Year 10 G & T Triumph at Cambridge

Ten gifted students from Year 10 were treated to a day to remember recently when they were the guests of one of the top universities in the world.The University of Cambridge wanted to give the students a taste of academic life and arranged for 10 schools from across England to take part in a Challenge Day. This involved lectures on the advantages of studying at Cambridge, the challenges of academic work and the application process. The students also had a chance to meet and question current undergraduates about all aspects of university life.

Throughout the day the students had to complete a series of tests with questions ranging from literature and film to lateral thinking and geography. Competition was fierce as the schools strove to complete the assignments in the allotted time. Beacon students had a particularly sticky moment trying to work out a fiendish mathematical problem with Matthew Jacobson convinced that he had the correct answer until he was told by a Cambridge maths undergraduate that the solution was wrong. It turned out it was the only answer we got wrong all day and Matthew’s solution was correct!!

The students had lunch at Trinity Hall, which gave them a valuable insight into the collegiate world of Cambridge, and in the afternoon enjoyed lectures from Cambridge academics on the Palaeolithic world and the psychology of stress. To round off a highly successful day, the Beacon students triumphed in the Challenge Day tests and carried off first prize. Olivia D’Albertanson and Holly Harman stepped forward to receive the winner’s certificate which was richly deserved.

The group was accompanied by Mr Milne, Gifted and Talented Coordinator, who stated that the day had been invaluable in showing to some of our best students the opportunities that studying at a top university can present. “This is, hopefully, the start of a very fruitful relationship between Beacon and Cambridge University and I am sure that this will be extremely beneficial for both institutions.”