Connect with St Hugh’s undergraduate students
St Hugh’s Connect is an online engagement project which has been running since 2021, consisting of one-hour sessions led by student ambassadors. These take place once every two weeks (usually on a Friday at 5pm) during key stages of the UCAS and Oxbridge application processes. During these sessions, Sixth Formers have the opportunity to talk directly to St Hugh’s current undergraduates about various aspects of the application process; to receive some top tips on preparing a competitive application; and also to hear about the undergraduate experience from a range of authentic student voices.
Connect brings current students and Sixth Formers together into a virtual space where they are able to discuss all things to do with university. Sessions are held on Teams, which is the software Oxford uses for all its admissions interviews, and are not recorded. The idea is that everyone who comes along takes part in the discussions; our ambassadors are trained volunteers who run the Connect sessions quite simply in order to support Sixth Formers in state schools in an informal and very friendly environment.
Like all of our outreach activities, Connect is completely free of charge and students can attend as many sessions as they like. The sessions are intended as an additional level of regular digital engagement to complement our in-person talks and workshops delivered by St Hugh’s outreach staff.
There are five upcoming sessions this autumn, focused around personal statements, admissions tests, and interviews. You are welcome to sign up for as many of these sessions as you would like.
How to sign up for the sessions
- Click on a session below to complete the registration form
- Registration for all sessions will open at 9am on Friday 30th August!
- Sign-ups for each session will close at 5pm the Friday before the session takes place (see below for a table of registration deadlines).
- Please note that if you wish to attend multiple sessions, you must sign up for each of them individually.
- A few days before the session takes place, you will receive an email from us asking you to complete an attendance confirmation form. Once you have confirmed your attendance at the session via that form, you will receive the Teams link for the session. The deadline for confirming your attendance is 5pm the day before the session takes place (see the table below for a summary of these deadlines).
Please get in touch with outreach@st-hughs.ox.ac.uk if you have any questions about the sessions or the sign-up process.
Registration and confirmation deadlines for each Connect session
| Session title | Session date | Registration deadline | Confirmation deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Statement Clinic | 13th September | 5pm, 6th September | 5pm, 12th September |
| Admissions Tests 1 | 27th September | 5pm, 20th September | 5pm, 26th September |
| Admissions Tests 2 | 11th October | 5pm, 4th October | 5pm, 10th October |
| Interviews 1 | 1st November | 5pm, 25th October | 5pm, 31st October |
| Interviews 2 | 15th November | 5pm, 8th November | 5pm, 14th November |
13th September – Oxbridge personal statement clinic
This session will focus on a recap of top tips for writing a strong Oxbridge personal statement, last-minute personal statement queries, and in particular attendees will be able to receive feedback on a section of their draft statement from current Oxford students. There are two options to receive feedback on a short extract (100-150 words maximum), of your personal statement:
- During the Teams session, post your section in the chat and use the ‘raise hand’ function so that the Ambassadors can speak to you directly, and you can ask them questions about the feedback they give you. Please note that simply posting your extract in the chat does not mean that we will discuss it; we will not read out your extract on your behalf. During these sessions attendees are expected to use their microphones.
- You will be able to pre-submit your section in advance of the session, but please note that due to the large numbers of registrations we receive, if you pre-submit your extract, we may not get to go over it; we will pick a handful of pre-submitted extracts and will then move on to the ones that are shared during the session.
27th September – Oxford Admissions Tests 1: Information & Top Tips on Preparing
This session will include a very brief presentation by Outreach staff about the purpose of the admissions tests, the logistics (such as registration, test dates, test locations, etc.), as well as tips on how to prepare. Following this, the second part of the session which will be the longer part will be dedicated to questions from the attendees which the student Ambassadors will answer. They will be able to share their experiences of preparing for and sitting the admissions tests. Please note that admissions test question practice will take place in the subsequent session – Admissions Tests 2, taking place on 11th October.
11th October – Oxford Admissions Tests 2: Subject Practice
This session will focus on practicing test questions in small groups with subject Ambassadors. Please note that we will endeavour to cover all Oxford tests as well as the UCAT and LNAT (this session may be therefore less relevant for those applying to Cambridge). When you register for this session, you will be asked to indicate which admissions test(s) you will be sitting so that we can allocate you to the correct break-out room, subject to availability. Please note that you will be expected to participate actively in the session and to tackle the questions; the Ambassadors are very friendly and will guide you through the questions.
1st November – Interviews 1: Information & Top Tips on Preparing
The first half of this session will consist of an interview workshop delivered by Outreach staff which will demystify the Oxbridge interview process, explain what admissions tutors are looking for, and offer valuable guidance on techniques and preparation. The second half will be a Q&A with student Ambassadors who will share their interview experiences and offer tips on preparation. This session would be helpful to anyone applying to Oxford or Cambridge.
15th November – Interviews 2: Subject Practice
This session will focus on practicing interview questions with subject Ambassadors in small break-out rooms. There will not be a talk or presentation, so please do come prepared to tackle questions. Remember that the student Ambassadors are extremely friendly and helpful, and they will offer you a lot of guidance to help you prepare, so do make the most of this opportunity to practise. This session would be helpful to anyone applying to Oxford or Cambridge.
