First-Ever Cambridge Foundation Year Offers Made to Prospective Students

More than 50 students from disadvantaged backgrounds have been offered a place in the University of Cambridge's first-ever pre-degree foundation year.

The landmark new program will provide a new route to undergraduate education at the University of Cambridge for around 50 talented individuals every year who have experienced educational and social disadvantage, and demonstrate the potential to succeed in a degree in the arts, humanities, or social sciences.

The one-year, full-time residential course will welcome its first intake of students to Cambridge for the start of the new academic year, in October 2022. Following a rigorous admissions process, offers have been made to 52 students.

A fully-funded introduction to university life

Free and fully funded, the Cambridge Foundation Year is aimed at engaging an entirely new stream of applicants who have been prevented from reaching their full potential by their circumstances. This includes students with experience of the care system, estrangement from parents, low levels of household income, and schools with little history of sending students to highly selective universities. Their selection has taken into account their educational background and contextualized their achievements, recognising that circumstances and opportunity should not be a barrier to future academic success.

The program's engaging and challenging curriculum will prepare students for further study at Cambridge, or another top university.

In total, there were 267 applications to the pilot Foundation Year program, around 5 applications for every place, which is comparable to the number of applications the University normally receives for undergraduate study (6 applications for every place). Cambridge Foundation Year applicants, including mature students, came from diverse backgrounds and from across the UK. They have received guidance during the process through a University online applicant support program to help them make the strongest possible application.

Welcoming and preparing students to succeed

A Foundation Year Offer Holder Day will be held in June, giving students an opportunity to find out more about life at Cambridge and visit colleges, and a Residential Pre-Term Induction Week will take place in September.

A cornerstone gift from philanthropists Christina and Peter Dawson is funding the launch of the program and full one-year scholarships for all students who are accepted. Students will study at one of the 13 Cambridge colleges participating in the pilot scheme, and will benefit from the community, support, and academic stimulation this offers, which is intrinsic to the Cambridge experience. They will also be taught at the new West Hub, on the University's emerging West Cambridge Innovation District.

As with all courses at Cambridge, there was a rigorous admissions process designed to help admit students who will thrive on the Foundation Year and be able to progress to a degree at Cambridge — including interviews and assessment. Students also have to prove their eligibility to receive the generous scholarship given to all students on the course.

In 2021, 72% of Cambridge's new undergraduate students were from state schools and more than a quarter were from the least advantaged backgrounds.

Check out this video on the new Cambridge Foundation Year: