Coleg y Cymoedd’s team of budding entrepreneurs awarded prize in National competition

A Coleg y Cymoedd learner was successful in gaining a place on the prestigious UNIQ programme at Oxford University earlier this year; the UNIQ summer schools are an access programme, which are open to learners studying in their first year of A Levels.

The programme aims to give learners a realistic view of Oxford student life, with preference given to applicants who come from schools and areas with little or no history of successful application to Oxford.

AS Level learners Megan Chambers (17) from Merthyr Tydfil was delighted to have been selected for one of the 1000 places out of approximately 4000 applications this year. She spent a week living at Hertford College, Oxford; attending lectures, seminars and workshops about applying to Oxford. Learners also enjoyed a variety of social activities included in the programme.

To secure their place the learners were asked to submit personal statements outlining their interest in their chosen course and their reasons for attending the UNIQ. Staff members at the college were also approached to endorse the learner applications.

Megan who secured a place on the Human Sciences course said “It was such a privilege to attend the UNIQ summer school this year. I never thought Oxford was even an option for me but the staff at the college made me realise my full potential and being accepted onto the summer school has brought me one step closer. I’m studying Maths, Chemistry and Biology at A Level and so Human Sciences was an ideal course for me to do at the summer school. I feel I was accepted onto the summer school due the grades I achieved at GCSE which shows I am committed to working to my full potential. My personal statement really highlighted my enthusiasm in attending UNIQ. This was an amazing opportunity and I enjoyed every minute”.

Congratulating the learners Strategic Alliance Manager Ian Rees stated “I am delighted that Megan secured a place on this year’s summer school at Oxford University. Opportunities such as this are invaluable, providing an insight in to university-life at one of the most prestigious universities.

At Coleg y Cymoedd we are proud of the choice of A Levels we offer, together with the excellent teaching and support from the staff. Given their motivation they will hopefully follow in the footsteps of one of our learners who this year became our first learner to secure a place at Oxford to read English”.

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