Students from Trinity College, Cambridge have been touring schools in Milton Keynes on their 'Access Bus' to encourage teenagers to achieve their potential in life and to explain the options available to them when they leave school.

The two-day Access Bus tour was organised by the Trinity College Students' Union and involved 12 first and second-year undergraduate volunteers, studying a range of arts and science subjects. It was funded by Trinity College, which is 'linked' with Milton Keynes local education authority and works closely with schools and colleges in that area.

The Trinity College volunteers visited five comprehensive schools in total and met students from a wide range of age groups and abilities, from Year 10s (14 to 15-year-olds) preparing for their GCSEs to Year 12s (16 to 17-year-olds) considering applying to Oxford or Cambridge this October.

The sessions varied according to the age and ambitions of the school students involved, but included a workshop challenging their preconceptions about university and Cambridge by asking them to guess which celebrities were graduates and, if so, where they had studied.

Other topics included an outline of the huge range of subjects available at university, the relative benefits of staying in education and going straight into the workplace after school, and the UCAS and Oxbridge applications procedures, personal statements and interviews.

The Trinity College students also met with teachers and careers advisers.

Trinity College Students' Union Access and Admissions Officer Sharon Wilkins, who organised the Access Bus tour, said:

"Overall, I feel the project was a massive success. We look forward to further contact with the schools, and visits from groups of pupils, and, hopefully, to seeing some now familiar faces at interviews."

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