Testimonial
Highlight Testimonial from
Dr. John Lacy
Cambridge Natural Sciences
Hello, my name is John. I come from a home where we had little money and only one parent and went to a government (state) school in London. Even so, I became the first generation of my family to go to university - and - not just that - but to one of the greatest universities in the world. Thanks to Pathsmade’s Mentoring Programme (MP), in 2007, I earned a place at Downing College, Cambridge
to read Natural Sciences. While there, I won a college prize for academic performance and was elected as College Scholar – a very high honour.
I graduated from Cambridge and began working as a legal Patent Attorney in central London – which shows that university can lead to a much wider range of careers than just in the subject they study. In my case, I wanted to develop my passion for Physics, so, in 2014, I then went back to university for a Ph.D. in experimental quantum physics at the University of Sussex, where I now work as a Research Fellow in Quantum Technology. My ambition is to become a Physics Professor at a top university and use this position to help other students from all backgrounds to achieve their best.
A Cambridge degree is extremely demanding, especially in how I have to think to solve problems. This ”critical thinking” does not rely on reproducing memorised facts, but requires starting from general principles and working toward a solution through a series of logical steps. I learned this through the MP when, in my first tutorial, I was asked to estimate the number of air molecules in the room. I did not need to know more than my high
school knowledge, but I had to find
Student Testimonials
Below are what students said about our mentoring program:
Claire
Cambridge Computer Science candidate (2014)
The MP taught me what to expect at the interview, how to be confident in putting forward ideas and talk aloud what I am thinking. They provided thorough tutorial sessions to develop my technique for working through maths problems.
Isabel
Cambridge Law candidate (2015)
The Pathsmade team were really friendly and lovely; they made me feel a lot more relaxed about the whole experience (I was a mess at first!). Getting feedback on my performance from the OMS Law tutor was also really helpful as it prepared me for various interview possibilities.
Sarah
Oxford candidate for PPL (2016)
I originally intended to apply for Biomedical Sciences but Insight Education helped me to clarify my interests and passions. I explored interesting topics, developed knowledge in the disciplines of my course, and came to understand the standard of work I had to consistently produce to be successful at Oxford. My preparation for my two (year two) aptitude tests was also invaluable. Thanks so much Insight Education.