Preparing Yourself for the FYSAQ
The Foundation Year Supplementary Application Questionnaire (often referred to as the FYSAQ) is an additional questionnaire which you will receive after submitting your UCAS application. This questionnaire helps us to gather additional information that is not collected from your UCAS application. There is a short deadline for the FYSAQ and therefore we suggest familiarising yourself with the content and requirements of the FYSAQ as early as possible.
This article should take you around 30 minutes to read and will help you prepare for receiving the FYSAQ.
Understanding
the FYSAQ
The FYSAQ is split into 7 sections. For the purposes of this article we’ll briefly cover the sections that you may find takes you more time to complete. Full details and information on the FYSAQ may also be found in our FYSAQ support document. The FYSAQ is all online and you’ll be sent the link within around 48 hours* of submitting your UCAS Application. The link provided will be unique to you, so please don’t share it with others!
As you progress through the FYSAQ, it will save your information and you’ll be able to jump back and forth between the different sections. This may be helpful if you need to revisit a section you have already completed to upload documents to evidence your eligibility.
If you want to see what the FYSAQ looks like, we have a complete run through video you may access below!
Please note the FYSAQ differs from the SAQ for standard entry to Cambridge as the Foundation Year is a unique course with specific eligibility requirements. Therefore, we would really recommend utilising our support documents as much as possible. Remember, if you ever need clarification on the FYSAQ content, you can always contact the Foundation Year team via email.
*in most cases you will receive the application within 48 hours. However, due to staff working hours and weekends this may be up to around 3 days.
Preparing Your Eligibility Evidence
As you are already aware, you must be eligible for the Foundation Year in order to apply. Not sure if you are eligible? There is still time to check on our website!
Within the FYSAQ you will need to provide evidence of your eligibility. This will often mean gathering and uploading documents to your online FYSAQ. We highly recommended that you look into the evidence you will be required to submit within eligibility criteria guidelines for applicants before attempting to complete the form. Please make a note of any evidence that we require for certain eligibility criteria. If you do not think you can provide required documents in time for returning the FYSAQ, then please get in touch ASAP – you’ll find our contact details on our website.
It may be easiest to spend some time gathering your evidence beforehand and merging your evidence into one document with a free programme like combinepdf.com. Please make sure your evidence is clear and is the evidence we have asked for. If you submit your FYSAQ without the correct evidence or with insignificant evidence, you will be given only one more chance to resubmit with the evidence required.
Please also note that the eligibility evidence we collect from you is only there to clarify your eligibility and will only be used in the shortlisting process.
How to Pick A College
There are 12CColleges taking Foundation Year students for 2025 entry. These are; Downing College, Fitzwilliam College, Girton College, Gonville & Caius College, Homerton College, Lucy Cavendish College, Murray Edwards College, Newnham College, Queens' College, Sidney Sussex College, St Edmund’s College and Wolfson College. You can find details about these in our Foundation Year Colleges article which also includes useful links to each of the websites.
During your application, you’ll be asked to select a College preference or an Open application. Your decision will not affect your chances of gaining a place on the Foundation Year. Many applicants choose an open application as they often don't mind which College they end up at – again, this will not disadvantage or advantage your application. If there is a particular College you would not like to end up at, we suggest you put a preference, and not an open application. We also cannot guarantee that you will end up at your College choice so just bare that in mind! You’ll find that wherever you end up, you’ll feel at home in your College and you’ll be made to feel welcome from day one!
The Additional Questions Section
In this section, we ask questions to gather some specific additional information about you and your interest in the Foundation Year. You may recall that we don’t expect you to mention the Foundation Year within your personal statement and this is where we give you the opportunity to expand on your particular interest in the Foundation Year!
You may view the questions asked in this section in the guidance document (check out page 19!) or our walk through video.
Overall, we expect you to answer these questions like short essays. This means no bullet points or abbreviations. The answers are essentially an extension to your personal statement and therefore the answers will be very personal to you. You may wish to plan your answers to these in advance and then copy over to your FYSAQ when you receive it. It may even be useful to mind map your answers to make sure your answers are clear and answer the questions. We even provide word limits which should hopefully guide you with the length of your answer. If you find you don’t fill the word limit, then don’t panic! Every applicant will be different and some may have more to write in certain questions than others.
In your response we are really looking to understand your interests in the Foundation Year and the barriers you may have overcome. The final question “Is there anything else you would like us to know?” is your opportunity to give any additional information that may have not been collected elsewhere. We have asked for a lot of information by this point, so please don’t worry if there isn’t anything else you wish to add!
Tips for completion
Tip 1: We may contact you on various email addresses and therefore we recommend adding these to a safe sender list or even your contacts list. The emails are:
foundation.year@admin.cam.ac.uk
camfoundationyear@qemailserver.com
Tip 2: We understand the application process seems lengthy and may involve more steps than other institutions and therefore we have provided a lot of support within our website, supporting documents (eligibility guidance and FY SAQ guidance) and our videos. Make the most of these! There are there to be utilised.
Tip 3: If you don’t receive your FYSAQ within 48 hours* or you run into any issues, please get in contact with the Foundation Year team ASAP. Remember, we are here to support and guide you through your journey!
Tip 4: Finally, remember to click submit! We won’t receive your FYSAQ until you click that final submit button.
*in most cases you will receive the application within 48 hours. However, due to staff working hours and weekends this may be up to around 3 days.
If you have any further questions after reading this article, please do get in touch.
The information in this article is correct at the time of publishing. For the most up to date information about the Cambridge Foundation Year, visit our website. Last reviewed January 2025.
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