Other Frequently Asked QuestionsYou may have questions about aspects of our admissions process which are not answered elsewhere on these pages. Here are some commonly asked questions, and answers to them... What if I am not yet 18 years of age?
Our normal policy at Clare is that students should be 18 by the beginning of the academic year in which they are admitted. But we are prepared to consider each case on its individual merits. We could therefore consider you for a place in 2009, but we would need to assure ourselves - after interviewing you and studying your application in its entirety - that we thought you mature enough to cope with the demands of the course. I cannot therefore guarantee at this stage that we would definitely not rule you out on these grounds for an offer of a place for 2009. However, many of our students take a Gap Year so please do contact the Admissions Office if you would like to discuss this possibility. Dr William Foster, Science Admissions Tutor What is your policy on 'non-traditional' A-level subjects, such as Art, History of Art, Media Studies or Theatre Studies? Could they form part of an offer? We do take these subjects seriously, and they could certainly form part of an offer. A-level Art and History of Art courses vary, and those with a strong academic component are acceptable in an Arts application. We feel that Media Studies and Theatre Studies have a very useful interdisciplinary character, but they are only considered when continued with more academic subjects. Please note that we do not include General Studies or Critical Thinking in our offer. Dr Tess Knighton, Arts Admissions Tutor What is Clare's Policy on 'AS' Levels? We will continue to tailor our offers to take account of the different educational experience of our candidates. When making a decision, we will look at all the information that is available to us, including GCSE grades, AS grades (where already taken), the school/college reference, other achievements, and personal circumstances. We would expect A grades at AS where the subject(s) taken are particularly relevant to the Cambridge course applied for; although candidates often improve their grades through resitting, we generally expect a high grade at the first attempt. If I miss my offer, but am willing to resit some modules in order to obtain my required grades, would you then be likely to confirm my offer for the following year? It is not our policy to confirm offers on the basis of resits. You would be welcome to apply again, but it would be as a post-A-Level candidate, in competition with all others applying in that year. Is it a disadvantage if several people from one school apply to the same College? Absolutely not. We treat all applicants as individuals. Indeed, we are often unaware that applicants are from the same school until we compile our records after offers have been made. How important is my record at GCSE? Your GCSE record is one of the factors that we take into account in assessing an application. Almost all of our applicants have 5 or more As, or A*s at GCSE, and many have done considerably better than that. However, we do also understand that individuals develop academically at very different rates, and that some who have performed indifferently at GCSE will go on to do much better in their final school/college exams. Good school/college references and A-level predictions together with your own enthusiasm for the subject and high grades at AS level (where appropriate) can therefore offset a less good performance at GCSE. Are there any guidelines regarding the Cambridge Application? Please bear in mind, that an Admissions Tutor and at least one of your interviewers will have read your Personal Statement. It is therefore worth taking some care over this. To some extent it represents your chance to set the agenda before the interview, and you should be prepared to discuss it. It is a good idea to focus on your chosen subject, your reasons for being interested in it. We are also interested in your activities outside work, and the ways in which you have followed it up outside the normal school curriculum. Clare does not have a teaching fellow in my subject. Does that matter? In some small subjects, a teaching fellow can be shared by a number of Colleges as Director of Studies. An external Director of Studies can be just as accessible and committed to the success of students as an internal one, and in Clare we try hard to integrate external Directors of Studies into the teaching work of the College. Does Clare favour candidates from particular types of school? Clare draws its lively and diverse student body from every type of school and college: at present around 40% of our home students come from the independent sector, in addition to our overseas students, and 60% from the state sector. At Clare, candidates matter to us above all as individuals, and in assessing them we look carefully at every aspect of their academic and educational experience. We want simply to attract candidates with the best potential in their subject, as measured by their academic record, their school/college references, their performance at interview and the written work that we look at as part of the interview process. What do you really look for in an applicant? Achievement, enthusiasm and potential. These qualities are often clear from the school or college record, but they may also come out in a range of other ways. Within the means available to them, good candidates will have read widely around their subject as well as what is actually required by the course; some will have taken trouble to get work experience connected with their academic interests; some will have planned a Gap year in the same way. Even if you have had few such opportunities, you should be able to show us your genuine commitment and motivation. |
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