Last year, I was rejected from Oxford for PPE post-interview. This year, I was accepted to Cambridge for Economics. Here’s how I did it.

I enjoyed myself right after rejection

• The decision felt horrible, so I thought back to what makes me happy and indulged.
• Went out with my friends and had a bunch of fun doing random stuff.
• Last bit of real fun for a while…

I locked in for A-Levels by the end of Jan

• They’re the one thing you can 100% control.
• It’s simply a matter of hard work.
• Motivation can be difficult, but a strong support network of mates helps.
• Most applying on gap years have A*s, so I knew I had to smash it.

(Optional) American Universities

• I applied to US unis — Harvard was my main goal.
• I got waitlisted, which was upsetting, but I was in the A-Level flow, so I just continued.

I reflected on my rejection

• Why did I get rejected? My TSA was good, so my interview was my weakness. My feedback confirmed this thought.
• Was PPE right for me? Not really — philosophy didn’t interest me much. I applied for the wrong course, so looked elsewhere for one with Maths + Essays → Econ!
• Would I go to another uni? LSE seemed nice, but I don’t like the idea of uni in London, so I’d see what happened on results day.
• So, what if not LSE? I looked at other unis/courses intermittently to see what was more compelling.

A-Levels went well!

• Managed 4A*s in Maths, Further Maths, History, and Economics (with an A in EPQ).