How Yipiyap helped me to reapply AND get into the University of Oxford
Author:
Sam Kramer
Sam Kramer took a gap year with Yipiyap while reapplying to university, and is now a Classics student at Trinity College, Oxford.
If you are reading this as someone who is considering retaking subjects or reapplying to university, I can relate! I did both on my gap year with Yipiyap.
Last year, I was downhearted to find I had been rejected from my top choice university. I had never considered taking a gap year before this point.
Can you apply to Oxford after a gap year?
Yes! A year on, having resat a subject and submitted a new UCAS form, I am now holding the exact offer that eluded me last year: taking a gap year was justified from a university application standpoint alone, and never mind the many other perks which come as part and parcel of it too!
Yipiyap is a great gap year plan for many school leavers and here are a few reasons why I would encourage someone in a similar headspace to mine to seriously consider taking a gap year.
Seven reasons you should take a gap year and reapply to uni:
Reapplying to university is low-risk, high-reward
If you got an offer from a university the first time ‘round, you are likely to be given that offer again if you reapply (irrespective of whether it is with the same or an improved UCAS form). If you ring up a university they will echo this sentiment and they may even offer you a more concrete guarantee (e.g., proof in writing they will reissue your offer). Of course, aside from the guaranteed benefits inherent to taking a gap year, the big reward is your ‘dream’ university experience.
2. Your chance of a uni place will be greater than the first time round
Having an extra year for your application does make a difference. The pressures of year 13 make writing a UCAS form (as well as preparing for admissions tests or interviews etc) more difficult than you realise. Removing this pressure, the added time, and your greater academic maturity all lend themselves to making an improved reapplication. Also, grades-in-hand are often considered gold dust in comparison to predicted grades (there is no risk to the university of you missing your offer – you already have it!)
3. Gap years are more common than you think.
You will be surprised by how many students take a year off before starting undergraduate study and this is even more pertinent for the more competitive courses and institutions (largely for the reason – number two - above).
4. COVID-19.
This impacted my decision not to start university in 2020/2021 more than I anticipated. I imagine the same will apply for next year too – university life and freshers’ week etc should be completely normal by 2022/2023.
5. A sense of closure and sureness.
I wanted to go to university – wherever that would be – knowing that I put in my absolute best effort to getting my dream place. Even if the place eludes you after the second time ‘round, you will have firmly subdued any niggling thoughts of ‘what if I’d tried again - would I have got in - would I be enjoying it way more?
6. Pride in being ‘game’.
It is a plucky decision to take a year out especially if it was never the original plan (irrespective of whether you get different offers at the end). You should feel really proud of having made such a pragmatic and resilient call.
7. Yipiyap is amazing!
There is plenty of information on their website (especially on the blog page) about it being an organisation full of other people your age. This makes the role feel much more manageable and your experience much less lonely. Yipiyap understands the practical and mental demands of a taking a gap year; whether it be allowing you time off for resits or providing interview practice, this support demonstrates that Yipiyap really ‘gets’ its gap year colleagues!
Through my hard work and grit, next year I am going to read Classics at Trinity College - all made possible by taking a gap year with Yipiyap – my best decision EVER!