Kleene

I was trying to make a poll to get some statistics, but it does not seem to have worked out. :/ EDIT: There it is!

Just curious: for how many programs have you applied? If you have applied during multiple cycles, please vote for all cycles.

That depends on whether your department interviews, and if so what is their interview method for international students. I had one last year for my MSc. Best of luck!

That surprises me, given the number of informal acceptances in the results search. I would expect most POI's to just tell it as soon as the decision has officially been made.

They would not fund you for an MA unless they were being genuine. Go for it, unless you find a funded PhD or MA that is a better fit. Some school recommend rejected PhD applicants for their MA's all the time, but only because those are cash-cows (and thus these people tend to be unfunded for the MA). That does not seem to be the case here!

In the UK, colleges are schools that offer the last two years of pre-university education (A-levels). Another notion of college, is a community (where people live together) within a university (Oxford, Cambridge, and Durham, for instance, have a college system). Nonetheless, UK universities will also understand an American's notion of college. Personally, though, I would prefer adopting the British terminology: 'during undergrad' instead of 'in college'.

I think the important thing to keep in mind is that you would never be admitted if you did not have a very good chance of succeeding in a program. No matter how crappy you feel about yourself, at some point someone has recognised your potential, even if you may not have recognised it yourself.

I am not sure whether my experience is of much help, because it may be slightly different for a continuing student. They asked about last term's courses and which results I found interesting. Most of the interview was centered around my proposal. Not in too much detail, but about the general topic and what in particular excites me about it. Also, the inevitable question is 'why Oxford, why this project'. I was told to be prepared for questions on my previous research, although it was not brought up during the interview. It was rather laid-back, but I tend to freak out in interviews nonetheless. Best of luck to you too! As an international student, you might get a Skype interview. (I had one last year, although other CS people had phone interviews too.)

Balliol is seriously a very good choice. We have a very open, active graduate community in the Holywell Manor annex about five minutes walking from the main site. Actually, we just had the first snow of the year so some of us went outside in the garden to have a snowball fight. Is Oxford your top choice? I am not sure how the funding situation is in the OII. I would say that it is a highly dynamic and relevant field, so I hope that it is not that bad?

Nice! The OII seems to be doing pretty interesting research. What college did you apply to? My funding options are those available to everyone: departmental, university, college, external bodies, or any combination of those, which will be allocated through the department. Indeed, funding is far from a sure thing, although I hope I am in a fairly good position as a continuing EU student. I am also looking at scholarships from my home country (I have a partial one for the MSc), but it seems like those are virtually non-existent.

Hi all, anyone applying to Oxford this year? Let's freak out together here. What course and deadline did you apply for? Any results so far? I applied to stay on for a DPhil in Computer Science, as a current MSc student in Maths&CS. Had an interview today, and am now keeping my fingers crossed.

I think it really depends on where you want to go after your MSc. Obviously, it is easier to stay on for a PhD than to switch. If you want to do a PhD in Computer Science or in Oxford, go for Oxford (especially if you are interested in categorical quantum or categorical linguistics). Otherwise, just go for Cambridge. It has by far the best maths reputation in the UK, probably also in the world.

People have not been telling me shit, because I have not told many people I am applying. It is easier for me to stay low profile this year, since I am in another country away from people who can inquire. Others I have told that "I am looking for possibilities to stay at my current institution", which means that I have applied but do not want anyone (including myself) to get their hopes up.

Thanks. I will give it my best. That's all I can do. I am slightly socially awkward as well, but I can definitely join a talk about Game of Thrones. Sorry to hear that you feel like those candidates are not a good fit for your group. Btw, my mother does refer to GoT as 'porn'. ("Are you watching porn again?")

Argh, having an interview with my one and only top choice (and current institution) tomorrow! Interviews are definitely my weakest point, but somehow I made it in last year with a horrible interview so not all is lost! I did not want to tell many people about it (only two, in fact), so I have probably brought it upon myself that I cannot share my anxiety with anyone!

I do think it is a bit weird not to tell you, but since he already implied that he was not going to tell you I suppose he must have his reasons. I agree with the previous posters. Good luck with the final wait!

if (accepted) if (funded) attend; else cry;

Wow, respect for having so much fun in interviews. That will probably pay off!

Departments nominate people for the Clarendon, so in reality they only have to look at a handful of applicants.

Most people first try and get an extension. If it is not April 15, you might want to send the adcom an email explaining that you are still waiting on other results to come in to make an informed decision and if they could give you an extension.

What school is it? Interviews differ quite a lot per school. You might get more specifics if you tell us which school it is. Usually you will be asked about your research proposal, and also about your earlier research projects. If you have not listed any research projects on your CV whatsoever, they might ask you about it. You might want to ask yourself if you did any projects that, although not original research, might have given you the skills to be a successful researcher.

In Europe it is fairly common to have later deadlines or rolling admissions without strict deadline.

I am in Balliol. Great college, especially for grads because we have a graduate complex where most people live. The MCR is very active. So far I am only applying to stay in Oxford (with the CS department). I do have some back-ups, but I have not applied there yet to avoid the situation of having to accept one offer before hearing from Oxford. I don't know what it is like in Cambridge, but I do think that the Oxford course structure makes it rather awkward to apply for PhDs for the next fall. Most applications deadlines were before we had even finished the first term. We had no grades whatsoever yet. On top of that, the course does not end until the end of September so that you will have a late start with your PhD unless you go for a UK uni. Therefore, many students are taking a year out.

If you are interested in CQM, Oxford probably has the best research group in the world. They are pioneering really amazing stuff at the moment. Even though I do not intend to continue in QM, I have taken two quantum courses simply because it is so interesting. I think the courses in pure maths on offer are pretty good. However, my maths background is obviously not as strong as yours, so you might think differently. Some people joined this course because it is one of the few (good) pure maths courses. Some people barely take any CS options.

Haven't heard yet. Only got a message today that my application had been forwarded and is now under consideration by the department.