Question: What was it like at Cambridge university?

Fiona Coomer answered on 17 Jun 2013:

Being able to study at Cambridge was a real privilege. I was taught by some of the world’s leading scientists in a place where some of the most important discoveries were made.

One of the best things about studying in Cambridge is the very small group tutorials, called supervisions. I had about three of these a week, which meant there was a lot of work to prepare, but the opportunity to have an expert in the field discussing your work with you, and being able to ask them questions, was really helpful.

I really like the fact that in order to study any science subject in Cambridge, you study Natural Sciences. This gives you the opportunity to study a range of subjects in your first year, and then specialise later, which means that you end up choosing a subject you really have a passion for (subjects are often very different when you study them at university), whilst getting a good grounding in a range of others.

Studying in Cambridge is a very intense experience – the terms are short, there are lectures on a Saturday, and there are a lot of supervisions to prepare for (you look really stupid if you’ve not tried the work beforehand) and you are studying with some of the cleverest (and most interesting) people in the world, but it really sets you up for a great career in whichever field you want to go into.

On the other hand, there’s loads to get involved in outside work, and people from all walks of life (certainly not all posh people). I definitely met my best friends whilst studying in Cambridge.