Pembroke College (Cambridge) Students and Applicants

Reply 1060

jjpneed1

2

Anyone know what the maths test at interview is like? Is it basically the same as Trinity's?

Reply 1061

username937760

16

Original post by jjpneed1

Anyone know what the maths test at interview is like? Is it basically the same as Trinity's?

I can help you there; current 1st (2nd in October) year Pembroke mathmo.

So, Pembroke has 2 interviews. The format is this:

Interview 1 - You go into a room with one supervisor, who will ask you Maths questions on the spot with no preparation, and you work through them with their hints/suggestions. They will try to find ones you can't do to see how you respond to hints etc., and they will move on immediately if they see you have got the point of a question.

Interview 2 - You are firstly given a test and taken into a room by yourself where you work on the test for half an hour. When I did it there were four questions; you were not expected to answer them all. I cannot tell you the questions or the types, although from what I am aware it changed last year so you would have a different one to me (easier, in my opinion). It is of a similar style to the Trinity paper and was all pure when I did it.

After that, you then have an interview where a supervisor goes through your work and tries to give you hints at how to do the others - the idea being that the better you pick up on hints and work through it, the better. If you have time, then you will be given more questions in the same vein as interview 1. When I did it 5 minutes at the end were reserved to a slightly more general discussion including warning about the STEP examinations.

Reply 1062

jjpneed1

2

Original post by DJMayes

I can help you there; current 1st (2nd in October) year Pembroke mathmo.

So, Pembroke has 2 interviews. The format is this:

Interview 1 - You go into a room with one supervisor, who will ask you Maths questions on the spot with no preparation, and you work through them with their hints/suggestions. They will try to find ones you can't do to see how you respond to hints etc., and they will move on immediately if they see you have got the point of a question.

Interview 2 - You are firstly given a test and taken into a room by yourself where you work on the test for half an hour. When I did it there were four questions; you were not expected to answer them all. I cannot tell you the questions or the types, although from what I am aware it changed last year so you would have a different one to me (easier, in my opinion). It is of a similar style to the Trinity paper and was all pure when I did it.

After that, you then have an interview where a supervisor goes through your work and tries to give you hints at how to do the others - the idea being that the better you pick up on hints and work through it, the better. If you have time, then you will be given more questions in the same vein as interview 1. When I did it 5 minutes at the end were reserved to a slightly more general discussion including warning about the STEP examinations.

Thanks a lot. Can I ask what you mean by 'warning about the STEP examinations'?

Reply 1063

username937760

16

Original post by jjpneed1

Thanks a lot. Can I ask what you mean by 'warning about the STEP examinations'?

Basically just making sure all applicants know they will have to sit STEP if they get an offer, and that it is not an easy examination so to make sure to work for it.

Reply 1064

WannabeStudent15

So what's the accommodation like at the college, I hear it can be variable? Would I most likely be living off-college after the first year? And are bathroom facilities easily accessible from the rooms? Thanks!

Reply 1065

Theflyingbarney

15

Original post by WannabeStudent15

So what's the accommodation like at the college, I hear it can be variable? Would I most likely be living off-college after the first year? And are bathroom facilities easily accessible from the rooms? Thanks!

Questions in order:

(1) The accomodation quality can be a bit variable, and it's probably not as great as it is at some other colleges, but the flipside of that is that it's some of the cheapest in Cambridge, and what you get is still pretty good (and much better than you'll see at pretty much any other university). Certainly all of the first-year accomodation is fairly homogenous and all pretty good. In the later years people are more spread out and there are a few rooms that are a bit naff/small, but pretty much every college has something similar and there aren't any that are unreasonably crap. And, obviously, the smaller/worse rooms are a lot cheaper - I think our cheapest rooms this year were below £70 a week.

(2) Most people do live out of college for 2nd year at least, but the college owns a lot of houses in the city and there's very little that's particularly far from the town centre. Plus, the load that's furthest out is actually very close to the arts faculties on the Sidgwick site, and a lot closer to the sports pitches as well if that's your thing (plus again, they calculate distance out in prices and so you get a lot more room for your money). The majority of the college's houses though are very close to college, and the quality is pretty similar to a lot of the rooms in college (with the bonus of better cooking facilities). With the way the ballot system works there's actually a reasonable chance you'll be able to move back into college in your third year, or at least into one of the closest houses, and we also have a 'scholars' ballot' where if you get a first for any year, you get to pick room first and get rooms opened up to choose that the normal population don't (usually big rooms or split sets in the nicer parts of college).

(3) Ease of bathroom access depends largely on where you live. In the newer freshers' accomodation in Foundress Court you'll tend to have a bathroom a few doors at most down your corridor. In the other freshers' staircases they'll probably be on a different floor since there are no corridors as such (e.g. in my first year there were toilets on each floor of my staircase and showers in the basement). It varies similarly in other accomodation but it's never a massive trek.

Reply 1066

llamabubble

10

I've got 2 questions :smile:

1. I'm applying for HSPS this year (2015 entry). However I am a little younger than others and I will be only 16 by October 2015. I was born in December 1998. Will my age be a problem?
2. I was a part time student and I did A Levels only in the afternoons. In the morning I was studying at a Chinese senior high school. I wasn't able to complete all AS units. Now I have an A* for maths but I have only done unit 1 for economics, further maths, physics and chemistry an I have dropped chemistry so this doesn't really count. I only have grades for 9 units now. Will this bring me any disadvantage? If so, what can I do?
Thank you! :biggrin:

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Reply 1067

iristhedutch

When you're living out of college in the second year, do people tend to self cater, or still go to the college for meals? Do you still pay the kitchen fixed charge?

Reply 1068

alex_hk90

19

Original post by iristhedutch

When you're living out of college in the second year, do people tend to self cater, or still go to the college for meals? Do you still pay the kitchen fixed charge?

It varies but when I lived out in 2nd and 3rd year (at Lensfield Road), we cooked most nights - I only ate on college for Formal or Brunch. :h:

Reply 1069

SeftonStalag

9

Just went to the Pembroke open day today, as a potential Eng Lit applicant is was terrific, anyone else went? It's such a lovely college :smile:

Reply 1070

username1042689

21

I visited Pembroke at the last open day. Beautiful college, famed for having the best food in the uni :tongue:

I'm an Eng Lit applicant too! Are you on the cam applicants 2015 thread? :smile:

Reply 1071

SeftonStalag

9

Original post by paradoxicalme

I visited Pembroke at the last open day. Beautiful college, famed for having the best food in the uni :tongue:

I'm an Eng Lit applicant too! Are you on the cam applicants 2015 thread? :smile:

No I'm not!! What's the entry requirements? lol

Reply 1072

Theflyingbarney

15

Definitely the best college in Cambridge :wink:

Original post by paradoxicalme

I visited Pembroke at the last open day. Beautiful college, famed for having the best food in the uni :tongue:

I might have given you a tour :tongue:

Reply 1073

captainkenway

I didn't go to an open day because I'm international, but I'm also an Eng Lit applicant for Pembroke!

Reply 1074

Boy_wonder_95

15

Whats the accomodation like in Foundress Court?

Reply 1075

alex_hk90

19

Original post by Boy_wonder_95

Whats the accomodation like in Foundress Court?

It's alright - kind of like a hotel but with no en-suites. Good facilities for laundry, gym, music, printing, etc. I spent my first year there back in the day. :moon:

It was good. :yep:

Reply 1076

Boy_wonder_95

15

Original post by alex_hk90

It's alright - kind of like a hotel but with no en-suites. Good facilities for laundry, gym, music, printing, etc. I spent my first year there back in the day. :moon:

It was good. :yep:

How far away are the bathrooms from the rooms? And typically how many people are they shared between? Do you happen to know why aren't any rooms en-suite? seems odd for a fairly new building. Thanks.

Reply 1077

username937760

16

Original post by Boy_wonder_95

Whats the accomodation like in Foundress Court?

It's the newest accommodation in college - reasonably spacious, well furnished, close to plenty of facilities etc. Unfortunately I did not live in Foundress first year (will be one of the 2nd years still living there in college this year though!) so have no clue regarding showers. In the other accommodation I have lived in (New Court) it was 6 to each shower and I'd imagine its fairly similar.