Diploma Programme Student’s University of Oxford Offer | From AIS with L❤️ve

Meet Himanshu. This self-determined Diploma Programme student at Antwerp International School just received a conditional offer to attend the University of Oxford, the oldest university in the English-speaking world. Himanshu hopes to study Mathematics and Computer Science there. This Belgian Indian joined AIS in Grade 9 and credits the school for his interest in mathematics. He explains, in his own words.

“I’ve been offered a conditional place to study Mathematics and Computer Science at the University of Oxford. The college application process, and especially my desire to apply to Oxford, all started in Grade 11. I was really thankful to have my teachers and Ms Goetschalckx, Careers and University Counsellor at AIS, who really supported me and were like, “You can do this!”, throughout the entire process.

To apply I had to get a good predicted grade, I had to score well on the admissions test and then do well on the interviews. I attribute my success to my teachers, especially because without them I could not have gained the understanding I needed to get the predicted grades in the first place. And especially Ms G’s support in the application process. Also, Mr Koini’s support in so many ways throughout my entire high school career. Especially because Mr Koini is the one who gave me the mock interviews which really helped me excel in the interview process.

I had to do three interviews, two at the college I applied to and one at a randomly assigned college (these were separate Oxford colleges). The interview process was quite nerve-wracking but after the first one, I got the hang of it.       

I think my desire to study mathematics started due to the AIS library after picking up the book ‘A Mathematician’s Apology’ by this mathematician called G.H. Hardy. After reading that book, I really learned about the beauty and creativity within maths. That, supplemented with my classes, helped me fall in love with it. Computer science has just always just been an interest of mine just because it’s pretty much the future of our generation. Initially, I just wanted to pursue pure, theoretical computer science off the bat, before the IBDP programme. But studying at AIS has exposed me to mathematics. I think I love mathematics more than computer science now.

I’m really excited to wrap things up at AIS, but I think I’m going to be really sad to leave the comforts of the place I’ve begun to call home. The sense of community here is just something kind of unbeatable. When I first came to AIS four years ago, there was definitely a really nice sense of community. It felt like a familial environment with the students and the teachers. The teachers were all really supportive in explaining things about the curriculum that I was new to. They were very supportive and encouraging. At AIS, especially once you get into the Diploma Programme, there’s a very caring relationship that develops between the teacher and the student. They are really there to help you.  

My family’s also been really supportive. Especially my parents and my sister, they’ve just really supported me throughout the entire process. They’ve believed in me all the way.”