Getting admission: The way to Oxford

Three students share how they applied and eventually got into one of the most prestigious universities of the world.

ISLAMABAD: Maham Faisal of Headstart School is overjoyed about getting into Oxford University, and not just for the academic prestige. The diehard Harry Potter fan is itching to walk on the grass of the Commons which pretty much looks like a movie set to her. She is one of three Islamabad students who are headed to the ‘British Ivy League’ university this fall.

“Being a part of Oxford is like being a part of Hogwarts,” Maham told The Express Tribune, while referring to the fictional campus in the JK Rowling series that took the world by storm.

She stood apart with her thirst for knowledge and refined answers to the interviewers’ questions. After showing tremendous grasp on philosophical ideas such as ‘God created the world in six days’, the 16-year-old proved to Oxford that she was ready to embark upon her journey for a joint degree in Philosophy and Theology.

The other two students, Mohammad Khadeesh bin Imtiaz and Syed Sheroz Hussain, both from Roots School have their own reasons to be delighted on receiving that acceptance letter over email.

Yes, Khadeesh is steeling himself for Calculus IV and Organic Chemistry courses for his joint degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, but he is also secretly hopping around with the prospect of taking the train down to London for a good shout out for his team, Arsenal. Even the idiom he uses draws on his two loves - sport and biology. “My blood is pumping with vigour knowing that I will be so close to the home of Arsenal,” he told The Express Tribune. “I want to be fully involved in football throughout my years at Oxford.”

This is not to say that the students have not fought tooth and nail to make the grade. Khadeesh hails from a relatively humble background and never managed to score over a B until his O’ Levels.

But somehow, after some gut-wrenching failures, he took a page out of his father’s book. A van driver who steadily worked his way up to become a businessman, Khadeesh’s father set a prime example for his son that hard work and perseverance can lead to success. Taking inspiration from that Khadeesh strived to make a difference in his own life and successfully earned a placement at Oxford. Paying almost $30,000 a year for the tuition might not be possible but Sheroz and Khadeesh are hopeful to get scholarships and sponsors to help them pay ‘a small price for a truly magnificent experience’.

Meanwhile, for Syed Sheroz Hussain of Roots School, the most attractive feature of Oxford University remains his membership to the ‘academic elite of the world’. An aspiring member of the academia, Shehroz also has great ideas to serve his nation. “I want to use his Bachelors/Masters programme in Electrical Engineering to help resolve the power crisis in our country,” he said.

What set Sheroz apart in the application process were not his stellar O/A Level scores, but his determination to apply electrical engineering in practical life. Having created a fan out of his remote control car to help him study during the long summer days in Peshawar is what attracted Oxford the most about him.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 7^th, 2011.