Pembroke Welcomes Rochdale and Bury Students for Month-Long Summer School

Over the month of July, 260 secondary school students from around the world experienced undergraduate life at Pembroke. The Oxbridge Academic Program is run by Worldstrides, who specialise in providing educational experiences outside the classroom. Following a partnership formed last year between Rochdale Development Agency and Pembroke College, a number of pupils from across Rochdale and Bury were invited to attend the summer school this July.

Pembroke’s partnership with Rochdale Development Agency aims to provide academic engagement for the most able pupils across Rochdale, Heywood and Middleton. Read more about the partnership here. This summer school was an opportunity for pupils to engage with new academic ideas, to be challenged in their subjects, and to immerse themselves in the Oxbridge experience, with various social activities designed to give a taste of Oxford life.

Parents of Rochdale students who took part have remarked that the experience left them with “a real feeling of confidence in his own abilities, reassurance that he has the academic capabilities and he has made friends with other students from all over the world” and “an insight into life at a leading university and a chance to grow in confidence away from home but in a safe and inspiring environment.”

Dr Peter Claus, Pembroke Access Fellow and Director of OxNet and CredOx shares: “I am delighted to see this initiative as part of a pipeline from the North West that may lead to an Oxford undergraduate place, but which might also lead back to smart graduates taking up the growing opportunities that are being created in the area. This ‘virtuous cycle’ must begin early and is ably supported by our OxNet Youth Scholars Director, Mr Chris Dobbs, and an ever-strengthening collaboration with both Worldstrides and the Rochdale Development Agency.”

Read more at Rochdale Online and the Bury Times.