Students discover how skills from both classroom and sports field can be put to good use at university

A group of budding young mathematicians from years 10 and 11 at the Manor School Sports College in Northamptonshire have visited St John’s, in the hope of inspiring them to reach new levels, both in the classroom and on the sports field. 

During the visit the students got a sense of what life is like for undergraduates and advice on their A-level and university options. The day was designed to give the group the information and encouragement to apply to highly-selective universities in the future.  

Delia Brough, Head of Maths at Manor School Sports College said: “This is the first time a group from Manor School has visited St John’s and we hope to inspire our brightest and most able children to consider university.  The focus on sports at Manor School is all with a view to developing qualities such as leadership, focus, creativity and teamwork and this is a brilliant opportunity for students to see that these skills, coupled with their academic ability, give them the potential to go far and enjoy a balanced university life”.

While at St John’s, the students had the opportunity to tour the College and meet current undergraduates, with whom they discussed university life, including the many sporting and extra-curricular opportunities Cambridge has to offer. 

As the group was made up of children who have all shown a particular talent for mathematics, the pupils took part in a university-style maths tutorial on logic and problem solving, learning how companies like Facebook use logic when writing code for website features. 

Tom Carter, a year 11 student from Manor School Sports College said: “Today I found out about the range of things I can do with Maths A-levels – both at university and in my future career. It was really inspiring to be here at St John’s as I now know what I am aiming for and what can be achieved”.

St John’s College runs schools events and subject days designed to inspire young people and let them know about the range of opportunities that taking maths, science and engineering subjects at A-level can open up to them, both at university and beyond.  To find out more about upcoming events visit: http://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/section-events/4

More information about the range of sports clubs at St John’s can be viewed via: http://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/sport-st-johns