More than 700 state school students who were given free weekly tutoring by Cambridge University academics following the COVID-19 pandemic saw their A-level grades rise and secured places at top universities – including Cambridge and Oxford – after taking part in a pioneering initiative to tackle educational disadvantage.  

The most engaged of these students – more than 360 – saw their results jump by a grade on average across maths, further maths, physics, chemistry and biology, compared to students from similar backgrounds who did not join the STEM SMART programme. They were more than twice as successful in achieving an A* in maths, around four times as successful in achieving an A* in physics, and around twice as successful in securing an Oxbridge. A total of 80 students from its first two cohorts secured a place at Oxbridge. 

Cambridge’s STEM SMART programme launched in 2021 to help bridge attainment gaps in maths and science A-level subjects, and mitigate educational disruption caused by the pandemic. In total, 848 students joined the first STEM SMART cohort in 2022, and 1,083 joined the second cohort in 2023.

The new data – which compares the outcomes of 1,120 sixth formers from STEM SMART’s first two cohorts with those of around 9,000 demographically matched students who did not – is reported in the first independent UCAS analysis of the programme, which has now been running for four years and has so far welcomed 6,500 students.

Overall, the evaluation shows that STEM SMART students – or ‘STEM SMARTies’ as they have named themselves – were more aspirational, received higher grades, and were more successful at securing places at top universities. And sixth formers from the most deprived backgrounds in the UK saw the biggest average grade boost in their A-levels across maths, further maths, physics, chemistry and biology, with physics students on average achieving a grade higher.

The University of Cambridge launched STEM SMART in response to the real challenges facing many state schools teaching physical sciences, in particular physics. In England alone, there is an estimated national shortage of at least 3,500 physics teachers – with 70% of A-level physics students coming from just 30% of schools – despite nearly 2 million jobs in the UK using physics skills.

Data shows that students from disadvantaged and under-represented groups are awarded proportionally fewer top grades at A-level, and this presents a significant barrier to them entering competitive universities.

As well as supporting sixth formers’ classroom studies, STEM SMART aims to build confidence in students and encourage them to apply for engineering, computer science, biological sciences, or physical sciences (such as physics, chemistry, earth sciences, and materials science) at top universities, including Cambridge.

STEM SMART – which includes weekly online subject specific tutorials with Cambridge academics, and the opportunity to experience university life in Cambridge through a residential combining academic sessions in departments with a stay in a college – is now complementing maths and science teaching in more than 800 schools across the UK. Sixth formers also receive mentoring from current Cambridge University students as part of the 16-month programme. By supporting students to achieve the grades for entry to top university STEM courses, the initiative also aims to boost UK innovation and technology by helping to address skills shortages in STEM subjects.

Jasmine Covell, 18, a first year Natural Sciences undergraduate at King’s College, studied A-levels in biology, chemistry, and maths at college near Middlesbrough. She said: “Oxbridge is not really on people’s radar where I live – most people apply to local universities and commute to save on accommodation costs. I joined the STEM SMART course just thinking it would support me getting good grades, and then I started to realise that I enjoyed doing the work outside the classroom – it really helped challenge me. We were able to submit questions to the Cambridge academics before the tutor sessions, and then in the sessions they would go through it all.

“It definitely helped with catching up on work we’d missed during COVID. I was in Year 9 when the first lockdown happened and we stopped having lessons. We got behind on some of the content, particularly the more advanced stuff, so it was great to get the extra learning through STEM SMART. And visiting Cambridge during the residential stay was the best thing ever – it was seeing the chemistry labs that made me want to apply to Cambridge.” 

Samuel Iranloye, 19, a second-year engineering undergraduate at Churchill College, joined STEM SMART’s first cohort while studying for A-levels in maths, further maths, physics and chemistry in south-east London. He said: “I wasn’t certain that I would apply to Cambridge until I visited as part of STEM SMART; I felt more comfortable having had that experience. We spent every day going to the Cavendish Laboratory with 300 other students on the STEM SMART course, which was useful because you’re able to bounce ideas off each other. The extra tuition also helped consolidate the learning in school. It also helped me when it came to preparing for my university admission tests.”

Physics lecturer Prof Lisa Jardine-Wright, OBE, Co-Director of the STEM SMART programme, and Fellow of Churchill College, said: “This is about levelling the playing field and enabling students from educationally disadvantaged and under-represented backgrounds to access Cambridge and other competitive universities. We’re providing top quality support through subject specific tuition and resources, mentoring and encouragement, and getting students from a B to an A, and from an A to an A*

“STEM SMART was created to address the attainment gap that already existed in the UK, and which was then exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. We are helping to bridge that gap through free, weekly tutoring that would otherwise be unaffordable for A-level students from these backgrounds. STEM SMART has the capacity to support every STEM sixth former in every state school for free.”

Dr Michael Sutherland, Co-Director of STEM SMART, and Senior Tutor at Trinity Hall, said: “STEM SMART is unique in terms of its scale and approach. In just four years, thousands of sixth formers have come through the programme, accessing sustained support throughout their A-levels, and many of them have travelled to Cambridge to stay at one of the colleges and get a taste of student life. Year on year, we’re seeing increased demand for the programme, and it’s clear that it’s raising aspirations and attainment, and having an impact on these students’ lives.”

Professor Bhaskar Vira, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education at the University of Cambridge, said: “As well as supporting sixth formers in realising their true potential, and encouraging more applications to top universities from students who might not otherwise apply, STEM SMART is benefitting the UK as a whole – through the boost it is providing for STEM industries and innovation. Cambridge takes its role as a national university seriously, and I’m delighted that STEM SMART is ultimately helping to address the UK’s skills shortage in science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) subjects.”

Much of the programme is delivered through the Isaac Physics online platform founded by Prof Jardine-Wright and Prof Mark Warner. STEM SMART and Isaac Physics are free to students, following generous support and funding from the University, colleges, The Ogden Trust, Raspberry Pi and previously the Department for Education. They are also being supported philanthropically, and through donations from alumni.

Words: Stephen Bevan
Main picture: Natalie Sloan-Glasberg
Published: 7 April 2025

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