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In the UK at least, this is only true for a certain type or - shudder - class of person. For the vast majority of people, just getting the right course is the r

• maccard 5y ago
  You don't have to be talking about Oxford or Cambridge for this to be true. There's a world of difference between warwick and Wolverhampton universities for example
  • detritus 5y ago
    Or Newcastle, or Durham, or St Andrews, or St Martin's (if you're that way inclined), or... . I know, the list is longer than Oxford and Cambridge. But it's a neat shorthand.
• growse 5y ago
  > Certainly, for the vast majority of people I've ever known, getting a spot at Oxbridge not only was not 'extremely important' - it wasn't even a consideration. Having spent a bunch of time working with people on these particular universities' access programs (where they essentially spend a lot of time and money encouraging more people to apply, especially from disadvantaged backgrounds), this "consideration" is often a deeply ingrained bias in the school teaching staff. There are large numbers of students who are both good enough to go to Oxbridge and would thrive there, who aren't getting that opportunity because their teachers have already decided it's "not for them".