Open Days and Events

Upcoming Events and Programmes

St John's College is pleased to hold regular sessions and programmes for prospective applicants throughout the year. See below for upcoming events and opportunities.

Teachers and HE advisers at schools and colleges who would like to receive updates via email about our events and programmes can complete this teacher/adviser expression of interest form.

Students who would like to receive updates via email about our events and programmes should fill in this student expression of interest form.

For recordings of events and programmes held online in recent years, head over to our Resources Archive page.

St John's Natural Sciences Residential 2025

St John's College are running a Natural Sciences Residential on Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th July 2025.

During the programme, participants attend Q&A sessions, workshops and taster lectures delivered by Cambridge academics, exploring a range of exciting topics from the Natural Sciences Tripos and learning about the application process. There is also the chance to meet current St John’s students. Participants’ meals and accommodation are provided free of charge by St John’s College. 

To read about the 2024 St John's Natural Sciences Residential, please see https://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/free-residential-course-gives-sixth-formers-taste-studying-science-university.

Who can attend?

Applications for this residential programme are open to students about to start Year 13 (England/Wales) or equivalent who are considering applying to Cambridge this year and are on track to meet and exceed the entry requirements for our  Natural Sciences - Biological and Physical courses.

Applications and teacher references must be submitted by 4pm on Friday 16th May 2025.
Places are limited and applications will be assessed on academic merit. Priority will be given to those from UK state schools outside London and the South East. 

Students who wish to apply should fill in the linked application form.

The application includes a teacher reference.

St John's College Choir Year 12 Choral Masterclass Residential

St John's College is delighted to announce that applications are now open for the St John’s Year 12 Choral Masterclass Residential 2025.

This free residential programme runs from Sunday 6th July (1.30pm) to Tuesday 8th July 2025 (12 noon). During the programme, students will experience living in College undergraduate accommodation, meet current students and choir members, observe choral rehearsals in Chapel, and participate in workshops and a service of Evensong. There will also be Q&A opportunities for programme participants to learn more about applying and studying here. Participants’ meals and accommodation are provided free of charge by St John’s College.

Applications for this residential programme are open to students in Year 12 (England/Wales) or equivalent who are on track to meet the entry requirements of their prospective Cambridge course, and intend to sing in a world-class College choir as a student at St John's. We are keen to encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds. The St John's College Choir is open to Altos, Tenors, and Basses. Please note that we cannot accept applications from Sopranos.

The deadline for submission of completed applications including a recorded song is Tuesday 3rd June 2025.

The sign-up form is here

If you have any questions about the St John's Year 12 Choral Masterclass Residential 2025, please get in touch: i.freeman@joh.cam.ac.uk - Isabelle Freeman, Choir Marketing, Media, and Recruitment Officer.

St John's Poster Competition

St John's Poster Competition 2025

We are delighted to launch our Poster Competition this year. The competition invites UK-based prospective applicants to conduct an independent research project which will be assessed by St John's academics. This is an excellent super-curricular opportunity for students looking to make competitive university applications this year. For more information about our competition's entry requirements and submission deadline, please click here for the Poster Competition page.

Students examining a book in the Old Library

St John's Webinars

The monthly webinars will run on Thursday evenings via Zoom. They aim to provide help and guidance to high-achieving students in Years 10-12 (England/Wales, and equivalents) who are looking to apply to academically competitive universities like Cambridge. The webinar series covers a range of topics relating to university applications. Recordings and resources will be sent to all attendees following each webinar.
The webinar programme schedule for 2025 is as follows:

27th February 5pm-6pm Webinar 1 - How to Choose and Explore your University Subject (for Years 10-12)
27th March 5pm-6pm Webinar 2 - Arts & Humanities Q&A (for Years 10-12)
24th April 5pm-6pm Webinar 3 - STEM Q&A (for Years 10-12)
29th May 5pm-6pm Webinar 4 - Making a Competitive Cambridge Application (for Year 12)
26th June 5pm-6pm Webinar 5 - Personal Statements (for Year 12)

How to attend the webinars:

Please register your interest via this form.

Once you have registered your interest you will be automatically sent instructions on how to join the webinars.

If you have any questions about the St John's College Webinar Programme, please contact AccessOfficer@joh.cam.ac.uk.

A view of St John's College, Cambridge, from the top of the Chapel. A Banner with St John's Webinars 2025.

Past Events

Past Admissions and Outreach Events From St John's College

St John's College runs a number of events and online webinars throughout the year aimed at prospective applicants as well as teachers and academic advisors. Below you will find a number of events we have run over the past year. As new events are announced these will be updated or added to this page.

Do please keep checking back for the latest events listings. We hope the information below helps give you a sense of what the College offers.

A Tutor explaining a mathematics problem on a blackboard

St John's College Teachers’ & Advisers’ Q&A Webinars 

We are delighted to announce the launch of this year’s Teachers’ & Advisers’ Q&A Webinar Programme, a series of online sessions running in March 2025 to help teachers and advisers provide guidance about applying to Cambridge.  

The first webinar starts at 5:30pm on Monday 10th March. The sign-up form is now open. 

Once you have completed the form you will be sent an automatic email containing the Zoom registration links. 

The webinars will run on weekday evenings via Zoom. They aim to provide help and guidance about supporting your students to make competitive applications to Cambridge. There will be some general sessions about supporting Oxbridge Candidates and some subject-specific sessions, as well as two sessions about international applications.  

The schedule of sessions is as follows:  

Monday 10th March, 5:30pm-6:30pm – Supporting Oxbridge Candidates

Tuesday 11th March, 5:30pm-6:30pm – Supporting Oxbridge Candidates 
Monday 17th March, 5:30pm-6:30pm – Natural Sciences 
Tuesday 18th March, 5:30pm-6:30pm – Supporting Oxbridge Candidates

Wednesday 19th March, 5:30pm-6:30pm – Music

Friday 21st March, 5:00pm-6:00pm - Mathematics

Monday 24th March, 7am-8am – International Applications

Monday 24th March, 5pm-6pm – International Applications

Wednesday 26th March, 5:30pm-6:30pm – Modern & Medieval Languages

Monday 31st March, 5:30pm-6:30pm – Medical Sciences

How to attend the webinars:

Please register your interest via this form.

Once you have registered your interest you will be automatically sent an email containing Zoom registration links for the webinars. If you do not receive an email, please check your spam/junk folders before contacting AccessOfficer@joh.cam.ac.uk.

If you have any questions about the St John's College Webinar Programme, please contact AccessOfficer@joh.cam.ac.uk.

Year 11 Girls in Maths Visit Day 2025

Year 11 Girls in Maths Visit Day

St John's College Year 11 Girls in Maths Visit Day will be held on Friday 31st January 2025, 10am to 3.30pm. This is a multi-school in-person event for UK-based Year 11 female students (interested in studying Maths and mathematical sciences at academically competitive universities) and their teachers.

Our Year 11 Girls in Maths Visit Day is an opportunity for pupils and teachers to visit St John's and meet current and former Maths students, finding out more about learning and living here. There will be a guided tour of the College and a Q&A session, both led by students. Lunch will be provided and there will be exciting Maths taster sessions from our academics, as well as an informative talk about applying and studying here. The day will enable aspiring female mathematicians to explore challenging mathematical topics by working together in small groups, which will support their current studies as well as their university application journeys.

Interested teachers should complete this booking form by 13th January.

Year 12 Women in Maths Residential 2024

THE STUDENT APPLICATION WINDOW HAS NOW CLOSED FOR THIS YEAR'S RESIDENTIAL

This free residential course runs from Sunday 11th August to Saturday 17^th August 2024. During this week-long summer school, participants will attend Sixth Term Examination Paper (STEP) workshops and taster lectures delivered by Cambridge academics and guest speakers, exploring a range of exciting mathematical topics. There will be challenging mathematical problems for participants to work on throughout the week as well as guided group research projects and social activities led by current St John’s students. Participants’ meals and accommodation are provided free of charge by St John’s College. Applications for this residential programme are open to female and non-binary students in Year 12 (England/Wales) or equivalent who are prospective undergraduate applicants for Cambridge this year, and are on track to achieve A* in Maths and Further Maths A Levels (or equivalent grades/qualifications). Please click here for more information about the typical successful applicant profile for Mathematics at St John's College. Places on the course are available to UK, EU, and International students and we are keen to encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds.

Click here to read about the St John's Women in Maths Summer School 2023.

In the video below, St John's alumni and academics reflect on their experiences of the College's mathematics community. We are grateful to Layton Thompson for filming and editing this video, and to the members of the College community who participated in the filming.

Choral Events and Programmes

St John's are pleased to offer opportunities for prospective applicants to explore the prospect of joining the renowned College's choir. For more information about the Choir of St John's, please see this webpage.

St John's College Choral Awards Webinar - Sunday 6th October 8pm-9pm

Year 11, 12, and 13 (England/Wales) or equivalent are invited to hear more about singing alto, tenor, or bass in the Choir of St John's College, Cambridge. Join Director of Music Christopher Gray for this information session which will include an interactive Q&A session. Register your interest here.

St John's Choral Awards Open Day - Saturday 8th February

If you're curious about singing alto, tenor, or bass with the Choir of St John's College join us for a day in College that culminates with singing Evensong with the College Choir. You'll learn more about life as a member of St John's College Choir and have the opportunity to informally sing for Director of Music Christopher Gray. Save the date - registration will open soon.

St John's Year 12 Choral Residential - 6th-8th July

This programme is for students in Year 12 (England/Wales) or equivalent who are on track to meet their prospective Cambridge course's entry requirements and intend to sing alto, tenor, or bass in a top level College choir for 2026 entry. Places are limited and applicants will be required to provide references regarding their academic and musical suitability. Save the date - registration will open in 2025.

Natural Sciences Residential 2024

St John’s Natural Sciences Residential 8-9 July 2024

To read about the 2024 St John's Natural Sciences Residential, please click here.

During the programme, participants attend Q&A sessions, workshops and taster lectures delivered by Cambridge academics, exploring a range of exciting topics from the Natural Sciences Tripos and learning about the application process. There is also the chance to meet current St John’s students. Participants’ meals and accommodation are provided free of charge by St John’s College. Applications for this residential programme are open to students about to start Year 13 (England/Wales) or equivalent who are considering applying to Cambridge this year and are on track to meet and exceed the entry requirements for our Natural Sciences - Biological and Physical courses. Places are limited and applications will be assessed on academic merit. The residential is primarily aimed at UK students; priority will be given to those from UK state schools in the North of England.

Experience St John's

For information on visiting St John's, please see this page.

If you have any questions regarding admissions please email admissions@joh.cam.ac.uk.