Oxbridge Applications
| Privately held company | |
| Genre | Education company |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Founders | James Uffindell |
| Headquarters | London, England |
| Website | www.oxbridgeapplications.com |
Oxbridge Applications is a for-profit tutoring agency that sells students help in their applications to the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, and medical and law schools.
History and Services
The company was formed in 1999 by University of Oxford graduate, James Uffindell, and originally named Application Research.[1] The company is headquartered in Waterloo Place, London following the acquisition by Dukes Education Group and exit of founder James Uffindell in 2013, having been formerly located on New Bond Street, London. Dukes Educational Group additionally owns English summer school company Summer Boarding Courses and Acorn House College, an independent college in Southall, West London.
Oxbridge Applications claims that students on their 'Premier Service' (that costs upwards of £5,000) have a success rate that is twice the average[2] although self-selection is likely to contribute to this statistic.
Reception
The company has no links to either university. Oxford University is keen to distance itself from the organisation, telling students "The best advice is to work hard, and make full use of the many free and authoritative sources of guidance and information the University itself provides." College admission tutors and elected student union representatives of the universities have made more critical comments, suggesting that the company misleads applicants.[2]
Similar services
There are a number of other organisations with similar business models including UniAdmissions, OxbridgeSciences, OxbridgeHumanities, Insight Education's Oxbridge Mentoring Scheme and Gabbitas Educational Consultants.[3] By 2008 such for-profit university entrance coaching was already widely in use in the United States;[3] Kaplan, Inc, for example, has been in existence since 1938.[4]
References
- ↑ Taylor, Ros (23 August 2002). "Money talks". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- 1 2 Collins, Anthony (10 June 2011). "One in six Oxbridge applicants use company for help". The Cherwell. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
- 1 2 Baker-Said, Stephanie (6 January 2008). "Alan Bennett Was Right About Getting Into Oxford, Coaches Show". Bloomberg. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ↑ Bell, Madeleine (21 February 2013). "How much would you pay to get into Oxbridge?". The Cambridge Student. Retrieved 14 August 2013.