MPhil in Education (Research in Second Language Education)

University of Cambridge

The immense range of libraries compares well to other unis. The lack of uni funding for sport is a real shame at times though. The nightlife is good - you can make the most of it with good friends - and the city is generally lovely to walk around, with the benefit of being able to access all the colleges.

I think the best part is the personalised teaching as it really feels like your supervisors are paying you attention and you learn from experts one on one. The city is beautiful and the college system can be really great for the community feel and support from peers and tutors. I would say the worst part can be that it's a small city so nightlife may be less exciting than what you're used to. It's also important to note that the workload is intense but manageable.

Really interesting subject matter, although sometimes a little too much work due to the eight week term structure but aside from this, lots of academic support. Living and eating arrangements are fantastic in addition to sports facilities and there is lots of funding and consideration of well being. The collegiate system really lends itself to being able to socialise, make friends and try new things and is in place so that students don’t have to consider too many other issues when dealing with the considerable workload. As I am an ab I too student, I have studied Spanish from scratch and found that there is plenty of support to enable my progression up to an a level standard, with a variety of classes and speaking lessons to help me improve my language abilities, which I also work on alongside stufy of film and literature, meaning I engage simultaneously with culture. The online learning hasn’t been ideal and at times I would’ve needed classes and meetings in person in order to fully engage and be interested in the subject matter, however given the circumstances the university and departments tried as hard as possible to enable our studies to be in person so that we can experience a year as normal as possible.

Really stressful academically but good preparation and amazing people. Tried a new subject (Russian) and have travelled a lot.

Best thing out of experience has been playing football. Worst things -- stressful and lack of sleep due to essays and deadlines