On a clear September evening, a constant stream of parents, teachers and students make their way into the music and arts centre at Wesley College, Dublin. The impressive wood-panelled room at the private fee-paying school is not unlike the lecture halls you see in many of the State's third-level colleges, its staggered rows of desks all facing down towards the centre of the room, writes John Downes
There, Ray Thornton and Lucinda Woods are preparing to give their presentation. Entitled "Getting to Oxford: How Irish students can break in", and funded by the Oxford University authorities, the evening aims to "demystify" the applications' procedure. Worryingly for Ireland's universities, it is also hoped that it will encourage more top Irish students to go there by dispelling any preconceptions they might have about what that would entail.
There are a number of tips worth remembering if you want to go to Oxford, Thornton and Woods reveal in their confident Oxbridge tones.
In your personal statement, for example, do say things such as: "I have chosen to study French and Spanish as a joint course firstly due to a love of those two cultures gained through visits to these countries." Do not say: "So here it is, my attempt to convince you, in less than a page, that I would be suited to a place at your university."
It is also a good idea to research the particular college you would like to attend - and to know the research interests of those who will be interviewing you.
But it is a bad idea to see the interview process as a chance simply to "take on" your interviewers at every opportunity. Rather, the aim should be to show you are enthusiastic to learn, while able to argue and defend different points of view.
As two Irish people who have been through the whole process, Thornton and Woods should know. During their time at the university, they have learned to adjust to life at one of England's most hallowed institutions - and the demands which an Oxford University education makes on its students.
Speaking from experience, they present a detailed slideshow outlining some of the key areas students need to be aware of. Theirs is a slick, well-produced presentation that does an excellent job of selling the university as a destination for Ireland's high-achieving youth.
Ranging from topics such as the Oxbridge tutorial system, to how the college system works and what not to say on your personal statement, it also takes in the fantastic networking opportunities which an Oxford education offers to those who make the grade.
By giving personal advice on the applications' process, the talk will have done much to dispel the fears and apprehensions of prospective students, but, in truth, those students present at tonight's meeting are somewhat of a self-selecting group. By deciding to attend an information evening sponsored by the Oxford college authorities, they have patently not been discouraged by the excellent Leaving Cert results required to obtain a place, or the financial implications of such a move. Due to space constraints in the hall, the students are also mainly drawn from south Co Dublin schools.
Indeed, Woods and Thornton reveal that the college authorities estimate students need around €8,700 a year to live in Oxford, with tuition fees of £3,000 (€4,444) also applicable to future cohorts.
While they point out that there are numerous scholarships and bursaries available, the cost represents a significant hurdle for many Irish students, no matter how talented.
In fact, recent figures revealed in The Irish Times have shown that thousands of Irish students are already well aware of the benefits of the UK university system. More than 8,000 of them have accepted places in Britain and Northern Ireland over the past three years - usually after being squeezed out of high-points courses here.
But unlike those students present tonight, who are looking to gain direct entry to Oxford after completing their Leaving Cert, two-thirds of the aforementioned 8,000 left for the UK after completing a PLC or institute of technology course in the Republic.
So what was this evening all about? According to Wesley College's principal, Christopher Woods, the impetus came from the desire of the college's own students to find out about the Oxford/Cambridge application process.
"We would have a substantial number of our students applying to Oxford and Cambridge every year. The interest in going is there because of the prestige which it has. There is a natural appeal," he explains. "But we felt a lot of these people were confused about the whole process."
It is also interesting to note that some of the courses on offer at Oxford and Cambridge, for example in the arts area, actually require less points than at, for example, Trinity or UCD.
"The key thing for me was to allow students to talk to other students," he says. "If we felt there was an interest in it, we would hold it again next year."
Also present at the meeting was Lynn Featherstone, access officer at New College, Oxford and the university's representative at the meeting.
The decision to hold the information meeting forms part of a wider initiative to encourage students from "non-traditional" backgrounds, including Irish students, to consider attending Oxford, she explains.
"I suppose the university has an image of rich middle-class students, with daddy's money, getting into the university," she says. "But I was a student at the university. And that really is not the case now. And the fact that the message is getting through is fantastic."
Understandably, Featherstone is quick to dismiss any suggestion of a "brain drain" of Ireland's best students as a result of meetings like these. There are no further meetings planned at present, she says, before pointing out that any movement of students works both ways, with many British students also opting to come to Ireland to study.
Yet she is somewhat less circumspect about the ultimate aim of the push to encourage more high-achieving students from all walks of life to attend Oxford. "What tutors are looking for at Oxford are the best students academically. Whether they be from the UK or Ireland, it doesn't matter."
It is a warning which Ireland's universities would do well to heed.