Maths and Computer Science Study Day welcomes 69 pupils to St John’s

Our Study Days offer high-achieving Year 12 pupils at non-selective state schools an opportunity to experience higher level study in their chosen subject. Participants at our study days attend talks and workshops led by tutors, find out more about the course at Oxford and what tutors are looking for, and meet current St John’s students. You can find out more about our Study Days here.

The day began with a welcome talk from Dr James Munro, Maths Admissions and Outreach Coordinator, covering the Maths and Computer Science courses on offer at Oxford, followed by an example interview between a current St John’s student and our tutors. Pupils then attended Academic Taster Sessions from our fantastic Maths and Computer Science tutors, Professor Stuart White, Professor Jan Obloj and Professor Stefan Kiefer, giving pupils a glimpse of student life at Oxford.

After a delicious lunch in Hall and an opportunity to chat to other participants, pupils attended a workshop session on the MAT aptitude test and interviews, run by St John’s tutor Dr Jane Coons. The session included a mock interview session, which proved particularly helpful for participants. After a tour of St John’s guided by current students, our students joined tutors, including Professor Chris Beem to lead a Q&A session with pupils. The day concluded with tea, coffee, cake and a chance for pupils to ask any last questions.

We received some wonderful feedback from the participants, with 96% of respondents saying they feel better prepared to study this subject at Oxford and 71% saying they would apply to study the subject at Oxford. Other lovely feedback included:

• “I really enjoyed talking with the current students and hearing about their experiences at Oxford, this happened throughout the day but mostly at the lunch session.”
• “The example interview was great, as it removed all of my preconceived (and incorrect) notions about what an Oxford interview would be like.”
• “I really enjoyed taking part in the MAT and Interview sessions. Collaborating with current students at Oxford and working together to further investigate these problems was quite enticing for me.”
• “I would say that my favourite part of the day was the MAT preparation and practice questions we did with current students as well as the mock interviews.”

A big thank you to all the tutors, students and staff who made the event such a success!