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This latest blog update will take you through the highlights (and there have been a lot!) of our outreach work over the Easter vacation.

In late March, we were delighted to host six different non-selective state schools from the North West for overnight visits. Despite most of our own undergraduate students having vacated their rooms at the end of Hilary Term, the College was still buzzing with activity as we welcomed over 90 students in total, ranging in age from 13 to 17 years old. Our furthest school visited us from Carlisle, a return journey that would not have been possible without the promise of overnight accommodation.

Students benefitted from a range of academic taster sessions across the University; we headed to the Botanic Gardens for an interactive session about plant biodiversity and adaptation, and to the Museum of Natural History for a handling session and chance to explore the vast collections. Being able to stay in our undergraduate accommodation and eat in Hall was also powerful for many of our young visitors, as they were able to imagine themselves living and studying here as future university students.

Building on a successful year of delivery for our partnership with The Access Project, a group of Oxbridge-hopeful students from West Coast Sixth Form were able to visit us at Queen’s for an overnight residential. They gained insight into the admissions process and how to make a competitive application, as well as learning about life as a current Oxford student through tours of Queen’s with our brilliant ambassadors.

Just after the Easter weekend, 26 Year 12 students from all over Lancashire and Cumbria made their way down to Oxford for our annual North West Science Residential. This initiative offers an insight into the breadth of science disciplines available for study at Oxford, and allows participants to understand what being an Oxford science student is really like.

I really enjoyed the residential and am so happy to have been able to experience it. I hope that one day I am an ambassador for this residential!

As part of a jam-packed schedule of academic activities, students worked in teams to tackle a Chemistry ‘Lab Lurker’ puzzle, developing their problem-solving and collaboration skills as well as pushing their subject knowledge beyond the A Level syllabus. We were also able to attend a range of taster sessions, using optical microscopes at the Materials Science department, exploring the labs at the Physics department, and learning about volcanic eruptions with the team at Earth Sciences.

One of the distinctive elements of an Oxford education is the tutorial system; we were pleased that our attendees could experience university-style teaching and learning by attending a subject-specific tutorial with our Queen’s tutors. They were given some preparatory work at the start of the residential to complete in the College library and study spaces, ready to discuss their ideas and questions with their peers in a tutorial at the end of the week.

My favourite activity was the Materials tutorial. Preparing for it was enjoyable and gave an insight into how to go about private study. The tutorial was fun and very interesting.

The medicine tutorial took the trophy because it was mind-boggling, genuine and really stimulating!

A team of wonderful student ambassadors shared their own experiences of studying science at Oxford and life at Queen’s with attendees. There was, of course, time for fun and socialising, too. Our ambassadors led a ‘pub’ quiz, played cards with attendees in the common room, and took everyone on a tour of Oxford with a reward of G&Ds ice cream – a quintessential Oxford student activity!

As Trinity Term is in full swing and exams are underway, we are now looking ahead to the University Open Days at the end of June. For more information about visiting the College as part of the Open Day, please visit this page: https://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/visit-the-college/open-days/.

two students wearing lab gloves and examining some specimens

Our partner, The Access Project, is proud to work with more than 1,000 volunteers who help change the lives of under-resourced young people. In this blog we’re featuring current student and volunteer tutor, Dan, who dedicates one hour per week to tutoring biology alongside his studies at Queen’s.

I’m Dan and I am currently studying a master’s in Biology at Queen’s.

Uni life is not just work for me – I enjoy doing archery, photography, and still have time to binge TV series and movies with my friends. I was also the Environment Rep at Queen’s for around three years during my bachelor’s and have participated in a range of environmental societies too. However, getting into university wasn’t always on the cards for me.

I come from a low-income household. I attended multiple state schools and was in receipt of free school meals throughout my early education. I had to work hard to get in the position I am in, and I know I would not have been successful without the extra support my teachers gave me while I was studying for my GCSEs and A levels. Unfortunately, I know many students are not as lucky to have this additional support available to them. I soon realised I wanted to make a difference to other young people to get to where they want regardless of their situation.

I wanted to make a difference to other young people.

I heard about The Access Project from one of my tutors at university and decided to read up on the programme. I applied to become a volunteer tutor, to help a student just like me for one hour a week. The application process was very smooth and efficient, and the training sessions equipped me with the skills I needed to write and deliver effective tutorial sessions. I was matched with a student, and we have already had five great tutorials. The Access Project’s digital platform provides you with all the resources you could need – access to textbooks, interactive whiteboards in the virtual classroom, and screen share for presentations prepared beforehand.

Overall, my experience with The Access Project has been very positive. The admin and coordinator teams have been very friendly and supportive and are quick to resolve any issues that come up. Participating in the programme as a volunteer tutor feels extremely rewarding knowing that you are helping a student achieve their goals and gives me more confidence in my presentation and tutoring skills that benefits me in my studies and career. It really is a win-win – supporting someone and gaining valuable experience at the same time.

I’ve developed skills that will be a massive benefit to me.

Volunteering with The Access Project has been a brilliant experience. I’ve developed skills that will be a massive benefit to me moving forward with a career in STEM or education and has given me an enormous sense of fulfilment providing the same kind of support that once allowed me to flourish. I would really urge anyone – no matter what subject or career path – to volunteer with the programme.

become a volunteer tutor

In late November, I embarked on a 10-day trip to visit our link schools in the North West. I was able to meet so many different students, each at a different stage of their educational journey. I hope that, through these outbound visits, Queen’s is demonstrating our commitment to engaging with schools in the North West in a way which suits the interests, needs, and aspirations of their students.

After a long train journey up to Blackburn, I spent a few days visiting schools across Central Lancashire. Many of the secondary schools in Lancashire are 11-16, meaning that students in Year 11 are making decisions about their Post-16 choices. I spoke to many Year 10 and 11 students about their next steps, and the importance of choosing relevant A Level subjects which allow them to progress onto a university course that suits their interests.

Pupils commented on how the talk provided a valuable insight into applying to university and said they now feel more equipped to start investigating routes and courses, which they feel will benefit them when they make their A Level choices at college.

Careers Adviser, State School in Lancashire

Targeting students in younger year groups is a valuable part of our outreach programme, which makes pupils aware of the breadth of options available to them and introduces the idea that higher education may be a path that they wish to pursue.

Later in the week, I made my way over to the Fylde Coast. Here, we were particularly pleased to visit some schools that we hadn’t previously engaged with and to raise the aspirations of pupils that hadn’t before considered that university could be an option for them.

I also met some Year 13 pupils in both Blackpool and Cumbria who were in the middle of navigating the Oxford admissions process. We discussed what admissions tutors are looking for in potential students and tackled some interview-style questions. We wish them all the very best of luck with their applications!

You demystified the interview process and put students at their ease, focusing them on how they can articulate their academic thinking well.

Many of our brightest students don’t consider themselves worthy of a place at Oxford or Cambridge because they don’t think they would fit in. Interacting with staff and students in person is the most powerful way to break down that stereotype.

Teacher, State School (Sixth Form) in Cumbria

It was also a pleasure to visit two of our The Access Project partner schools, Darwen Vale High School and The Whitehaven Academy, as part of my visit. I was able to meet the University Access Officers who are embedded within the schools, and attend their workshops with Year 10 and 11 pupils who are taking part in the programme.

Somehow, I managed to avoid both the widespread train strikes and heavy snowfall that hit the Lake District the week following my visit. The train journey from Whitehaven back to Oxford provided some beautiful views of the Cumbrian coast. The length of the journey reinforced some comments that I had heard from students earlier in the week about Oxford feeling ‘far away’, both in terms of physical distance and the perceived unattainability of studying at a top university.

It is striking to consider how different life can be growing up in the rural/coastal North-West compared to other parts of the country. Many haven’t been far south and feel less intelligent, less able, and ultimately less worthy of a place that requires intense competition to get into.

As someone who grew up in this environment, but was picked up through the Cambridge access scheme, I really want to disrupt some of these entrenched views. The best way to open up opportunities and horizons is by meeting people like you and other students who make our pupils think ‘maybe that could be me’. 

Teacher, State School (Sixth Form) in Cumbria

Over the course of my ten-day trip, I visited 19 schools and met over 800 wonderful students. It was incredibly valuable to speak directly to pupils and teachers in their own school environments, and I am very grateful to the schools that welcomed me with such warmth! I look forward to returning to the North West in the New Year to visit more of our link schools.

Molly Lockwood, Schools Liaison, Outreach & Recruitment Officer 

As we enter the second year of our partnership with The Access Project, we are delighted to be able to share some success stories from the 2022-23 academic year.

Despite top A-level grades taking a steep drop in England this year, it was an incredible day for The Access Project’s Year 13 students and we are very proud of all they have accomplished.

At Darwen Aldridge Community Academy, Georgina (pictured) was awarded four A* grades in her A-level exams and is able to pursue her dream of studying Natural Sciences at Cambridge University. Georgina applied to The Access Project because she was seeking additional support with her Maths and tool part in over 20 small group online tutorial sessions. Georgina said:

I’m really happy all my hard work has paid off and I can finally do what I wanted to do.

Also at Darwen Aldridge, Amelia was awarded one A* and two A grades in her A-level exams. She will be studying Medicine at the University of Edinburgh. Amelia dreams of becoming a GP, and she joined The Access Project to support her with her studies after disruption to her learning in the previous academic year, recognising how competitive it is to go on to study Medicine at a top university. Amelia said:

I am ecstatic, I can’t believe it. I’m so happy.

It is clear that the students at Darwen Aldridge Community Academy have had transformational support from The Access Project, and we are thrilled to celebrate their achievements as they begin university study. Although we are saddened to lose Darwen Aldridge as a partner school this year, we look forward to continuing to support students in the area through our double-provision partnership with Darwen Vale High School.

Over in Cumbria, we are delighted to share that Jessica and Leah are pursuing degrees at the University of Leeds after having achieved AAB and ABB respectively in their A-levels. The success at West Coast Sixth Form does not end there, as Bekkie attained AAB on results day and is going on to study Law with Criminology at the University of Liverpool. We look forward to continuing our relationship with The Access Project in Whitehaven Academy, Workington Academy and West Coast Sixth Form to support more students in the coming academic year.

Having joined Queen’s as Schools Liaison, Outreach and Recruitment Officer over the summer, I have been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm for our partnership with The Access Project from staff, current students, and old members alike. Thanks to this generous community support, we are looking forward to celebrating the achievements of future generations of TAP students in the North West.

To keep up to date with our Access and Outreach work, you can follow our Instagram page at @oxqueensaccess.

We reached the first anniversary of our partnership with The Access Project. I was accompanied by Professor Lindsay Turnbull, our Tutor for Access, earlier this month on a visit to Darwen Vale High School to commemorate this milestone. 

Lindsay and I were joined by students from Darwen Vale High School who have been enrolled on the programme this year. We engaged in round-table discussions with them, finding out what they have enjoyed about the year, and what they would like to learn about Oxford next. It was reassuring to hear that students have found the tutoring aspect of the programme very beneficial, with some students across our partner schools improving by two grades in their tutored subject. We also got to hear some of their university aspirations, and I was impressed with the level of maturity that the students showed when discussing options for their future. I could really sense that they were beginning to expand their horizons, considering university as a genuine option that they could see themselves pursuing, which many of them said they hadn’t considered before. 

Students have found the tutoring aspect of the programme very beneficial, with some students across our partner schools improving by two grades in their tutored subject.

We also met with key members of The Access Project staff, including Sam, the University Access Officer working in Darwen Vale School. Sam knows the students very well now and has supported them through their post-GCSE choices and examinations. It’s lovely to see TAP fully embedded into the culture of the school. 

We were fortunate to hear a keynote speech from Sir Rod Aldridge, Patron of Aldridge Education, the Multi-Academy Trust of which Darwen Vale is a part. Sir Rod gave a truly inspiring speech, detailing his path from a working-class family to a world-leading entrepreneur. The students asked Sir Rod some insightful and thought-provoking questions, showing their confidence and consideration skills, no doubt built through a year working with The Access Project. 

Keep checking our Access and Outreach blog to find out more about our partnership with The Access Project.

Lauren Shields, outgoing Schools Liaison, Outreach and Recruitment Officer

In October 2022, The Queen’s College launched its new partnership with The Access Project in four schools across the North West – two in Lancashire (Darwen Vale High School and Darwen Aldridge Community Academy) and two in Cumbria (Workington Academy and The Whitehaven Academy).

Watch the ITV Border News report on the launch of the work in Cumbria last autumn

As we near the end of the partnership’s first year, we have many positive stories to tell about the 160 students that have been supported across the four schools.

Unfortunately, we will also be losing one of our school partners, Darwen Aldridge Community Academy, in Lancashire in July. The school’s students have had life-changing support, however, the school has also faced very tough choices, given rising costs and other pressures beyond their control. They have therefore decided to withdraw from the programme, although they have valued the partnership with TAP, and the door is open for them to re-join in the future.

The partnership will still be supporting the same number of students in the next academic year (23/24) with the other Lancashire school, Darwen Vale High School, agreeing to a double programme of support, meaning we will work with 80 students in one school, and 160 in total across the entire North West.

A celebration event in July will be held to mark a year of positive impact in Darwen. The Queen’s College will be there along with The Access Project to celebrate.

Below are some outcomes achieved by the partnership across the North West this year.

Year 13 university firm and insurance choices

Our Year 13s have now made their firm and insurance choices for university. We have some real successes within those, including:

West Coast Sixth Form, Cumbria:

  • Two students with a contextual Medicine offer (ABB) at the University of Lancaster.
  • A student with 4 out of 5 applications to Medicine accepted.
  • Students choosing top third universities in the North rather than their nearer non-selective universities.

Darwen Aldridge Community Academy:

  • Students with firm offers from University of Cambridge (Natural Sciences), University of Edinburgh (Medicine) and Durham University (Physics with Astrophysics).

Super curricular activities and enrichment

Our Year 12s are working on super curricular enrichment and are keen to get involved in the opportunities we share with them. Our younger students also have their sights set on opportunities in the sector. Some of the support students have signed up to includes:

  • A Y12 student in Cumbria who has been accepted on the UNIQ programme and University of Durham’s support programme.
  • A Y12 student in Darwen completing the Sutton Trust Summer School this year.
  • Two Y12 students in Cumbria completing Realising Opportunities. Realising opportunities is a collaboration of leading research intensive universities to widen access. It is a structured programme of interventions designed to ensure they can be successful in their education and future career. Students apply for the opportunity through one of the universities.
  • A Y11 student in Cumbria accepted Christ College, Cambridge’s LPN summer school. LPN stands for low progression neighbourhood.  Each year Christ’s College, Cambridge works in collaboration with Sidney Sussex and Murray Edwards Colleges to run an August summer school for Year 11 in England/Wales aimed at students who live in areas of low participation to higher education.
  • Two Y11 students from Darwen accepted into Lancaster’s School of Mathematics for onward study.

Tutorial support

It has been wonderful to see the Queen’s community of students, Old Members and staff join together to support this programme through tutorial support. Headline stats from The Queen’s College volunteers this year. We have seen 463 hours of tutorial support, with 443 tutorials given. There were 26 tutees taught by members from the Queen’s community, with some of the current members and Old Members tutoring more than one young person each. 79% of our students in the North West have had 1 or more tutorials – that’s higher than any of The Access Project’s other established regions.

Nearly 30 students in the North West have already completed their target number of tutorials (20 tutorials) and even gone beyond it. There are many more on track to hit tutorial targets by the end of the academic year. One student at The Whitehaven Academy, Cumbria has attended over 30 tutorials.

We have had some lovely feedback from our students regarding their tutorials, including this quotation from our Cumbrian student who has tutorials with Lauren Shields from the Queen’s College (a volunteer tutor):

Lauren has been so amazing, she’s listened to everything I’ve asked and responded to all my silly questions without any judgment, I’ve never dreaded a tutorial because I feel so comfortable making mistakes knowing she will help me out. The tutorials have been so beneficial to my studies and I really appreciate Lauren continuing with them during my exam period because they make me feel so much better!! She’s the best.

Tutors have also shared their experiences of tutoring our students in the North West:

I’ve absolutely loved the experience of tutoring this year and would definitely be interested in a new pairing in September. Many thanks to you and the team for helping make volunteering with TAP such a positive experience.

(She) has been an absolute pleasure to tutor – regularly attending sessions, keeping me informed of changes and really engaging with the subject. I wish her every success in the exams!

I informed my student I was going on holiday and we may need to start our tutorials after that. (She) is very effective. I set off tomorrow morning, and she has booked a tutorial at 16:30 today! She does impress me.

Mentoring support

Our University Access Officers, (The Access Project’s mentors), Sam and Ellie are currently supporting Y12s with their UCAS personal statements. Y10 are receiving provision around making the correct A level choices – the real value of working with students at the younger end is helping them to make the right choices from the start, before they unwittingly narrow their options.

The partnership and how to volunteer

The Queen’s College is funding the programmes with £137k per annum from 2022-25. The Access Project could not have worked with these students in the North West without The Queen’s College support. The partnership is looking at trips from the schools’ students to The Queen’s College during 23/24 so they experience life at the college. If you are interested in volunteering as an online tutor for one of our students please apply here.

Photo: BerndBrueggemann

Lauren Shields, Schools Liaison, Outreach, and Recruitment Officer

Welcome back to the Access & Outreach blog.

This time we have an overview of one of our recent successful outreach initiatives, the North West Science Residential. This programme has been running since before 2017, and took a brief hiatus during the pandemic. However, in 2023 it was back and better than ever!

This year, we welcomed 28 students to Queen’s for three days at the beginning of April. I was really pleased that despite train cancellations, replacement buses, and delays, students from all across our link regions of Cumbria, Blackpool, Blackburn with Darwen, and Lancashire managed to reach Oxford for the residential. After a long day of travelling on the Monday, we had a pretty chilled evening where our student ambassadors took the students out on a walking tour of Oxford.

The next day was jam packed with activities. After an introductory talk, students were given a tour of the beautiful Queen’s library, and were given some tutorial work to complete that they would hand in during their mini tutorial on Thursday. Following a spot of lunch, the students had a taster session at the Materials Science Department, where they got to make their own solar cells. Some of them then headed to the Botanical Gardens for a tour and a chat about the plants there, and some came back to Queen’s for a workshop on Crystals and Quasicrystals by our very own Professor Doye. After a long day, we went to Brasenose College for a tour, and then came back to Queen’s for dinner and a ‘pub’ quiz.

On Wednesday the weather was amazing, selling Oxford even more! We started the day with a STEM Interview Workshop, followed by a trip to the Museum of Natural History. After lunch we had the wonderful Chemistry Department deliver their Lab Lurker activity, and a representative from the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory talk to us about laser targets and careers after a STEM degree. We then went for a tour of New College, and had a (very hectic and competitive!) scavenger hunt in the evening.

The final day brought the tutorials. Some students were a little nervous, but all really enjoyed meeting an academic and participating in our famous small-group teaching. After lunch, it was time to say farewell.

We asked the students when they first arrived and after the residential to rate their agreement with some statements from ‘strongly disagree = 1 to strongly agree =5’. The average score given to the statement ‘I feel confident about the application process’ increased from 2.5 to 3.9, an increase of 57%. Similarly, the average score of the statement ‘I have a good understanding of the teaching style at Oxford University’ increased by 79%. We were also pleased that the average score of the statement ‘I feel like I’d fit in at Oxford University’ increased by 16%.

I really enjoyed the taster sessions and the tutorial session. I enjoyed the opportunity to leave the college and explore the city as it helped to gain a sense of what it would feel like to study at Oxford.

Residential participant

To keep up to date with our Access and Outreach efforts, follow us on Instagram @queensoxaccess.

Lauren Shields, Schools Liaison, Outreach, and Recruitment Officer

Welcome to our new Access & Outreach blog!

This first blog-post will outline how our relationship with The Access Project (TAP) has developed since the partnership launched in October 2022.

Back in October, Dr Claire Craig and I travelled to Whitehaven, Cumbria, to The Whitehaven Academy, one of our TAP partner schools. We caught the train up to Carlisle and then took a taxi to Whitehaven, which took an hour. We really felt the physical distance from Oxford, and it helped us to understand some of the barriers that students from West Cumbria face when thinking about their university choices. We were greeted at the school by all of the wonderful people that helped to make this partnership a reality; from school teachers, the Senior Leadership Team, and the folks at TAP.

The launch event was a chance for us all to meet some of the students who were, at the time, enrolling onto the project. There was a real sense of pride in the room, with students telling me that they felt proud that their school had been chosen to be a part of this project. They were excited to start, and felt optimistic about their futures. It was a truly heart-warming day.

Since the launch event, we have been receiving regular updates from Sam and Ellie, our two University Access Officers working across the TAP schools. Ellie, who works across Whitehaven and Workington Academies, and Sam, who is working across Darwen Aldridge Community Academy and Darwen Vale High School, have been really impressed with students’ willingness to be part of the programme. Students take part in one-to-one mentoring with Ellie and Sam, discussing things like university options and revision techniques. They also have group sessions, where they learn valuable information about student finance and the UCAS process. Students also get to receive free weekly tutoring from wonderful volunteer tutors across the country. We are so proud to say that we have over 30 volunteer tutors from The Queen’s College community alone – a mixture of students, staff, and Old Members.

TAP celebrated Volunteering Week in February, and used one of our volunteer tutors, Jim, as a case study. To read his reasons for tutoring and how he’s finding the process, take a look on the TAP website.

We are really happy to hear that all four of the schools have TAP embedded into the culture of the schools now. Students across the two regions are also beginning to think about Oxford as an option, through TAP’s Oxbridge Society. We can’t wait to continue to support this initiative in the coming years of our partnership.

Looking ahead, we now have a date in the diary to visit our TAP schools in Darwen. We look forward to meeting the students in these schools too, and find out how the first year has gone for them.

For updates on how our partnership with TAP is progressing, check out this blog where we will post regularly among our other Access & Outreach initiatives. You can also find updates on Instagram, by following @queensoxaccess.

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