Academic entry requirements

All applicants to the Sutton Trust Summer Schools must be studying at a state-maintained school or college in the UK and have at least five 6-9 grades at GCSE, or five A or B passes at National 5 (or equivalent).

It may be possible to reduce the academic criteria for students if there are extenuating circumstances but it should be stressed that the Summer Schools involve up to 20 hours of intense academic study and all successful applicants will need to demonstrate the ability to effectively handle this workload.

Some Summer School strands also require students to be taking particular post-16 qualifications and/or to have achieved high grades in particular subjects.

Details of additional entry requirements can be found in the table below. Please note that your application will be considered ineligible if you do not meet these essential criteria.

Subject	Additional Entry Requirements
Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic	No additional academic requirements.
Archaeology (with Biological Anthropology)	No additional academic requirements.
Architecture	Studying Art or Design and Technology at AS Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent OR has an Art GCSE at grade 7 - 9. Although Cambridge doesn't specify any specific subjects for admission to the Architecture tripos, the vast majority of candidates have Art to at least GCSE level.
Asian and Middle Eastern Studies	No specific subject requirements. Where applicants meet the same selection criteria, preference may be given to students studying a foreign language at A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.
Chemical Engineering	Maths and Chemistry at A level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.
Classics	No additional academic requirements.
Computer Science	Taking Maths at A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.
Economics	Taking Maths at A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent. Where applicants meet the same selection criteria, preference may be given to students studying Further Maths at A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.
Education	No additional academic requirements.
English	Students should have achieved a 7, 8 or 9 (A/A*) for GCSE English Language and/or Literature. In addition, students must be taking English Literature OR English Literature and Language combined at A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.
Geography	No additional academic requirements.
History	Taking History at A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.
History of Art	Must be taking at least one essay-based subject for A Level (essay based is defined as any subject that requires the submission of essays as coursework or writing essays for exams as the majority part of its assessment) - eg. History, English, Languages, Geography, Sociology, EPQ, Classics, Philosophy and Ethics, Psychology, Criminology, Law.
Human Social and Political Science	No additional academic requirements.
Law	No additional academic requirements.
Mathematics	Taking Maths at A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.
Medicine	Taking Chemistry AND 2 subjects in either Maths/ Biology/Physics at AS Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent. Although Cambridge only specifies Chemistry and 1 of either Maths/Biology/Physics at A-Level, 95% of applicants offer 3 sciences at A-Level.
Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics	Taking a Foreign Modern European Language at AS Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.
Music	Taking Music at A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent; or taking Music Theory Grade 7.
Psychological and Behavioural Sciences	Candidates are expected to have either Maths or Biology at A-level (or equivalent) OR at least two 8 or 9s in GCSE Maths or Science.
Theology, Religious Studies, and Philosophy	No additional academic requirements.
Veterinary Medicine	Taking Chemistry AND 1 subject in either Maths/Biology/Physics at AS/A Level, IB, Scottish Highers or equivalent.

More information about eligibility criteria can be found on the Sutton Trust Summer Schools website and in our FAQs.

Academic entry requirements