Trinity Law Residential

By Rosie Sharkey, Schools Liaison Assistant, Trinity College

Trinity College welcomed forty-three Year 12 students for a Law Residential Open Day on 3rd-4th July.

Participants came from thirty-two different schools across the country, and over a third of the visiting students had no parental tradition of continuing to higher education. All were high-achieving students with excellent GCSE results and were predicted to achieve the grades needed to apply to competitive universities such as Cambridge. Many were already committed to studying Law at university, while others were new to the subject and hoped that the experience of intense study sessions with Law academics and students at Trinity would help them decide whether Law was for them.

Dr Matt Dyson, who led the Law Residential, threw participants in at the deep end with a session on ‘Feral Wrongdoers’. Introducing the concept of tort law through a scenario involving a kleptomaniac cat, Dr Dyson encouraged participants to examine the statutory material (the Animals Act 1971) and debate the issues.

Alice, from Brockenhurst College, commented that: ‘it fascinated me that such a small, insignificant issue could involve such complex laws.’

For many participants it was their first encounter with reading statutes, and the experience of university-style teaching was also new and exciting: Ruby, from Aylesbury High, said: ‘it was the closest experience I’ve ever had to a real lecture and it was really interesting and thought provoking.’ Fahmida, from Bushey Meads School, thought this session ‘gave a real insight on what to expect during university lessons at Cambridge.’

After lunch, Trinity Law fellows Prof. Catherine Barnard, Prof. Sarah Worthington and Ms. Louise Merrett joined the group and discussed their experiences of working in varied fields of the Law. Lindi, from Hills Road Sixth Form College, said that her favourite part of the day was ‘listening to the fellows talk about their area of specialism and their pieces of advice’ for aspiring applicants.

The group then debated the law on criminal damage and drafted their own statute by working from first principles. James, from Sheringham High School, commented that: ‘although both sessions were challenging at first, by the end I felt that I had not only gone through a process of understanding for each topic, but widened my general knowledge of how the law works’.

Participants spent the day with four recent Law graduates from Trinity: Luka Krsljanin, Joe Sampson, Amy Ludlow and Sivanti Devakumar. Sally, from Sir John Lawes School, ‘found that speaking to the students gave us a real interpretation of what Cambridge is really like. They told us about the hard work but also that it was the most enjoyable experience of their life.’ Priya from North London Collegiate School thought that it was great to see ‘that Cambridge students are normal!’

As well as the interactive debates, participants also heard about the process of applying to Cambridge: sessions led by Dr Dyson and Rosie Sharkey, Trinity’s Schools Liaison Assistant, focused on personal statements, the differences between Oxford and Cambridge Law courses, the importance of exploring the subject through wider reading, and interviews. Lauren from East Norfolk Sixth Form particularly ‘enjoyed being able to get honest advice on personal statements and interviews from past experiences.’

After an intense day on Tuesday, the participants had free time on Wednesday morning to explore the city and visit other colleges, before heading over to the Sidgwick Site at lunchtime for a tour of the Law Library and an afternoon of lectures at the Law Faculty.

Feedback from the participants was overwhelmingly positive, and the Trinity students and Fellows found it really enjoyable to meet so many bright and interested future students.

For Roma, from Aylesbury High, ‘the actual experience of staying overnight and tasting meals’ was one of the most useful aspects of the Residential, as it gave a real feel  for student life in Cambridge.

The social side of university can often be just as daunting for students as the academic aspects, but Emily from East Norfolk Sixth Form said that the Residential had made her realize that it’s important ‘just to be yourself, and that when you go to uni, like we did, you just make friends and you get on fine.’

Several participants have said that they plan to apply to Cambridge next year to study Law; Alice, from Brockenhurst College, found that: ‘talking to the lecturers and students made me realize that I should apply to Cambridge, and abolished all the myths that I had heard about the university. Essentially, by attending this residential I have learnt to be far more confident in myself.’

Trinity College hopes to run a similarly successful Law Residential next summer.

• Click here for more information on studying law at Cambridge.