University of Oxford

[h.vasilev]

I'm an undergraduate student in a small university in Bulgaria. Europe. I'm having a really hard time understanding some of the "admission process" in UK and other foreign universities. I want to evaluate some of my chances for some programs and I'm really puzzled about some topics since our academic practices are so different.

For example lets take the University Of Oxford. I'm interested in their MSc in Computer Science program.

The documents which are required with the application are as follows:

1) transcript

2) language certificate, if appropriate.

3) At least two references

4) statement of study plan

5) C.V

6) "Applicants are required to submit a personal statement demonstrating their academic ability and motivation for applying for the MSc in Computer Science. "

Please help me with information regarding some of the following questions:

- "Applicants are normally expected to have achieved an upper second class or first class Honours Degree (or equivalent)". Am I supposed to achieve just the minimum requirements for the specific program? In other words - student's applications are not ranked based on those requirements? Please correct me if I'm wrong.

- "For TOEFL an overall score of ........ For the new internet based test we require a minimum overall score of 109.". Am I supposed to achieve just the 109 / 120 minimum requirements for the specific program? In other words - student's applications are not ranked based on those requirement? Please correct me if I'm wrong.

- "At least two references". Is that one of the main requirements the student's ranking is based on? In other words - how important is that ?

- "C.V." - Is that one of the main requirements the student's ranking is based on? In other words - how important is that ?

- "Applicants are required to submit a personal statement demonstrating their academic ability and motivation for applying for the MSc in Computer Science." . Is that a SoP requirement?

- "Statement of study plan." - I'm having a really hard time understanding what that requirement is.

[JustChill]

In the US there aren't any specific components of an application which are much more important than the others. There are reasons why these universities ask for all this material, which means that each one has some importance in the admission process. Regarding the TOEFL score, it means that you need to score at least 109. Of course, you can and should score higher than that to have a stronger application, but that seems to be Oxford's cut off. In the US, references are very important, because they are sources of information about an applicant from other colleagues -- professors in the field who can objectively evaluate their students' potential for success in a specific academic program. Admissions committees tend to listen to the advice of their colleagues a great deal. The CV isn't very, very important, because it basically summarizes your academic background and experiences. Most of that info will be in other parts of your application anyway. A personal statement, in this case, is something that talks about your academic training and experiences and how you are qualified to study in that program -- you are basically trying to prove that you are good enough to succeed in their program. A statement of study plan is more unusual, and we in the US usually combine a personal statement and a statement of study plan into one document -- statement of purpose -- but in Oxford's case it might mean a plan on how you will satisfy the requirements for the MSc or how you will be able to accomplish this goal.