Tenacity and learning to ‘redirect’: a first-year’s journey to Cambridge

One of our first year students, Dineshtga (Girton), sits down with our Schools Liaison Coordinator and gives us a candid and in-depth perspective on her journey to Cambridge.

Q: So tell me a little bit about yourself:

I am a home fee-paying EU student, as I have lived in London most of my life since childhood, and I have been state school educated throughout my life. I am the first in my family to go to university and the only one out of my four brothers to attend university. I was initially dissuaded from going to university due to the financial costs of studying at an undergraduate level and therefore decided to take a couple of gap years where I worked full-time. I was grateful that I travelled to Spain and Egypt before the pandemic started. I can therefore share some advice on taking a gap year (or more) before studying Law at Cambridge.

Q: What subjects did you study at A-level (or equivalent), and why did you pick them at the time?

At A-levels, I picked History, Sociology and Economics. My A-level choices were different from what I had planned out, and I wanted to do more STEM-based subjects and decided I would study Maths and Further Maths. However, I am happy that I did not pick these subjects, as I realised how terrible I was at the subject during my AS Level, and was glad to drop it in the second year.

I also wanted to study French for some time, as I thought I might want to complete a languages degree in the future. However, I decided against it, as I did not think I was good enough to speak the language and thought I would struggle to study it for A-levels.

I decided early on that I was going to study Economics. I chose the subject because I thought it sounded cool and because it is a unique subject that not all schools teach to A-level students. I wanted to try something new and decided Economics was the best option, even though I struggled at first to understand the concepts. I enjoyed the subject as it was challenging, and it pushed me out of my comfort zone, trying to understand data and graphs.

I picked Sociology at A-levels, as I studied it at GCSEs, and I really enjoyed the topics I learnt. It was one of my favourite A-level subjects, as it was interesting to find out about the debate between different theories views on social aspects.

I picked History as a last-minute option. As I mentioned above, I intended to study Further Maths. However, the school I joined at sixth form said I needed an A* to take the subject at A-level, which I did not have. I did not know which subject to pick, and one of the staff members suggested I take English Literature. I did not want to pick English Literature as I did not enjoy learning it at GCSEs. Then after some discussions, I decided to pick History. I am so happy that I chose History, as I learnt about different topics, with the British Empire being my favourite topic from the A-level course. Teachers encouraged me to take my own view, especially in the second year, and I flourished as a person by talking about my opinions. I am surprised even to this date that I got an A* for criticising the British Empire in my exam paper, but it was so worth it. The coursework was an added benefit, and I will touch on this more later.

Q: What type of school did you attend?

I attended a state school. I started at a Catholic primary and secondary school. I have to say I did not enjoy the culture at the school, as I felt they were outdated and did not enjoy the way we were taught. Our school had a banding system, which made some people internalise that they were not good enough, as they were placed in the lower band. Surprisingly, those in the higher band received the most support for their work, whilst students in the lower band were neglected. Despite being placed in the lower band, I am happy that I managed to ignore the labels attached to me and tried my best to get support even if the odds were against me. As a result, I did not get the best GCSE grades, but I did better than the average GCSE grades for my school for 2016.

I decided to move schools, as I felt disrespected at my secondary school and knew that I would be stopped from achieving my goals if I stayed. I decided to move to the well-known Brampton Manor Academy. I was lucky to get a place at the school, following a 5-minute interview with a senior staff member. I told them from day 1 I was interested in applying to Oxbridge, which had been my goal since I was 14. I know the process is much harder, as it is oversubscribed compared to when I attended the sixth form. Here, I was pushed academically, which I enjoyed as it was the first time someone believed in my academic capabilities. I ended up leaving with A*A*A, which allowed me to take a couple of gap years.

Q: How did you become interested in Law as a subject?

My interest in Law as a subject began in year 10. I was part of the BLD Foundation’s ‘Today’s Children, Tomorrow’s Lawyer’ programme, and as part of the programme, my teacher invited a couple of students to an open day and me to Clifford Chance. This was the first time I was exposed to a commercial setting, and my interest in Law sparked from this event as I decided Law was the right choice for me. However, I do have to say Law as a job is different from Law as a university subject, so please be careful when writing your personal statement. If you can, I would suggest that you do not write about wanting to be a solicitor in the future for your main reason as to why you want to study Law at university, as you do not need to study Law to practice as a future solicitor or barrister. I will give more tips later. My interest in the Law became more apparent when my barrister had to fight a case on my behalf. For me it was interesting to see how a court works, and some of the cases fought in a Magistrates Court. Again, please be careful when citing your desire to become a barrister for why you want to study Law. These two events are personal to me, and I wanted to be honest about what attracted me to Law as a subject.

Nonetheless, I had a clear idea from secondary school that I wanted to pursue a law degree, and it is okay if you do not know what you want to study at university. You will find out at the right time, and there is no rush to have everything figured out. I decided that I would gain further exposure to Law as a university subject by taking on super curriculars at sixth form.

Q: How did you develop your interest in Law and your super curriculars?

I was very proactive at sixth form to learn more about Law as a subject. My sixth form advised me to apply for the Sutton Trust Pathways to Law programme. This is a two-year programme to learn more about the legal profession. However, they also gave us exposure to Law from an academic perspective. I attended mock lectures at the London School of Economics (LSE) as part of the programme. I also participated in a law summer school at Warwick to gain insight into Law at university. I was assigned LSE as my university, and I am grateful that I was given this university. This is because I gained access to their famous library, which helped me a lot when writing my History coursework, as I was able to conduct my research from the books I borrowed, which I would not have been able to do otherwise. I also received an LSE student mentor, which was handy to ask questions about university life.

I also took part in a couple of initiatives from Big Voice London . The charity gave me an insight into the legal system, which gave me a foundation in understanding the Law at university life. Firstly, I took part in the Model Law Commission, where I gained exposure to the work of the Law Commission in trying to reform laws. I did not understand the importance of this initiative at the time, but studying Law now has helped me understand how the Law Commission makes recommendations to change the law to tackle some of the problems faced in the criminal justice system. However, they also attempt to make reforms in other areas of the Law. Secondly, I took part in the mooting competition. A moot court competition simulates a court hearing in which participants analyse a problem, research the relevant law, prepare written submissions, and present an oral argument. Mooting is common amongst law students at university, so gaining early exposure was great. It boosted my confidence knowing some of the ways to best prepare for a moot, and I ended up getting into the competition’s semi-finals, which is an excellent achievement at 16. I participated in the Cuppers Moot [here at Cambridge] earlier in the academic year. I will try taking part in the Fledglings Moot, as it is the perfect way to do basic legal research and helps you understand key legal concepts. You can also develop public speaking skills, which is a bonus. Finally, I took part in their ‘Introduction to the Legal System Project’, where I wrote a report on the Law of joint participation and the Supreme Court case of R v Jogee [2016]. I was chosen to be 1 of 3 finalists to present my report at the Supreme Court to the barrister who worked on the case, making it one of my key achievements. I am lucky that I participated in these programmes in the sixth form and would highly recommend taking advantage of these opportunities.

Thirdly, I would highly recommend reading books such as What about Law and Letters to a Law Student. This is a great starting point, especially as most opportunities I have mentioned are usually only offered to students living in London. They gave me a taste for what the study of Law entails helped me write my personal statement. I spoke about one of the cases I read and gave my opinion on what I thought of the judgment, backed up with articles I had read to support my argument.

I also was lucky to participate in a 2-day law residential at Selwyn College; it gave me an introduction to a law study at Cambridge. I would highly recommend participating in summer schools with the Sutton Trust or UNIQ as you gain a mini insight into your subject area of choice and get to experience life at that university for a week. It usually involves a week packed with events from mock lectures to social events.

Finally, if you can, I would advise applying to work experience. Whilst this is not essential, I would suggest doing this now so you can start building up your network. It is also a great way to experience life in the commercial world. Linklaters have a virtual work experience for 16–18-year-olds, which is a good starting point. I would suggest applying directly to law firms with Prime, although some programmes like Pathways to Law also offer guaranteed work experience. I was lucky to gain three law firm work experiences that now when I write my CV, I struggle to pick one of them to talk about, as they were also such great work experiences.

Q: What skills did your education background give you that you think helped you prepare to study Law?

I gained essay writing skills, which are essential for a law degree. Although there are no A-level requirements, having essay-based subjects has helped me structure my answers and make arguments critically. As Law is an essay-based subject, it would be great to have these skills to give you a head start, although this is not necessary.

The coursework allowed me to develop basic research skills, which have been helpful for me in conducting legal research for my law degree. However, you will be taught how to conduct legal research using LexisNexis and Westlaw, so don’t worry if your subject does not have a coursework element.

I would also say time management and organisation skills are vital skills I learned that I have to apply daily with my law degree constantly.

Q: Did you worry about your subject choice when applying to Cambridge? If so, was it warranted? Did you feel it affected questions you were asked in the interview, etc? Did you have preconceived notions about Cambridge? Where they correct/incorrect?

I was worried about Law when applying to Cambridge. I assumed you needed to have legal knowledge which needed to be demonstrated at the interview. But that is further away from the truth. Interviewers are looking at your thought process rather than technical aspects of the Law. Don’t worry if you get things wrong. The interviewer will likely guide you to think about various issues, and if you can stand your ground at the start and work with what they have suggested, this will help you stand out from the crowd. Please don’t be stubborn and stick to your argument when you cannot add anything else and try to acknowledge the points made by the interviewer.

I thought Cambridge only accepted people from fee-paying schools and that you must look and act in a certain way to be accepted. This is not true, as I am furthest away from the private school student. However, there still is a problem with the university accepting higher rates from students from a fee-paying background. However, the university is working on this to make it fairer for all candidates to be accepted on merit rather than from a privileged background. Diversity is also a problem. There are not a lot of ethnic minorities in my course or Cambridge, and having lived in a multicultural borough in London, It was a cultural shock to see the difference. I knew it would be like this, but it has been hard sometimes to express my culture. There is a long way to go, but the university has acknowledged and is working on this problem.

Q: What was your experience of the admissions process? The interview? The CLT? How did you choose your college and why?

The admissions process can be long. I got rejected the first two times when I applied to Cambridge but got accepted on my third attempt. I have no regrets about applying three times, as taking my gap years was the best thing I could have done at the time. I gained a lot of life skills that I would not have been able to do if I had gone straight to university, so I am happy that I got rejected. I do not see it as a failure but a redirection to focus on myself by taking gap years.

Nonetheless, I enjoyed the interview process as I could express my personality whilst also stepping out of my comfort zone. It took some time for me to get used to thinking aloud, which is something the interviewers look for, but I did well and was more confident by my second attempt. In my feedback, I was told I was a strong candidate, and if they had another spot available, they would have given it to me, which prompted me to apply for the third time. At the time of my interview, I did not realise I had a hidden disability that could have impacted my performance. Still, nonetheless, I am happy to study at Cambridge right now.

The CLT is a bit tricky. I would say you would need to do a bit of reading externally, as you will be asked on a relevant topic. For example, I was asked about the limit on free speech, and I remember this was at the time an ex-Israeli soldier visited Warwick University, which created some uproar. I would say take time to practice writing on various issues, as 60 minutes is not a long time and flies by quickly.

I did not know how to choose my college initially, so I decided on Girton, a college known for its law alumni. It makes me happy to study at the same place as Lady Hale and Lady Arden, and being the first women’s college in the UK also added to my interest in studying Law at Girton.

Q: What was your first-year experience like? What do you enjoy most about what you are studying? What challenges have arisen? How have you dealt with them?

I am enjoying it, although it is tricky. I am still trying to get used to the study of Law at an academic level, but I love the intellectual stimulation I get from the subject.

·Q: What do you do in your free time? How do you find balance with your studies? Do your extracurriculars make you a better law student in any way?

In my free time, I dance. I am a professional belly dancer and recently set up the Cambridge University Belly Dance Society, where I teach weekly beginner classes on Friday evenings. It’s a great way to keep me active, but sharing my passion with members is a bonus.

I would say it has helped me to take a break from my studies. Although I learn by teaching, dancing has helped me become a better law student. I realised I understood the Law more by pretending to teach others what I know more straightforwardly. In my opinion, this is a good way of testing my understanding and helps me understand areas in which I have gaps, helping me guide my future study sessions.

Q: What are your future plans?

I am not sure yet. Although, I may end up practising law as a solicitor. This is due to gaining insight from my previous work experiences, but also attending recent sessions with law firms have increased my interest in the legal profession.

Q: What advice would you give other students like yourself hoping to apply to Law? What advice would you give yourself now if you were applying?

I would say not to stress out. Try your best and have answers prepared for questions like why Law and why Cambridge. Practice writing essays in timed conditions, as it will be beneficial when taking the CLT. Make the most of the opportunities available and remember there is a life outside of your studies. If you end up being rejected by Cambridge, please don’t think you have no purpose in life. Things happen for a reason and treat this failure as a redirection. There are other fantastic universities you could attend, and you may end up exploring another avenue, such as taking a gap year, which you would not have thought of. Good luck with your applications, and I hope you can take something away from my post.