UCAS + OXBRIDGE advice
No, I won’t write your UCAS personal statement for you, but I have written a book which explains in detail how you can write your own.
The most up-to-date version of the book is available chapter by chapter by clicking on the links to the left (if you’re on a computer) or the + (if you’re on a tablet or phone). Or you can get straight to Chapter 1 by clicking here.
If the thought of reading all 19 chapters (or 23 chapters if you’re applying to Oxbridge) feels a bit daunting then, frankly, you shouldn’t be going to university at all. After all, what do you think you’ll be doing there? Clue: reading lots of long books. And why rush an application to spend over £30,000 and three years of your life?
But if you really just want to jump to the good stuff, the summary in Chapter 15 will give you the gist. Otherwise, start here. And the chapters about Oxbridge applications start here.
What I will do for you – and what I have done very successfully for my students – is help you write your own personal statement and review the drafts that you write. I also offer advice on university entry in general, and specific guidance on applying to Oxford and Cambridge, including interview and test preparation.
I charge £75 per hour for these services. See Fees for details. But reading my book online will cost you nothing!
Trinity College, Cambridge, where I was an undergraduate
In 2014 all three of my Oxbridge candidates achieved their required grades
“She got an A in the Maths and she's off to Oxford. We’re really grateful for all that you did for her. You were absolutely right for her at the right time and did absolutely what was necessary. The biggest plus of course was that she really liked you.” Mrs T, mother of Poppy
“I owe my university life to you. Your tuition was not just academic tuition, it was more like life tuition and it helped me get through some sticky situations. You offered invaluable life and academic advice; helping me make the right decisions.” Emraz, student
Universities
As well as having been to Cambridge myself, I have more recent experience of studying at a UK university, having attended lectures (and submitted assignments) in second year undergraduate Physics at the University of York, and having been an Enterprise Fellow at York St John University. I have been both a tutor and a student at the Open University. I regularly visit university campuses (most recently Queen Mary, London, and Brunel). I also have some familiarity with the US university system, having worked in the US for three years.
Professions
In addition to teaching, I have worked in a number of large law firms in the City (including Linklaters, where I worked on Mattel v. Hasbro, better knows as Barbie v. Sindy) and for one of the ‘Big Four’ accountants (Ernst & Young). I am therefore familiar first-hand with the recruitment processes of these firms and what the jobs there really entail.
Don’t Skateboard
In 2009 I founded Don’t Skateboard and raised £8,000 to take 12 less privileged young people to Cambridge for a week to experience what life is really like there. Of the three who subsequently applied, all were offered places and got the grades needed to take them up.
The name was inspired by a school in Boston that wanted to avoid a lengthy list of rules for its students to follow. It came up with one: Don’t roller-skate in the hallways. If you understand the reason for that rule, you can work out for yourself what behaviour is appropriate, or not appropriate, in any given situation.
