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Three Students Secure Conditional Offers from Oxford and Cambridge
Personal Excellence
Three Students Secure Conditional Offers from Oxford and Cambridge
St Aloysius is delighted to announce the success of three S6 students in securing conditional offers from Oxford and Cambridge. The three students have been offered, respectively, places at Lincoln College, Oxford, St Edmund’s College, Oxford, and Queens College, Cambridge. This marks one of the best achievements for the school in recent years.
Mr O’Duffin, Assistant Head, noted the commitment and excellence shown by each pupil to obtain an offer of a place. ‘Each of the three of them has had to work, in their own subject, at a level significantly beyond Advanced Highers, and learned new course material in advance of the entrance assessment. Therefore, gaining an offer of a place is a very impressive achievement in and of itself’.
Each of the three successful candidates has been offered a place to study a STEM subject (science, technology, engineering and maths); two students will go on to study mathematics and one to study physics. It should be noted that STEM subjects are often overlooked by students, but are highly sought-after in the workplace and wider UK economy. The College is delighted to demonstrate its commitment to core STEM subjects, by supporting those students who choose to pursue further education in these disciplines
Dr Kilgour, Head of Mathematics, and board member of the UK Mathematics Trust, detailed the College’s commitment to supporting excellence, specifically in mathematics. Since 2008, the school has offered a programme of enrichment to the brightest mathematicians, establishing itself as a ‘Centre for Excellence for Learning and Teaching in Mathematics’. The department offers a range of additional activities and academic support for the top students: Dr Kilgour has implemented a UKMT mentoring scheme, as well as weekly lunchtime clubs, one-on-one support for Oxbridge entrance assessments, and ‘The Maclaurin Programme’, a scheme set up to allow S6 students to assist in mathematics classes in S1 to S6. Students also have the opportunity to enter a range of competitions, including the Scottish Mathematics Council and the UKMT Challenges, and Mathématiques Sans Frontières, a team challenge necessitating collaboration with the Modern Languages department.
This support was not exclusively available to pupils of the College: rather, the mathematics department offered ongoing support to Oxbridge applicants from the state sector. Last year, the school supported a mathematician from Bannerman High School, offering support in the STEP assessment. He successfully obtained a place to study at Cambridge.
The three talented scholars should be commended on their impressive achievements in securing an offer of a place at Oxford and Cambridge respectively. We wish them the best of luck in their Advanced Higher assessments later this year.
