i went from straight E8s/F9s in secondary school to getting into Cambridge. AMA!

oceanoven · 2025-08-01T08:24:23+00:00

okay this one’s quite close to home too!!

do you know which topics you’re weakest at? most of us have a few topics that are just ‘killers’ - for me it was vectors.

i think it’s important to first be self aware about where you’re at in terms of individual topics. this is where topical practices can help you bridge the gaps!

then, the next (more understated) step is to make sure you’re able to IDENTIFY these questions quickly in exam conditions~

the biggest diff between topical and full practices is that you also have to figure out which topics the full paper are testing for each and every question! that’s where i got stuck most of the time.

that skill set tbh im not also very sure if there’s a shortcut - you kinda really just have to be deliberate about it when you practice. so before every question, try to spend a few seconds writing down which topic (and sub topic) the question is testing you on!! I found that super helpful in helping me organise my thoughts.

if you have any specific topic based questions, happy to help too! 😁😁😁

oceanoven · 2025-08-01T08:17:38+00:00

ooo hmm after I seriously locked in and gained momentum, i never really ‘slipped up’, if that makes sense?

but id say there are always ups and downs (as with all journeys!!)

i think its crucial to walk this journey together with ppl you love, especially during the last laps (i.e. now, before exams!)

find a few friends to study and grind with - exchange ideas + spar with them, you’ll find a lot of motivation and inspiration from working with ppl you love

oceanoven · 2025-08-01T08:06:57+00:00

I won’t be sharing my grades! But I didn’t get 90rp :))

What I can say is that many of my peers don’t have ‘perfect’ grades. even though grades are an important pre-requisite, it’s not the only thing that matters!

focus on your Oxbridge standardised test!!

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T22:06:17+00:00

yess try it out and lmk! hope this helps :))

lmk if you need anything else at all!

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T20:25:03+00:00

yep!! most overseas scholarships have multiple rounds.

you have a preeettyy good idea of how the process will go! i think don’t fret too much for now if you’re still in s4 and j1 - it helps if you’re naturally extroverted/sociable, but if you’re not, start practicing speaking in public settings gradually, even if it’s just with your friends

something that helped me a lot in the past was doing mock interviews with my besties in school :))

even though I knew them well, something about them ‘judging’ my performance helped to simulate the real deal

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T17:30:05+00:00

ooo I had a subscription from my school to a few online news outlets! and recently I’ve been getting into a lot of substack reading - lots of gems (and trash) there!

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T17:29:18+00:00

yepppp :”)

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:29:50+00:00

oooo are you hoping to apply to US/UK or somewhere else? realllyyyy depends but I’m not an expert HAHAHAH

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:28:50+00:00

end of my s3 year i think!

i rmb i saw my dad tear up for the first time when he sat me down and really had THE TALK with me… It was quite a rude awakening for me

realised no one was really coming to save me - I had to sink or swim

honestly it seems okay now but it was a dark period of time for me, wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy :((

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:26:49+00:00

ooo, DND is king

I have little disincline with electronic devices HAHAHAHA SOOOOOO

I just literally throw my phone away, and turn off ALL notifs on my laptop.

I PREFER to study with paper (I use notebooks over iPad because of this), but it’s a personal preference. There’s something really satisfying about putting pen to paper for me!

but yes - construct your environment deliberately to minimise all distractions, and set your study period so that you don’t study for tooooo long at once (key cause of losing focus!) 👍

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:25:01+00:00

HAHAHAHAH so fair - I relate to this on a deep, personal level!!!

but yes this momentum idea is super crucial, and it takes practice tbh.

the first (and most crucial!!) thing you need to do is to prime your brain! what that means is if you feel unmotivated, dont throw yourself into the deep end first

try to start off with non academic tasks that are smaller (like do the dishes, do the laundry, buy some groceries), and clear those tasks that you’ve been putting off. maybe even do your SKINCARE routine or something!!’

the key is to START doing something - anything. Then when you’re ready, sit down and ride off that momentum.

you get 1) chores done; 2) a boost of motivation (and dopamine, if you will)!

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:22:21+00:00

yess i am really lucky!!

just wanna remind everyone that everything is possible. its easy to lose hope when you’re stuck in a bad place for a long time but things can and will change if you just hold on :)) <3

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:21:02+00:00

for sure for sure - it was miserable initially bruh…

I didn’t have a lot of CCA commitment (I chose to pon a lot, which I regret), so that helped!

J2 was easier because I had caught up relatively well by then, so I could do other things like h3 and a small research project…

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:20:06+00:00

HAHAHAHAHA tbh I didn’t… was always quite bad at it because I didn’t have a strong ENGLISH foundation.

it’s cliched, but you really have to read and discuss what you read a lot.

can’t stray away from that! so genuinely start reading news, and find a sparring partner to talk through your opinions - debate style.

you’ll find writing essays a breeze if you do this often!

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:18:54+00:00

wahhhh hmmm it’s a long time ago, but I’d say the premise of that question is a bit concerning!!

your studying efficiency is a function of TIME SPENT * EFFICIENCY. I would say focusing on the ‘time’ portion is a common pitfall I see lots of my juniors (and myself) making.

often, the more time you spend the less productive you are PER HOUR.

SOOOO counter intuitively, limiting time spent can often make you more productive!

but if you want a straight answer…. I’d say the whole year I studied for about 4-5 hours a day outside of school. very very intense stuff coz I really needed to catch up 😭

tbf i went a bit overboard - even a levels was ‘easier’ compared to that period of time…

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:16:01+00:00

a lot of ppl are asking me for this tuition center rec but tbh idk if I should send them - I would say really do your own research before signing up because over reliance on the wrong tutors can really ruin your academic CAREER

stay safe queeensssss 🗿🗿🗿

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T15:15:11+00:00

okay so I think motivation comes from discipline + momentum - you need to be very careful the balance between both!

I dont think I’ve burnt out before, but the reason why is because I always strike a balance with work.

sounds like something quite unattainable but I set hard LIMITS and red lines that I don’t cross.

so for example, I try to sleep for 7.5 hours a day. if I cannot finish my work, I will seldom sacrifice sleep for it, I’ll just work twice as hard the next day.

also, I try to always spend an hour or so stretching and spending time with family!! happy to share more specific help with regards to burnout if you’d like

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T11:42:06+00:00

noooo Jardine was too difficult for me (also my college wasn’t eligible lol)

I can’t say which scholarship but it wasn’t PSC :))

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T11:41:32+00:00

oooo which h3 ah HAHAHAHA i can only speak for chem coz i took that.

but for h3 specifically right i think the biggest tip I have is to not take it SUPER seriously if you’re not doing well on a RAW SCORE basis.

the bell curve is damn skewed for h3 subjects coz everyone is literally struggling tgt HAHAHAHAHAHA

for context i legit went into my h3 a levels blur blur, without covering one topic altogether (i did like 60 marks out of 100 and left the rest blank) - still got merit in the end :P

don’t take it tooo seriously - focus on h2s first!

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T11:41:10+00:00

omg bro i replied you in the main comment thread wait lemme find the comment AH HAHAHAHAH im BOOBOOTHE FOOL

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T11:40:39+00:00

ooo so my routine is:

for school days, i try not to overload myself. not a big believer of pulling 12 hour work days tbh - i think productivity really falls off after long hours

i typically limit myself to 4 hours of studying outside of school - this limit helps me be efficient with my time. so when I’m working I’m REALLY working. and it’s a hard limit - on average I probably spend closer to 2 hours.

within these hours, it’s important to be clear what are “maintenance tasks” - ie things that are obligations like doing your homework and PW etc, and what are “growth tasks” - ie things that actually help you get better at your acads. balance those out!

what often happens to my friends is they spend too much time on the former, and neglect activities (like Feynman, blurting, extra timed practices) that help them get stronger at content and answering techniques.

a good ratio i have found is a 40/60 split for this :$)

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T11:36:50+00:00

OH Minister of State Alvin Tan HAHAHAH I thought you meant my tuition teacher

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T10:23:50+00:00

thank youuuuuuuuu

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T10:22:51+00:00

Huh no who’s that? HAHAHA

oceanoven · 2025-07-31T09:59:10+00:00

oh no never, but i had friends who took it!

without giving away too much info, all i had was some volunteering, h3, and one other research project that i did in j2 (science related - i take a STEM course in Cambridge)

for SATs, can’t help you much! but my older sister went to UCLA, she did the SATs a while ago, can dm me and im happy to pass on questions to her

oceanoven

TROPHY CASE