On the 21st January 2020, myself and eleven other students in Year 9 went on a trip to Trinity College Cambridge, as part of the Scholars programme. Trinity is the largest of Cambridge’s 36 colleges, founded in 1546 by Henry VIII.
When we arrived, I was struck by its grandeur, beautiful architecture, and the size of the college - home to over 600 undergraduates. We were given the opportunity to experience life and learning at university.
We began by taking part in an activity showing us university-level essays, showing us techniques to improve our writing. This was very useful, as it can assist with my writing now, and in the future. Next, we were shown the subjects both Cambridge and Oxford had to offer, and the requirements to study them. We were offered guidance on choosing A-Level subjects in the future, so we could go on to study what we wanted at university.
After that, we had lunch in the historical, ornately-decorated dining hall - with three-course meals on offer. Over 100 students can eat there at any one time - with a wide range of food on offer.
After lunch, we went on a tour of the college, we were shown sites such as the Great Court, Neville’s Court, and the library. Our guide was a first-year student at Trinity, and we were given an informative, interesting insight into life at the college, as well as the chance to ask lots of questions.
After the tour we were given an hour-long tutorial by our PhD tutor, based around a topic I found very interesting- Archaeology and the Middle Ages. This was an engaging session, which was fun.
In conclusion, the trip gave us a deep insight into university life and provided valuable advice for our future studies. We were given the chance to see what the life of a student is like, and how we might get into a highly selective university like Cambridge.
Max (9Wa)