AP Seminar- 5
AP Calc BC- TBD
AP Chem- TBD
AP Bio- TBD
AP Spanish- TBD
AP Spanish Lit- TBD
AP Enviro- 4 (not sure if I should submit)
AP Physics 1- 3 (won’t submit)
ACT: 32 (minimum requirement)
I am most likely an above average writer, so my personal statement should be okay. My extracurriculars are pretty good, so I will try to incorporate related activities into my personal statement (eg. Girls State, leadership roles). My GPA is a 3.97 UW and 4.83 W from last semester. I know they don’t care as much about GPA and extracurriculars, so that is why I think I may not be as strong of an applicant as I would be for American schools, but I would love to be wrong about that.
If I were to apply to Cambridge instead, I would apply for Human, Social, and Political Sciences. There are no specific subjects required for that degree and there are not any pre-interview tests. I believe the Oxford program is probably better for me, but if I would have a significantly better chance at Cambridge, I will apply there instead. If one degree is much more or less competitive than the other let me know.
Also, if anyone has any information on how acceptances may work for Americans and how likely it is I would know before May 1st please let me know as I will not be taking a gap year.
Thanks so much!! In sum, I just want to know if I realistically have any chance and/or if I would be better of applying to Cambridge. Have a nice day everyone.