Testimonials

Below are some of the things that students have submitted to our anonymous feedback over the years.

"I have never felt more welcome in a classroom environment."

"The Summer School was the most amazing experience run by such lovely people which made me come to actually really like STEP questions (removing a lot of the fear) and allowed me to make new friends as well as get a taster for university life!"

"The summer school was the best three days of life. If you love maths, this is for you"

"Going to the STEP summer school allows you not only to learn and improve STEP skills, but also to meet so many people like you - it's really nice to be able to meet other girls who like maths."

"Attending the summer school was the most useful thing I could have done to prepare for STEP."

"It was really nice to be able to talk about maths with other people who were also passionate about it. I feel it has made me much better prepared to sit STEP and would recommend it to anyone. I really enjoyed it!"

"I feel more confident in my abilities and no longer fear the STEP exam."

"The STEP programme provided me with the opportunity to experience and learn what STEP is like. I also discovered that the opportunities that a maths degree could provide me with are diverse and interesting to me."

"It gave me a better perspective on what the STEP exams will be like and helped me prepare myself better for them."

"Quality of teaching was fantastic. We got to work through different problems collaboratively, which I don't always have the opportunity to do in Further Maths lessons. Living in college was great."

"Truly valuable experience. Provides a really good insight into STEP."

"It's nice. You'll make at least a friend - going to game night you'll feel like you're with your friends. It'll be hard but don't panic. We're all getting there slowly."

"I found the summer school really informative and it taught me more about STEP."

"This summer school is for anyone who loves maths - highly recommend!"

"I definitely recommend this experience! I was able to learn a lot and meet likeminded people and one thing I appreciated was being able to talk through maths problems with others in a supportive environment."

"After the three day program I gained problem solving and critical thinking skills, and actually enjoyed the program."

"Very inspiring. Encourages you to work harder, eases the idea of taking STEP, and prepares you for the idea of training for STEP."

"All the tutors were incredibly friendly and patient whilst guiding you through problems. I've definitely gained so much more knowledge in the proof aspect of maths at university. Would highly recommend."

"The summer school is a great opportunity for anyone doing STEP. Would highly recommend."

"It was a really useful experience to have before applying and gave me a good insight into the whole uni experience."

"It was fun, exciting, and massively improved my confidence in STEP."

"I was really scared about attending my first summer school, but everyone was so welcoming and it was really nice meeting so many others so interested in maths."

"A fantastically busy experience, with friendly teachers. I found it a great way of understanding the college system and guage my fit in the education style."

"I had the best time and I now feel more confident in tackling STEP questions. Everyone was so friendly and made me love maths even more!"

"Really increased my confidence in myself, especially as a woman in maths."

"I found the proof session on the first day useful as it helped me start producing higher quality answers for proofs and ‘show that’ questions. Again, I enjoyed learning the different tools necessary to be able to continue to improve my work independently"

"the mathematical writing sessions were super helpful as I'd never really had any guidance on that before!"

"I really enjoyed the experience and found it very helpful and motivating."

"I really enjoyed the course, and learnt a lot from it."

"I really enjoyed the experience and now feel more confident on how I can work towards improving my problem solving skills improving on STEP style questions."

"great opportunity to build skills that will help you when preparing for STEP, especially if you won't have much help from school"

"I had an absolutely fantastic time on the Murray Edwards STEP Summer school. It was invaluable to be able to spend a few days doing maths with a like-minded group of girls, and great to meet others who have similar plans and interests to myself. Having the opportunity to experience the supervision style of teaching on offer at Cambridge, see inside Murray Edwards College, and talk to current undergraduates about their own experiences was extremely beneficial, and has really boosted my confidence with regards to applying to Cambridge."

"This summer school has really helped give me an insight into what studying maths at Cambridge would be like- especially through staying at a college and being taught in a supervision style."

"I had really little knowledge about STEP and the admissions process before this summer school, but I can honestly say that I understand so much more now, and I'm also more aware of what to expect in STEP"

"I had a really great time, and now feel more informed as to how to tackle the step problems"
 

"I really enjoyed it and it has made a lasting impression on me."
 

"all the staff members (including the porters) and helpers were all really friendly and I feel like I’ve learnt a lot from this experience."
"I found it really useful and definitely feel like I’m approaching STEP questions in a better way. It was also really lovely staying with a group of girls who like maths (a big novelty... I’m used to being the only girl in my class!) and the accommodation was amazing - it felt like a very fancy hotel!"
 

"It was just pretty great. Better than the other maths events that I’ve been on"

"I really enjoyed being challenged in the workshops."

"I really enjoyed the tutorials - it was very satisfying being able to go back over questions I’d struggled with and find that I could then understand it. I also liked that we weren’t just told the answer, but given hints and guidance on how to find it ourselves." 

"The workshops and supervisions were very useful and it was particularly helpful to have the opportunity to go over questions in groups of 1-2 students with a supervisor." 

"The very last talk I found it very inspiring and it gave me a new perspective that I think will really help with my mentality moving forward with my studies. I also liked the supervisions I found that it was easier to ask about things I was unsure during them rather than in a bigger group." 

"The supervisions were my favourite aspect of the summer school because it was really helpful to be able to work through the problems I had found more difficult and the small groups meant I was confident enough to put forward my ideas" 

"going through some of the really hard questions with someone else, even if it wasn’t one of the helpers was a really nice thing to do."

"The summer school was a great experience and showed me that Cambridge isn’t the snobby environment that I had imagined and that Murray Edwards is somewhere I would fit in. The classes gave me a good overview of the skills required for STEP. The problem sets were challenging but there was a lot of support available and I was able to make progress, so I learnt a lot. By the end of the school I knew where my strengths were and what I most needed to work on, so I was in a good position to begin STEP preparation.”