We’re committed to ensuring that all applicants have access to open and up-to-date information about making applications to the University of Cambridge, Sidney Sussex College and other higher education institutions.

 


We're always keen to work with state schools, colleges, students and teachers to provide information and support for potential applicants, and have a number of programmes and projects which we currently run to this end.

We also have a range of recorded content on our YouTube Channel. This includes tours of the College, admissions advice, pre-recorded admissions interviews and much more.

For a full list of upcoming events and opportunities the explore below.

Join our Mailing List

Area Links Scheme

As part of the University's Area Links Scheme Sidney works particularly (but not exclusively) with schools and colleges in the following regions:

  • Stoke-on-Trent
  • Staffordshire
  • Lancashire
  • Blackpool
  • Bury
  • Oldham
  • Tameside
  • Warrington
  • Wigan
  • London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. 

We know that for many people and schools it might not be possible to attend an event in Cambridge, and our admissions staff therefore visit schools and colleges around the country, and these areas in particular, to deliver talks and workshops to students and teachers.

Please get in touch with our Schools Liaison Officer if you would like us to deliver any content for your students or staff.

Sidney Webinars 2024

What are they?

We regularly run free webinars for school students who are targeting university and who may be considering making an Oxbridge application. These will be delivered by Sidney Sussex admissions staff and will also feature College undergraduates and academic staff to provide a full picture of life at the College and the University of Cambridge.

Topics covered will be aimed at KS4 and KS5 (or equivalents), but anyone is free to attend these sessions (students, teachers, parents etc.) and can book a place by following the links next to the titles in the table below, once you've done this we will send you details of how to attend the Zoom webinars. 

After every webinar you will receive an email with the recording of the session.

When do they take place?

They will be taking place throughout 2024. Every session will be repeated 2 times along with the provision of a recording for those who have completed the sign-up form.

Sign-up links will be included in the table below-bookings are now open for all sessions! Please note that you will only be sent the link if you sign up 24 hours before the session.

Date/TimeTitleRegistration

February 20 and 22

17:00-18:00

Supercurriculars: What they are and why they matter

 Click here!

March 5 and 6

17:00-18:00

Targeting Oxbridge: Making Competitive Applications 

 Click here!

April 25 and 29

17:00-18:00

Subject Matters: Making Post-16 Choices (A-Levels etc.)

 Click here!

June 6 and 10

17:00-18:00

Teachers and Advisers: Supporting Student Applications

 Click here!

June 11 and 12

17:00-18:00

Personal Statements

 Click here!

August 13 and 15

17:00-18:00

Student and College Life

 Click here!

September 9 and 11

17:00-18:00

Finalising Applications and Admissions Assessments 

 

 Click here!

 

October 14 and 16 

17:00-18:00

Aiming High for Year 11 Students: Learning more about University

 Click here!

November 4 and 6

17:00-18:00

Interviews

 Click here!

How are they delivered?

All sessions will be delivered as webinars via Zoom. This means that you will be able to ask questions throughout the sessions but for safeguarding reasons will not be able to control your microphone or webcam. 

You will be able to view the webinars via any device (computer, tablet, smartphone) as long as you have an active internet connection, with no need to download anything or set up an account. 

Open Days and Taster Days 

School groups and individual students are welcome to come and visit us in Sidney at one of our Open Days or Taster DaysMany of these events have subject-specific content and are a great way to find out more about what it's like living and studying at Sidney Sussex College.

HE+ Project

HE+ is a collaborative project between the University of Cambridge and Cambridge Colleges, working together with groups of state schools and colleges in 18 regions of the UK.

The HE+ project is unique in that it encourages schools and colleges to collaborate to form regional consortia and to engage their highest-attaining students in a sustained year-long programme that is designed to encourage and prepare these students to make competitive applications to top universities, including the University of Cambridge.

Sidney Sussex College is responsible for working with the HE+ hubs in Stoke and Wigan & Warrington, organising a number of events with these groups during the school year, as well as an annual residential for each.

The HE+ website has free resources and material produced by Cambridge academics, including guided activities and suggestions for further reading. This material is available to everyone, regardless of whether they're part of HE+ or not, and is a great place to start if students are looking to go beyond the syllabus!

West Midlands Collaborative Outreach

We are excited to participate in the West Midlands Webinars, a series of online sessions run by Cambridge and Oxford Colleges for Year 12 students at state schools or sixth form colleges in the West Midlands.

The webinars are suited for anyone who hopes to apply to competitive universities: if you’re a high-achieving student, intellectually curious and ambitious, these webinars will be a great start for your university journey.

Full details can be found on the dedicated webpage here.

LPN Summer School

Each year Sidney Sussex worked in collaboration with Christ's and Murray Edwards Colleges to run a summer school in August for Year 11 students who live in areas of low participation to higher education (we've abbreviated 'low participation neighbourhood' to 'LPN', hence the name). Please see the dedicated LPN webpage to find out more about it.

We are currently in the process of re-working this summer school, so keep an eye out for updates. 

Enigma Summer School

The Enigma Summer School is an exciting three-day programme aimed at female and non-binary students who are interested in studying a science subject at university. Named after the original Enigma machine gifted to Sidney Sussex (which you can interact with at the end of the residential!), the programme provides a great opportunity to find out more about what it is like to study sciences further and be a student at university. Read on to find out more about dates, content of the programme, and eligibility criteria!

Date and Place

In 2024, Enigma will take place between the 13th and the 15th of September (so two nights and three days) in Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge. Accommodation and meals will be covered for all participants. Additionally, all transport costs will be reimbursed.

Content

The residential will feature a series of science academic taster lectures which will provide the participants with an idea of what it is like to attend university teaching. These sessions will be delivered by Cambridge academics who will be happy to answer any of your questions and share more information about their subject. 

Additionally, you will attend sessions on university applications (including Cambridge and Oxford), student life at university, and exploring super-curricular activities in preparation for a university application.

There will also be plenty of time in the evenings to socialise, meet other participants, and explore the College!

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for this programme, you must:

-Be entering Year 12 (Y13 NI / S5 Scotland) in September of 2024

-Self-identify as female or non-binary

-Attend a non-independent (non-fee-paying) school

-Be interested in studying a STEM subject at University

Applications are now closed for 2024.

If you have any questions or want to discuss any aspects of the residential please do email our Schools Liaison Officer Layo at slo@sid.cam.ac.uk.

North-West Student Conference 

Overview

If you are a teacher or advisor for Year 12 students who are thinking of applying to Cambridge (or are a Year 12 student yourself!) then we have an exciting opportunity for you! Sidney Sussex, Pembroke, St John's, Peterhouse and Downing Colleges are visiting the North West in March 2025, on behalf of the University of Cambridge, to host an Admissions-themed conference. 

The event is free of charge, and will include talks from Admissions Tutors and current students covering: 

  • How to make a competitive application to Cambridge
  • Finance and Careers
  • Interviews
  • The student experience 
  • Teachers references
  • Subject overview sessions 

Admissions Tutors and current students will also be on hand throughout the day to answer any student or teacher questions that you may have. 

Free parking is available for coaches and cars, and the venue will also have food and drink available to purchase on the day (though please note that the venue is cash free). Alternatively, however, attendees are welcome to bring a packed lunch with them. 

Registering to attend 

Teachers and/or advisors are welcome to express their interest in bringing a group to this event, once booking opens. Please note that spaces are limited to 30 students per school, and students who attend the event should be on track to achieve at least A*AA at A-level, or 40 in IB with 7,7,6 at Higher Level. If you wish to bring more than 30 students, please indicate this in the booking form, along with your reasoning. 

Booking is not yet open for 2025.

To gain a better sense of the event, here is the timetable from our 2024 Conference:

 

We are also hoping to launch an East Midlands Conference for 2025, so keep an eye out for information on this.

Contact

If you have any questions regarding this event, please email Layo at slo@sid.cam.ac.uk. 

Beyond the syllabus

Want to find out more about what a subject is like outside of the classroom? We can help with that!

We have collated information and resources from a wide variety of different media on every subject offered at Cambridge.

Prospective applicants, and teachers supporting these students, can find these resources on our Beyond the syllabus page, for use in super-curricular studying, or for extension classes in school! 

 

Contact Layo, our Schools Liaison Officer to ask about visits to schools and to add your school to our mailing list so that we can let you know when bookings open for our events.