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Post 18 options and pathways A Guide to... Super Curricular Activities for Oxbridge and Competitive University Applications
What are Super Curricular Activities? You’ve probably heard of “co-curricular activities”, and probably do a few of them yourself. The “co” refers to an activity being outside or alongside of your regular curriculum, e.g. doing a sport or enrolling in a first aid course. Super-curricular activities are those that take the subjects you study further, beyond that which your teacher has taught you or what you’ve done for homework. You may go into more depth on something you picked up in the classroom or learn about a new topic altogether. You can explore your subject in many ways; for example, by reading, as well as watching videos online, downloading lectures, visiting museums or entering academic competitions.
Explore your Subject! To get into a top university, it’s not enough just to do well at school. Universities want students who are passionate about their subject, who think for themselves and who are independent learners. That means finding out what you’re really interested in and developing that interest is a top priority. That’s where “supercurricular” activities come in.
Why are Super Curricular activities important? To do well at a top university, it is important to have a) enthusiasm and curiosity for your subject and b) the capacity for independent study. Super-curricular activities can help you: 1. Choose a subject to study. Doing something like extra reading or entering an essay competition in your subject are good ways for you to check if you have the passion for your subject that you think you do. If you’re enjoying exploring the subject, even when your homework is done for the week, it’s a positive sign that it’s the right subject for you! 2. Provide evidence on a personal statement. Many universities will also look for you having done super-curricular activities because it can indicate that you have the capacity for self-study and can demonstrate how you respond to new ideas that you come across. 3. Develop important skills. You can also gain skills from supercurricular activities which can help you do well in future university interviews and admissions tests/assessments. Your ability to think critically, absorb new information, make inferences or consider things from multiple angles, are all things that interviews and admissions tests are geared up to assess. You can use supercurricular exploration to develop these skills in yourself; for example, by pushing yourself to comprehend new information, getting to grips with different concepts, challenging assumptions or uncovering weaknesses in arguments you read/listen to. Asa bonus, these skills will also help you become a successful university student as uni courses often require a lot more selfstudy than you may have been used to so far.
Some Top Tips First things first, exploring your subject is not about filling your head with facts! You will develop important independent study skills more effectively if you are engaging actively with your subject. Here are some ways that help you develop independent study skills (such as how to think critically and flexibly). 1. Be open minded. Do not be afraid to try out some things that are different to what you’re used to. You might discover your next new hobby! 2. Find connections. Look for links in between different things that you have explored. By doing this you really test how well you’ve understood the ideas and you could even come up with unique ideas of you own. Making comparisons and contrasts is good ways to do this. 3. Think actively and ask questions. Don’t just accept the arguments that you come across. Try and challenge them, and think of counter examples. Would it be the same in all situations? Is there another way of solving that problem? What do you really think? 4. Think actively and ask questions. Don’t just accept the arguments that you come across. Try and challenge them, and think of counter examples. Would it be the same in all situations? Is there another way of solving that problem? What do you really think? 5. Share and discuss. Always talk about things with people, whether your teacher, parent, or friend. Perhaps you don’t understand something you’ve read or you’d like to debate it further. Conversations such as these provide excellent practice for future interviews. 6. And remember to follow your interests. Don’t do an activity just because you think it looks good. Read books and take part in things that you think are genuinely stimulating. This means that you avoid having to try hard to fake interest. Pursuing supercurricular activities should never become a chore.
Archaeology Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. https://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/prospective-students/undergraduates/online-resourcesprospective-archaeology-students#Archaeology 2. Human Evolution: A Very Short Introduction https://global.oup.com/academic/product/human-evolution-a-very-short-introduction9780198831747?cc=gb&lang=en& Websites: 1. Young Archaeologists' Club - https://www.yac-uk.org/ 2. British Museum - https://www.britishmuseum.org/our-work/national/bm-arc 3. The Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Cambridge - https://maa.cam.ac.uk/ Journals and Articles: 1. Current Archaeology: Home - https://archaeology.co.uk/ 2. Archaeological Review from Cambridge - https://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/prospectivestudents/prospective-postgraduate-students/archaeological-review-cambridge Video
Podcasts 1. Archaeology Podcast Network - https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/ 2. Naked Archaeology - https://www.thenakedscientists.com/podcasts/archive/nakedarchaeology
Architecture Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. https://www.arct.cam.ac.uk/Downloads/books-recommended-for-reading/view 2. Bachelard, The Poetics of Space 3. Davidson Cragoe, How to Read Buildings 4. Pallasmaa, The Eyes of the Skin 5. Perec, Species of Spaces and other Pieces 6. List of Top 10 Architecture Books for Student Architects - https://www.archininja.com/list-of-architecture-books-for-student-architects/ Websites: 1. Learning Programme - https://www.architecture.com/education-cpd-andcareers/learning 2. Explore Arts and Culture through google https://artsandculture.google.com/story/mAUhHW4vOVDErA?hl=en 3. The Young Architect - https://youngarchitect.com/ Journals and Articles: 1. The Architects' Journal: Architecture News and Buildings https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/ 2. The Architectural Review - https://www.architectural-review.com/ 3. International Design - https://www.architectural-review.com/ 4. Scroope Journal - https://www.arct.cam.ac.uk/aboutthedepartment/scroopejournal/current-issue Podcasts 1. Deezen - Architecture and Design - https://www.dezeen.com/ Interesting People to Follow 1. Le Corbusier 2. Miles Van Der Rohe 3. Lloyd Wright 4. Mackintosh
Chemical Engineering Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. https://library.bath.ac.uk/chemical-engineering/essential-reading 2. Solen and Harb, Introduction to Chemical Engineering: Tools for Today and Tomorrow 3. https://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/reading-lists/chemical-engineeringreading-list 4. Denn, Chemical Engineering: An Introduction Websites: 1. Oxford Sparks: Bringing Oxford Science to Life - https://www.oxfordsparks.ox.ac.uk/ 2. Chemical Engineering Challenges and Opportunities https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/chemical-engineering-challenges-andopportunities-in-the-21st-century Journals and Articles: 1. Science News and Science Articles from New Scientist - https://www.newscientist.com/ 2. Articles - Chemical Engineering - http://www.cheresources.com/content/articles/ 3. Women in STEM - https://www.womeninstem.co.uk/ Podcasts 1. ChEnected - https://www.aiche.org/chenected/2018/12/what-podcasts-do-chemes-listen 2. Top Chemical Engineering Podcasts https://blog.feedspot.com/chemical_engineering_podcasts/ Interesting People to Follow 1. Le Corbusier 2. Miles Van Der Rohe 3. Lloyd Wright 4. Mackintosh
Classics Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. https://www.classics.cam.ac.uk/prospective/schools 2. https://www.classics.cam.ac.uk/pdfs/bibliography 3. The Iliad. by Homer. 4. The Histories. by Herodotus. 5. Medea. by Euripides. 6. Democracy: A Life. by Paul Cartledge. 7. Greek Fire. by Oliver Taplin. Websites: 1. Classical Art Research Centre, Oxford - https://www.beazley.ox.ac.uk/index.htm 2. Centre for the Study of Ancient Documents - https://www.csad.ox.ac.uk/links 3. The Roman Society - https://www.romansociety.org/ 4. Classical Civilisation - https://classicsforall.org.uk/ 5. ORBIS/Stanford - https://orbis.stanford.edu/ 6. Faculty of Classics - https://www.classics.cam.ac.uk/news/new-collection-videos Video
Podcasts 1. Radio 4 In our time, History - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01dh5yg
Computer Science Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Dewdney, The New Turing Omnibus: 66 Excursions in Computer Science 2. Gribbin, Computing with Quantum Cats 3. Houston, How to Think Like a Mathematician 4. Penrose, The Emperor's New Mind 5. Hromkovic, Algorithmic Adventures: From Knowledge to Magic 6. Singh, The Code Book: The Secret History of Codes and Codebreaking Journals and Articles: 1. Shor, I'll do it! - https://www.scottaaronson.com/blog/?p=208 2. Science news and science articles from New Scientist - https://www.newscientist.com/ Websites: 1. NRICH - https://nrich.maths.org/covid19 2. Isaac Computer Science - https://isaaccomputerscience.org/ 3. Explore NASA STEM - https://www.nasa.gov/stem 4. Oxford Sparks: Bringing Oxford Science to Life - https://www.oxfordsparks.ox.ac.uk/ 5. Brilliant, Learn to Think - https://brilliant.org/ 6. Bletchley Park External Resources https://bletchleypark.org.uk/learn/resources/external-resources 7. Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford https://www.cs.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/why_oxford/background_reading.ht ml
Computer Science Video
Podcasts: 1. Oxford University - https://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/series/computer-science Other Activities: 1. Project Euler: Problems - https://projecteuler.net/ 2. The World's Leading Software Development Platform - https://github.com/ 3. Micro:bit Educational Foundation - https://microbit.org/ 4. Python Challenges - https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/admissions/python-challenges-page 5. Teach, Learn and Make with Raspberry - https://www.raspberrypi.org/
Economics Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Cambridge University Reading List http://www.econ.cam.ac.uk/ba/PrelimReadingList.pdf 2. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky 3. The Undercover Economist by Tim Harford 4. 23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism by Ha-Joon Chang 5. Animal Spirits by Akerlof and Shiller 6. The Armchair Economist by Steven E. Landsburg 7. The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable by Nissim Nocholas Taleb Journals and Articles: 1. The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance https://www.economist.com/ 2. Plus Magazine: Living Maths - https://plus.maths.org/content/ 3. The Dismal Scientist - http://marshallsociety.com/magazine/ Websites: 1. The Economist Educational Foundation - https://economistfoundation.org/ 2. Institute of Economic Affairs - https://iea.org.uk/ 3. National Institute of Economic and Social Research - https://www.niesr.ac.uk/ 4. International Monetary Fund - https://www.imf.org/en/home Video
Podcasts: Freakonomics - https://freakonomics.com/ 50 Things the Modern Economy - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04b1g3c
Engineering Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Cambridge University Reading List https://www.admissions.eng.cam.ac.uk/information/reading 2. Sustainable Energy - https://www.withouthotair.com/download.html 3. There is No Planet B - https://theresnoplanetb.net/ Journals and Articles: 1. Science news and science articles from New Scientist - https://www.newscientist.com/ 2. Nature News and Comment - https://www.nature.com/news Websites: 1. I Want To Study Engineering - https://i-want-to-study-engineering.org/ 2. Isaac Physics - https://isaacphysics.org/ 3. National Grid: Live Status - https://grid.iamkate.com/ 4. Project Drawdown - https://www.drawdown.org/ 5. Information & Inspiration for Engineers - https://www.engineering.com/home 6. Explore NASA STEM - https://www.nasa.gov/stem 7. F1 in Schools UK - https://www.f1inschools.co.uk/ 8. Greenpower - https://www.greenpower.co.uk/ 9. Oxford Sparks: Bringing Oxford Science to Life - https://www.oxfordsparks.ox.ac.uk/ 10. Brilliant: Learn to Think - https://brilliant.org/ 11. Royal Academy of Engineering - https://www.raeng.org.uk/
Engineering Videos
Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Science - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01gyd7j 2. BBC Radio 4 - More or Less: Behind the Stats https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02nrss1/episodes/downloads Other Activities: 1. Learn Python 3 - https://www.codecademy.com/learn/learn-python-3 2. Python for Beginners - https://www.python.org/about/gettingstarted/ 3. UK Mathematics Trust - https://www.ukmt.org.uk/ 4. EDT Programmes - https://www.etrust.org.uk/edt-programmes 5. Arkwright Engineering Scholarships - https://www.arkwright.org.uk/ 6. Women in STEM - Women & Girls in Science, Tech, Engineering and Maths https://www.womeninstem.co.uk/ 7. Python Challenges - https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/admissions/python-challenges-page
English Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Auerbach, Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature 2. Eagleton, Literary Theory: An Introduction 3. Eco, The Name of the Rose 4. Fisher, Ghosts of my Life: Writings on Depression, Hauntology and Lost Futures 5. Greenblatt, Renaissance Self-Fashioning: From More to Shakespeare 6. Lewis, The Discarded Image: An Introduction to Medieval and Renaissance Literature 7. Nashe, The Unfortunate Traveller 8. Nuttall, Shakespeare the Thinker 9. Paterson, Reading Shakespeare’s Sonnets: A New Commentary Scarry, The Body in Pain: The Making and Unmaking of the World 10. Stewart, On Longing: Narratives of the Miniature, the Gigantic, the Souvenir, Collection Journals and Articles: 1. London Review of Books - https://www.lrb.co.uk/ 2. Literary Review: For people who Devour Books - https://literaryreview.co.uk/ 3. The Guardian Book Website - https://www.theguardian.com/books 4. The New Yorker - https://www.newyorker.com/tag/books Websites: 1. Cambridge Faculty of English Resources https://www.english.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/students.htm 2. My HE Plus English - https://myheplus.com/subject/english 3. The TLS Literature - https://www.the-tls.co.uk/categories/literature/ 4. The Poetry Society - Connecting you to the transformative power of poetry https://poetrysociety.org.uk/ 5. British Library Online - https://www.bl.uk/learning/online-resources 6. Shakespeare's Globe: Research and Collections https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/learn/research-and-collections/ 7. Great Writers Inspire - http://writersinspire.org/ 8. Poet Seers: Collection of poetry from around the world - https://www.poetseers.org/ 9. Poetry Foundation - https://www.poetryfoundation.org/ 10. Early English Books Online (1470-1700) - https://search.proquest.com/eebo/index
English Video 1. The Paris Review: discussions with authors - https://www.theparisreview.org/video Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Culture - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01drwny 2. Close Reading - LRB - https://www.lrb.co.uk/podcasts-and-videos/podcasts/closereadings 3. Approaching Shakespeare - https://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/series/approaching-shakespeare 4. Oxford University Podcasts for English - http://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/open/search? openterms=english 5. The Paris Review - fiction, poetry and interviews https://www.theparisreview.org/podcast
Geography Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Dorling and Lee, Geography: Ideas in Profile 2. Jackson, Prosperity without growth: economics for a finite planet 3. Klein, This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs the Climate 4. Massey, For Space 5. Oppenheimer,https://www.cambridge.org/gb/academic/subjects/earth-andenvironmental-science/mineralogy-petrology-and-volcanology/eruptions-shook-world 6. Pascoe, Dark Emu 7. Platt, The Great Flood: travels through a sodden landscape 8. Solnit, Infinite City Journals and Articles: 1. National Geographic - https://www.nationalgeographic.com/ 2. Science News and Science Articles from New Scientist - https://www.newscientist.com/ 3. The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance https://www.economist.com/ 4. Geography Review Extras - https://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/magazines/magazinesextras/geography-review-extras 5. Geographical Magazine - https://geographical.co.uk/ 6. Geography - A Journal by the Geographical Association Websites: 1. Learning Resources for Sixth Formers: Geography https://www.geog.cam.ac.uk/undergraduate/resources/ 2. Royal Geographical Society - Royal Geographical Society - https://www.rgs.org/ 3. Our World in Data - https://ourworldindata.org/ 4. JNCC - Adviser to Government on Nature Conservation - https://jncc.gov.uk/ 5. The Geographical Society - https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/ 6. British Geological Survey (BGS) - A World Leading Geoscience Centre https://www.bgs.ac.uk/ 7. World Mapper - https://worldmapper.org/ 8. Populations Past - https://www.populationspast.org/imr/1861/#7/53.035/-2.895
Geography Videos
1. Urbanisation by Dr Charlotte Lemanski - https://vimeo.com/151492843 2. Urban Poverty by Dr Charlotte Lemanski - https://vimeo.com/151505680 Podcasts: 1. Costing the Earth - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006r4wn 2. More of Less - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02nrss1/episodes/downloads 3. Social Science Bites - Doreen Massey 2013 https://socialsciencebites.libsyn.com/doreen-massey-on-space
History Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. History Faculty Suggested Reading - https://www.hist.cam.ac.uk/getting-started-readingprimary-sources 2. Fordham University History Sourcebooks https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/sbook2.asp 3. Boyd-Hilton, A Mad, Bad and Dangerous People? England 1783-1846 4. Butterfield, The Whig Interpretation of History 5. Clark, The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914 6. Gaddis, The Landscape of History: How Historians Map the Past 7. Jordanova, History in Practice 8. Lawrence, Me, Me, Me: The Search for Community in Post-war England 9. Roper, Martin Luther: Renegade and Prophet 10. Rublack, A Concise Companion to History 11. Saïd, Orientalism Journals and Articles: 1. History Today: The Worlds Leading Serious History Magazine https://www.historytoday.com/ 2. HistoryExtra: BBC History Magazine & BBC World Histories Magazine https://www.historyextra.com/ 3. Reviews in History: Latest Reviews - https://reviews.history.ac.uk/ Websites: 1. The Online Atlas https://www.campop.geog.cam.ac.uk/research/projects/occupations/onlineatlas/ 2. History: British History in-depth - http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/ 3. British Museum - https://www.britishmuseum.org/ 4. Historical Association - the UK National Charity for History - https://www.history.org.uk/ 5. The Royal Historical Society - https://royalhistsoc.org/ 6. Black Cultural Archives - https://artsandculture.google.com/project/black-culturalarchives
History Videos 1. Gresham Lectures - History - https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures/?subject=history 2. Cambridge History Faculty YouTube Channels https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6TzmDK1G1bsCtdyTUxwZCA/videos Podcasts: 1. Dan Snow's History Hit - https://www.historyhit.com/podcasts/dan-snows-history-hit/ 2. Radio 4 - In Our Time, History - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01dh5yg 3. Historical Association Podcasts https://www.history.org.uk/podcasts/timeline%23/e/402 Other Activities: 1. Early Modern England: Politics, Religion, and Society under the Tudors and Stuarts https://oyc.yale.edu/history/hist-251 2. Online World History and Archaeology Courses https://www.futurelearn.com/subjects/history-courses
History and Politics Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Human, Social and Political Sciences Suggested Readings: https://www.hsps.cam.ac.uk/prospectivestudents/subjects/HSPSSuggestedReadingfor2020EntryFinal.pdf 2. History Faculty Suggested Reading: https://www.hist.cam.ac.uk/getting-started-readingprimary-sources 3. Politics Reading List - https://www.tutor2u.net/politics/blog/politics-reading-list Journals and Articles: 1. History Today: The Worlds Leading Serious History Magazine https://www.historytoday.com/ 2. British Politics: A very Short Introduction https://www.veryshortintroductions.com/view/10.1093/actrade/9780199661107.001.00 01/actrade-9780199661107 3. Politics Review Extras Magazine Archives https://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/magazines/magazines-extras/politics-review-extras Websites: 1. The Political Studies Association - https://www.psa.ac.uk/ 2. UK Parliament - https://www.parliament.uk/ 3. United Nations: Peace, Dignity and equality on a healthy planet - https://www.un.org/en/ 4. Chatham House: International Affairs Think Tank - https://www.chathamhouse.org/ 5. Amnesty International - https://www.amnesty.org/en/ Podcasts 1. Talking Politics - https://www.talkingpoliticspodcast.com/ 2. Radio 4 - In Our Time, History - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01dh5yg 3. Thinking Allowed - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qy05
Human, Social and Political Science Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Human, Social and Political Sciences Suggested Readings: https://www.hsps.cam.ac.uk/prospectivestudents/subjects/HSPSSuggestedReadingfor2020EntryFinal.pdf 2. Distinguished Scholarly Book Award - https://www.asanet.org/about/asaawards/distinguished-scholarly-book-award Journals and Articles: 1. British Politics: A very Short Introduction https://www.veryshortintroductions.com/view/10.1093/actrade/9780199661107.001.00 01/actrade-9780199661107 2. Politics Review Extras Magazine Archives https://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/magazines/magazines-extras/politics-review-extras 3. The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance https://www.economist.com/ 4. British Journal of Sociology - https://www.lse.ac.uk/sociology/british-journal-of-sociology Websites: 1. Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology - https://www.anthroencyclopedia.com/ 2. The Royal Anthropological Institute - https://therai.org.uk/ 3. Discover Anthropology - https://www.discoveranthropology.org.uk/ 4. Heywood Political Ideologies - https://www.macmillanihe.com/companion/HeywoodPolitical-Ideologies/resources/Chapter-summaries/#Conservatism 5. British Sociological Association - https://www.britsoc.co.uk/ 6. The Political Studies Association - https://www.psa.ac.uk/ 7. UK Parliament - https://www.parliament.uk/ 8. United Nations: Peace, Dignity and equality on a healthy planet - https://www.un.org/en/ 9. Chatham House: International Affairs Think Tank - https://www.chathamhouse.org/ 10. Amnesty International - https://www.amnesty.org/en/ Podcasts 1. Talking Politics - https://www.talkingpoliticspodcast.com/ 2. Thinking Allowed - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qy05 3. From Savage to Self - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06zjhfx/episodes/player 4. Camthropod - https://www.socanth.cam.ac.uk/media/listen-and-view/camthropod
Land Economy Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Land Economy Suggested Readings - https://www.landecon.cam.ac.uk/Undergraduatestudy/suggested-reading Websites: 1. Institute of Economic Affairs - https://iea.org.uk/ 2. JNCC - Adviser to Government on Nature Conservation - https://jncc.gov.uk/ 3. UK Environmental Law Association - https://www.ukela.org/ Video: 1. Open City Documentary Festival Films - UCL Urban Lab - https://www.ucl.ac.uk/urbanlab/news/2020/mar/watch-urban-lab-films-available-stream-home Other Activities: 1. Finance & Quantitative Modeling for Analysts https://www.coursera.org/specializations/finance-quantitative-modeling-analysts
Law Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Barnard, O’Sullivan and Virgo, What About Law 2. Berlins and Dyer, The Law Machine 3. Bingham, The Rule of Law 4. Kennedy , Misjustice: How British Law is Failing Women 5. McBridge, Letters to a Law Student: A Guide to Studying Law at University 6. Williams, Learning the Law Journals and Articles: 1. Law: The Guardian - https://www.theguardian.com/law 2. Charles Dickens and the Law - https://www.vqronline.org/essay/charles-dickens-and-law 3. Counsel Magazine - https://www.counselmagazine.co.uk/ Websites: 1. Learn More about Law - https://www.ba.law.cam.ac.uk/finding-out-more/learn-moreabout-law 2. Think Cambridge Law - https://medium.com/think-cambridge-law 3. The Lawyer Portal - https://www.thelawyerportal.com/ 4. The YLJ - https://www.theylj.co.uk/ 5. Justice.gov.uk - https://www.justice.gov.uk/ 6. Courts and Tribunals Judiciary - https://www.judiciary.uk/ 7. Legislation.gov.uk - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ 8. Mcbridesguides: Helping you to study Law - https://mcbridesguides.com/ 9. Public law for Everyone - https://publiclawforeveryone.com/
Law Videos
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Law in Action - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006tgy1 Other Activities: 1. The Secret Barrister - https://twitter.com/BarristerSecret? ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor 2. Visiting the Court - https://www.supremecourt.uk/visiting/index.html
Linguistics Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. MML Department Preliminary Reading List https://www.mmll.cam.ac.uk/dtal/undergraduates/preliminary-reading 2. Adger, Language Unlimited: The Science Behind Our Most Creative Power 3. Crystal, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language 4. Pinker, The Language Instinct: How the Mind Creates Language 5. Peterson, The Art of Language Invention 6. Roberts, The Wonders of Language, or How to Make Noises and Influence People Websites: 1. The Linguist List - https://new.linguistlist.org/ 2. British Accents and Dialects - https://www.bl.uk/british-accents-and-dialects Videos: 1. Change and Stability in the native language of migrants https://sms.cam.ac.uk/media/3108981 2. Stability and Change in the Child Language - https://sms.cam.ac.uk/media/2877879 3. Language Learning and Creativity - https://sms.cam.ac.uk/media/2770009 4. The Acquisition and Evolution of Linguistic Variation https://sms.cam.ac.uk/media/3109069 5. Darling, dukeling, duckling: how historical corpora can verify redicated pathways of language change - https://sms.cam.ac.uk/media/3109033 Podcasts: 1. University of Oxford - Linguistics - https://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/keywords/linguistics 2. https://allthingslinguistic.com/post/158682699892/linguistics-and-language-podcasts
Mathematics Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Mathematics Department Preliminary Reading List https://www.maths.cam.ac.uk/undergrad/admissions/files/reading-list.pdf 2. Alcock, How to Think About Analysis 3. Penrose, The Emperor's New Mind: Concerning Computers, Minds, and the Laws of Physics 4. Singh, Fermat’s Last Theorem 5. Dunham, Euler: the Master of Us All Journals and Articles: Science News and Science Articles from the New Scientist https://www.newscientist.com/ Plus Magazine - Living Mathematics - https://plus.maths.org/content/ Websites: 1. Underground Mathematics: A Level Maths Teaching Resources https://undergroundmathematics.org/ 2. NRICH - Maths Resources for Teachers, Parents and Students to enrich learning https://nrich.maths.org/ 3. STEP Support Programme - https://maths.org/step/ 4. External Resources - https://bletchleypark.org.uk/learn/resources/external-resources 5. Tom Rocks Maths - https://tomrocksmaths.com/ 6. Brilliant: Learn to Think - https://brilliant.org/ 7. Royal Institution Masterclasses: https://www.rigb.org/education/masterclasses 8. Oxford Mathematics Alphabet - https://www.maths.ox.ac.uk/about-us/life-oxfordmathematics/oxford-mathematics-alphabet 9. Millennium Mathematics Project - https://maths.org/ Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 4: In Our Time, Science - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01gyd7j 2. The NCETM Maths Podcast - https://player.fm/series/the-ncetm-maths-podcast2361943 3. Oxford University Maths Podcasts: The Secrets of Mathematics https://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/series/secrets-mathematics 4. Inside the Ethics Committee - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b007xbtd
Mathematics Videos
1. Numberphile - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoxcjq-8xIDTYp3uz647V5A 2. Ted Talks: Maths Talks to Blow your Mind https://www.ted.com/playlists/189/math_talks_to_blow_your_mind Other Activities: 1. Women in STEM - https://www.womeninstem.co.uk/ 2. PROMYS-Europe: Program in Mathematics for Young Scientists - https://promyseurope.org/ 3. Birmingham Popular Maths Lecture https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/schools/mathematics/news-and-events/birminghampopular-maths-lecture.aspx
Medicine
Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Oxford Introductory Reading List - https://www.medsci.ox.ac.uk/study/medicine/preclinical/applying/reading 2. Gawande, Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End 3. Marmot, The Health Gap: The Challenge of an Unequal World 4. Nashef, The Naked Surgeon Journals and Articles: Science News and Science Articles from the New Scientist https://www.newscientist.com/ The BMJ: Leading Medical Journal. Research, Education and Comment https://www.bmj.com/ The Lancet: The best science for better lives - https://www.thelancet.com/ Websites: 1. Basic Science Concepts for Med/VetST Students at Cambridge https://www.biology.cam.ac.uk/undergrads/MedST/Current/Freshers/basic-scienceconcepts 2. TeachMeAnatomy - Making Anatomy Simple - https://teachmeanatomy.info/ 3. Preparing for BMAT - https://www.admissionstesting.org/for-test-takers/bmat/preparingfor-bmat/ 4. British Medical Association - https://www.bma.org.uk/ 5. Wellcome: Home - https://wellcome.org/ 6. Home - Institute of Biomedical Science - https://www.ibms.org/home/ 7. Royal College of General Practitioners - Observe GP - https://rcgp-news.com/t/49LXTB11-A05DSRQUF3/cr.aspx 8. Medic Portal - https://www.themedicportal.com/
Medicine
Course Overviews
Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Science - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01gyd7j Other Activities: Volunteering Placements - https://www.themedicportal.com/application-guide/workexperience/volunteering/ Volunteering Opportunities - https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/exploreroles/doctors/applying-medical-school/gaining-experience-medical-school/volunteeringopportunities
Modern and Medieval Languages Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: French Texts: 1. Albert Camus, L’étranger 2. Françoise Sagan, Bonjour tristesse 3. Joseph Joffo, Un sac de billes French Films: 1. Jean-Luc Godard, A bout de souffle 2. Mathieu Kassovitz, La Haine 3. Laurent Cantet, Entre les murs German Texts: 1. Franz Kafka, Die Verwandlung 2. Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Der Besuch der alten Dame 3. Bernhard Schlink, Der Vorleser German Films: 1. Wolfgang Becker, Good bye, Lenin! 2. Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Das Leben der Anderen 3. Marc Rothemund, Sophie Scholl – Die letzten Tage Italian Texts: 1. Italo Svevo, La coscienca di Zeno 2. Primo Levi, Se questo è un uomo 3. Natalia Ginzburg, Lessico famigliare Italian Films: 1. Vittorio di Sica, Ladri di bicicletta 2. Federico Fellin,i La dolce vita 3. Matteo Gorrone, Gomorrah Russian Texts: 1. Natalia Baranskaia, A week like any other 2. Alexander Pushkin, Any short stories 3. Nikolai Gogol, Revizor Russian Films: 1. Andrey Zvyagintsev, Leviathan 2. Sergei Bodrov, Prisoner of the Mountains 3. Andrei Tarkovskii, Ivan’s childhood
Modern and Medieval Languages Books/Reading Lists: Spanish Texts: 1. Federico García Lorca, La casa de Bernarda Alba 2. Gabriel García Márquez, Crónica de una muerte anunciada 3. Isabel Allende, La casa de los espíritus Spanish Films: 1. Guillermo del Toro, El laberinto del fauno 2. Pedro Almodóvar, Volver 3. Sebastián Leilo, Una mujer fantástica Websites: 1. My HE Plus - Modern Languages - https://myheplus.com/subject/modern-and-medievallanguages 2. Multikultura - http://multikultura.usertest.mws3.csx.cam.ac.uk/ 3. The TLS Languages & Linguistics - https://www.the-tls.co.uk/categories/languagesllnguistics/ 4. ARTE - The European culture TV Channel, free and on demand - https://www.arte.tv/en/ 5. Memrise - Learn a Language: Meet the world - https://www.memrise.com/
Music
Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Cook, Music: A Very Short Introduction 2. Harper-Scott and Samson, An Introduction to Music Studies Journals and Articles: 1. Open Music Library - https://alexanderstreet.com/oml Websites: 1. Faculty of Music Resources for Students https://www.mus.cam.ac.uk/applicants/undergraduate/student-resources 2. My HE Plus - Music - https://myheplus.com/subject/music 3. Royal Academy of Music - https://www.ram.ac.uk/ 4. Discovering Music: Early 20th Century - https://www.bl.uk/20th-century-music 5. The research blog for the Faculty of Music - https://musicatcambridge.wordpress.com/ Videos: 1. Gresham Music Lectures - https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures/?subject=music 2. Faculty of Music: University of Cambridge https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOiKZ8U3pCkvZOaOOEHSjNw Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 3: Composer of the Week https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02nrvd3/episodes/downloads
Natural Sciences & Earth Sciences Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Cambridge Natural Sciences Reading List https://www.natsci.tripos.cam.ac.uk/prospective-students/reading 2. The Feynman Lectures on Physics - https://www.feynmanlectures.caltech.edu/ Journals and Articles: 1. Science News and Science Articles from the New Scientist https://www.newscientist.com/ 2. Young Scientists Journal - https://ysjournal.com/ 3. Educational Magazines - Biological Sciences Review https://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/biologicalsciencesreview 4. Nature Journal - https://www.nature.com/ 5. Symmetry Magazine: Dimensions of Particle Physics https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/ 6. ParticleBites: The High Energy Physics Readers' Digest News https://www.particlebites.com/ 7. The Scientist Magazine - https://www.the-scientist.com/ 8. Scientific American: Science News, Articles and Information https://www.scientificamerican.com/ Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Science - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01gyd7j 2. The Life Scientific - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b015sqc7 3. Naked Scientists Online, Science Podcast and Science Radio Show https://www.thenakedscientists.com/ 4. Science in Action - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p002vsnb
Natural Sciences
Videos 1. The Royal Society https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5MOW8BO3dH38Fo3Rau17KQ/featured 2. Chemistry in the Garden - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EkfdtXUj3U 3. Wothers - http://www.wothers.com/ 4. iBiology - Bringing the World's Best Biology to You - https://www.ibiology.org/ 5. Four - Chemistry: A volatile History - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00qbq7f 6. Programmes categorised as Factual: Science & Nature https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/genres/factual/scienceandnature/player Journals and Articles: 1. Science News and Science Articles from the New Scientist https://www.newscientist.com/ 2. Young Scientists Journal - https://ysjournal.com/ 3. Educational Magazines - Biological Sciences Review https://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/biologicalsciencesreview 4. Nature Journal - https://www.nature.com/ 5. Symmetry Magazine: Dimensions of Particle Physics https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/ 6. ParticleBites: The High Energy Physics Readers' Digest News https://www.particlebites.com/ 7. The Scientist Magazine - https://www.the-scientist.com/ 8. Scientific American: Science News, Articles and Information https://www.scientificamerican.com/ Websites: 1. Things we don't know - https://www.thingswedontknow.com/ 2. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - https://plato.stanford.edu/ 3. BBC Science and Environment News https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science_and_environment 4. Oxford Science Blog - https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/science-blog 5. Isaac Physics - https://isaacphysics.org/ 6. CERN Resources - https://home.cern/resources?topic=1113 7. Mastering Physics - https://mlm.pearson.com/northamerica/masteringphysics/ 8. PhysicsLAB NextTime Questions http://www.physicslab.org/Compilations/NextTime.aspx 9. Isaac Chemistry - https://isaacphysics.org/chemistry 10. Chemistry World - https://www.chemistryworld.com/ 11. Bio Chemistry - https://biochemistry.org/ 12. Prepare for University - Mathematical Chemistry - https://nrich.maths.org/unichem 13. The Royal Society of Chemistry - https://www.rsc.org/ 14. ACD/ChemSketch - https://www.acdlabs.com/resources/freeware/chemsketch/
Psychological & Behavioural Sciences (PBS) Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Blakemore, Inventing Ourselves: The Secret Life of the Teenage Brain 2. Eysenck and Keane, Cognitive Psychology: A Student’s Handbook 3. Damasio, Self comes to mind: constructing the conscious brain 4. Hogg and Vaughan, Essentials of Social Psychology 5. Hrdy, Mothers and Others: The Evolutionary Origins of Mutual Understanding 6. Johnson and de Haan, Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience: An Introduction 7. Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow 8. LeDoux, Synaptic Self: How Our Brains Become Who We Are 9. Pinker, How the Mind Works 10. Sacks, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat 11. Schaffer, Key Concepts in Developmental Psychology 12. Ward, A Student’s Guide to Cognitive Neuroscience Journals and Articles: Nature Human Behaviour - https://www.nature.com/nathumbehav/ Websites: 1. Psychology AZ: Department of Psychology https://www.psychol.cam.ac.uk/study/psychology_a-z Videos:
1. Gresham Lectures: Psychology - https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch/?subcat=psychology Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 4 - All in the Mind https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qxx9/episodes/player
Theology, Religion and Philosophy of Religion Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Faculty of Divinity Introductory Reading - https://www.divinity.cam.ac.uk/studyhere/undergraduate/introductory-reading Websites: 1. Nature Human Behaviour - https://www.nature.com/nathumbehav/ Websites: 1. My HE Plus: Theology - https://myheplus.com/subject/theology 2. Ian Ramsey Centre for Science & Religion - https://www.ianramseycentre.info/ 3. Treasure Archive - https://www.50treasures.divinity.cam.ac.uk/treasure/ 4. Ecclesiastical History Society - https://eccleshistsoc.wordpress.com/ 5. Beginning New Testament Greek - https://www.greek.divinity.cam.ac.uk/ 6. The Religious Studies Project - https://www.religiousstudiesproject.com/ Videos:
1. Gresham Lectures: Religion - https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures/?subject=religion Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Religion https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01gvqlg
Veterinary Medicine Course Overviews
Books/Reading Lists: 1. Basic Science Concepts for Med/VetST Students https://www.biology.cam.ac.uk/undergrads/VetST/Current/Freshers/basic-scienceconcepts Journals and Articles: 1. Science News and Science Articles from New Scientist - https://www.newscientist.com/ Websites: 1. BVA - British Veterinary Association - https://www.bva.co.uk/ 2. I want to be a Vet - Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons https://animalowners.rcvs.org.uk/veterinary-careers/i-want-to-be-a-vet/ Videos: 1. Blue Planet II - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04tjbtx 2. BBC One - Countryfile - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006t0bv Podcasts: 1. BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Science - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01gyd7j 2. Ologies Episodes - https://www.alieward.com/ologies
General Resources for All Subjects Books/Reading Lists: 1. Downing College, Cambridge: Resources Database https://www.discoverdowning.com/resources/ 2. University College, Oxford Staircase 1 Collection - https://www.univ.ox.ac.uk/applying-touniv/staircase12/ 3. Christs College, Cambridge Online Learning Resources https://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/online-learning 4. Homerton College, Cambridge Resources for Prospective Applicants http://www.homerton.cam.ac.uk/homerton.cam.ac.uk/undergraduate/reading 5. Kings College, Cambridge Reading Lists https://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/reading-lists 6. Newnham College, Cambridge, Subject Lists https://www.newn.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduates/subjects/ 7. St Johns College, Cambridge, Resources for Schools - https://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/schools 8. Jesus College, Oxford, Covid-19 Schools Closures: Activities and Resources Guides https://www.jesus.ox.ac.uk/covid-19-schools-closures-activities-resources-guide 9. Oxford University Suggested Reading List https://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/courses/suggested-subject-resources 10. The Bookshelf - Worcester College, Oxford - https://www.worc.ox.ac.uk/applying/accessand-outreach/resources/bookshelf 11. LibreTexts - Free The Textbook - https://www.worc.ox.ac.uk/applying/access-andoutreach/resources/bookshelf Websites: 1. HE+: What do you want to discover today? - https://myheplus.com/ 2. Cambridge Digital Library: University of Cambridge - http://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/ 3. Very Short Introductions: Discover VSIs from Oxford https://www.veryshortintroductions.com/ 4. Oxplore: The Home of Big Questions - https://oxplore.org/ 5. Here ar e450 Ivy League Courses you can take online for free https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/ivy-league-free-online-courses-a0d7ae675869/? fbclid=IwAR0rFx1m66MJSi_i9WzHHalgjecoZ5iMKa0oL-nt2eQnzzbXIOWbh6z4rrY 6. National Geographic - https://www.nationalgeographic.com/ 7. MOOCS - https://www.my-mooc.com/en/ 8. Coursera: Build Skills with Online Courses from Top Institutions https://www.coursera.org/ 9. The Brilliant Club Free Online Resources - https://thebrilliantclub.org/the-scholarsprogramme/for-schools/pupil-resources/
General Resources for All Subjects Video: 1. Cambridge University - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCc5vZEM1MLUzCrg_aZIJdeA 2. Hay Festival Compass - https://www.hayfestival.com/wales/compass 3. Jesus College, Oxford. Seren Summer School Lectures https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrP5or0tZESCZ_hkrXy_o-pj1I6qlq84. Science for the entire Family, Royal Institution - https://www.rigb.org/christmaslectures/watch Podcasts: 1. BBC Sounds Categories- https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/categories 2. BBC In Our Time - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qykl 3. BBC The Forum - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p004kln9/episodes/player 4. BBC The Reith Lectures - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00057m9 5. BBC The Life Scientific - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b015sqc7