Oliver Dobbs, at 25, finally gained acceptance to the University of Oxford after six attempts. Having applied for various courses including PPE (Philosophy, Politics, and Economics) and English Literature at multiple colleges, he was finally admitted as a mature student in Theology and Religion at Christ Church in 2020. Dobbs has long felt a connection to Oxford, where his sister also studies. For over a century, Oxford and Cambridge, collectively known as Oxbridge, have symbolised privilege and a gateway to prestigious careers in law, politics, and other fields. The 2019 Elitist Britain report by the Sutton Trust and the Social Mobility Commission revealed that a significant percentage of the UK’s elite, including MPs, peers, senior judges, and police chiefs, attended Oxbridge. This high status fuels the determination of many students and parents to secure a place there.
Charles Bonas, founder of the tutorial agency Bonas MacFarlane, confirms this obsession, noting that parents are often willing to invest heavily in Oxbridge preparation. Even children as young as five are prepared for the Oxbridge experience.
Oxford and Cambridge continue to top student reputation surveys, despite recent challenges like the marking and assessment boycott due to industrial action by the national lecturers’ union. This boycott disrupted graduations, leaving many students without marked exams or dissertations. Cambridge was particularly affected, with only 59% of final-year students graduating on time.
The Oxbridge application process is notoriously stressful and competitive, involving tests like the Thinking Skills Assessment and rigorous interviews. Private school applicants have found it increasingly challenging to gain admission due to a perceived bias towards state school students and the use of contextual offers. These offers consider factors like family background and school performance. In recent years, the proportion of state school students admitted to Oxbridge has risen significantly.
Dorothy Byrne, president of Murray Edwards College at Cambridge, advocates for the university’s student population to reflect the UK’s state school demographic. She suggests that private school students might benefit from attending other universities to meet a more diverse range of people.
Acceptance rates vary widely among colleges. For instance, 38.6% of applicants to Murray Edwards College are successful, compared to just 13.8% at Downing College. Similar disparities exist at Oxford, where Worcester College is the most competitive with an 11.7% acceptance rate, while St Hilda’s College admits 30.2% of applicants.