Zarathustra Posted June 30, 2013 Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 (edited) Hello fellow IB Survivors!I have an urgent problem to settle, regarding UCAS and universities in general.On my UCAS application I selected the STEP examination as a qualification that I would be obtaining. STEP is an entrance examination in the field of mathematics, which is mandatory only for prospective students at the universities of Cambridge and Warwick, and usually only for those wishing to read mathematics, although there are some exceptions. Because I was applying to Warwick, I just put it down, as they require STEP for future (?) mathematicians.Other universities I applied to have a different policy towards STEP: Imperial College and Bristol, for instance, don't require STEP, although they encourage applicant to take it. This means that you are supposedly more likely to obtain an offer if you are taking STEP, but if you do so, they might ask you to obtain a certain grade in your STEP papers (that is, you might be getting an offer on STEP as well).I obtained offers from the three aforementioned institutions: Warwick gave me a STEP offer, but I declined it. Bristol and Imperial College gave me offers as well, I declined Bristol but firmed Imperial. However, none of them asked me for a certain grade in STEP (they only want me to get certain grades in the IB Diploma, hence no offer has been made on STEP papers).I am not living in the UK, and STEP papers are fairly expensive where I live (about 4x the amount in the UK), so I ended up not sitting the examination.Now, my offer would mean that even if I didn't score any mark on the STEP papers (Say, I would leave them blank!) and get the required IB grades I would meet the offer and live happy afterwards. However, I did not take them. Is this a big difference? Should I start worrying, and e-mail them? I really didn't think about this before, and now I feel pretty terrible and naive, not to mention that IB results will be published in less than 6 days! Edited June 30, 2013 by Zarathustra Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandwich Posted June 30, 2013 Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 If mention of your STEP examination hasn't been made as part of your offer, don't worry about it. You only need to fulfil your offer. 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Award Winning Boss Posted June 30, 2013 Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 If mention of your STEP examination hasn't been made as part of your offer, don't worry about it. You only need to fulfil your offer.If you took 3 A levels and an EPQ but only got an AAA offer then dropped the EPQ, doesn't the university reserve the right to withdraw your offer if you've made changes to the subjects you're taking? 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arrowhead Posted June 30, 2013 Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 If mention of your STEP examination hasn't been made as part of your offer, don't worry about it. You only need to fulfil your offer.If you took 3 A levels and an EPQ but only got an AAA offer then dropped the EPQ, doesn't the university reserve the right to withdraw your offer if you've made changes to the subjects you're taking? No. Actually.UCAS functions as an electronic contract of the most basic sort. When you applied to those 5 institutions for your course, you gave them 'an invitation to treat' with your qualifications. They considered your application and made you an 'offer.' Whatever they've stated in the terms of their offer is binding, and when you accepted Imperial's offer, that created a binding contractual obligation between you and the school.This contract stipulates that so long as you fulfil the conditions of your offer, Imperial will give you a place on their specific programme. The terms of their offer are expected to be elucidated clearly. Seeing as the STEP programme is something that some universities (Warwick and Cambridge) include as part of your offer, it is not a stretch to have expected other universities to include it in their standard offer as well, should they have decided that they expected you to attain a certain grade in the exam.Imperial's offer to you is for a specific point score in your IB Diploma and maybe specifications for your HLs/individual subjects. That makes it the 'offer' they have made to you. Yes, you represented yourself as a STEP programme participant, but had that been a significant component in their decision-making process, they would have told you so in no uncertain terms and included it as a condition for your offer. That they haven't, is clear indication that you have no need to fret. Your offer is guaranteed by law. 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zarathustra Posted June 30, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 (edited) As a start I would like to thank all of you.I already e-mailed my IB coordinator(s) and University counselors and I am currently waiting for a response, although Arrowhead's words have been pretty reassuring Anyways, would you think it is still worth to contact Universities?Let me add that I know people who have got a STEP offer for my same course, it just seems that they didn't bother for my case.Oh well, I am seriously freaking out! Edited June 30, 2013 by Zarathustra Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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