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Eleven students heading to Oxbridge

Eleven students from Gower College Swansea have been offered a place to study at Oxford or Cambridge University in 2019.

These students are all following the Oxbridge Programme at the Gorseinon Campus, which aims to provide the best possible preparation for students aiming to progress to Oxford, Cambridge and other Russell Group universities.

The students are:

  • Erin Ames (formerly Pontardulais Comprehensive School) offered a place to read Veterinary Medicine at Churchill College, Cambridge
  • Charlotte Belton (formerly Penyrheol Comprehensive School) offered a place to read Mathematics at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
  • Georgia Charles (formerly Pentrehafod School) offered a place to read Geography at Worcester College, Oxford
  • Daniel Duffy (formerly Bishop Vaughan) offered a place to read History at Hertford College, Oxford
  • Esma Gunduz (formerly Bishop Gore School) offered a place to read Education, Psychology and Learning at Downing College, Cambridge
  • Joe Mayford (formerly Bishop Gore School) offered a place to read English at St Catharine’s College, Cambridge
  • Susanna Power (formerly Bishopston Comprehensive School) offered a place to read Mathematics at Queen’s College, Cambridge
  • Elli Rees (formerly Ysgol Y Strade) offered a place to read Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic at Clare College, Cambridge
  • Emma Rowley (formerly Ysgol Bryngwyn School) offered a place to read Linguistics at Magdalene College, Cambridge
  • Zachary Spackman (formerly Penyrheol Comprehensive School) offered a place to read History at Jesus College, Oxford
  • Haolin ‘Jonathan’ Wu (formerly River Valley High School) offered a place to read Land Economy at Christ’s College, Cambridge

“What is particularly pleasing this year is the variety in terms of where these students have come from and where they are heading next,” says Oxbridge lead tutor Felicity Padley. “Here we have 11 students from nine schools applying for 11 different Colleges to study nine different subjects. I cannot remember another year when there was such a broad range of schools involved or so many very diverse subjects and career paths being chosen.”

The College’s Oxbridge Programme incorporates weekly tutorials, visits to both Oxford and Cambridge universities, preparation interviews with Oxbridge alumni and local academic professionals, an aptitude test and assessment preparation for relevant subjects.

Gower College Swansea is also – at the invitation of the University of Cambridge – the only FE College or State School in Wales to run a HE+ programme. Supported by the Welsh Government’s Seren Programme, HE+ aims to develop academic skills and inspire students to aim as high as possible when making their university choices.

“In terms of progression to university, Gower College Swansea students are very much bucking the trend,” says Deputy Principal Nick Brazil.

“In 2018, 1,082 of our students applied to university which was a 9% increase on the previous year and, of those, 942 students were accepted. This acceptance rate of 87% is even more impressive when compared with the UK rate which is 77%. We are also really pleased that our students are so successful when applying to the UK’s top universities – last year, just over 200 won places at prestigious Russell Group universities.”


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