Hey! My name is Melissa and I study Natural Sciences at King’s College, Cambridge. Science intrigued me during my A-levels so I decided to apply to do this broad course. I wasn’t fully sure which of the sciences I wanted to go into, so the Natural Sciences course allowed me to pick which modules I wanted to take. There is a range of both physical and biological science modules to choose from, and I am currently doing Biology of Cells, Chemistry, Physiology of Organisms and Mathematical Biology.
A typical Natural Sciences week involves lectures from Monday to Saturday, 3 lectures per module (total of 12 per week). There are also a total of 4 practical sessions per week which range in length, but usually take place between 11-5pm. I have 4 supervisions per week where we go over the work set and any concepts that we have not understood from the lectures. This is usually 2-3 students so it is the perfect time to ask questions and clarify any doubts. When it comes to set work during the week, I have to complete 2 essays which are usually 1.5k words each, and 2 problem sheets with maths and chemistry questions. The problem sheets would take a few hours to complete depending on the difficulty, and the essays definitely take longer due to the research that has to go behind them. I usually spend a few hours planning and a few hours typing (roughly 7 hours overall for each essay). The workload is definitely something that everyone struggles with but you learn to manage it.
My interview experience was enjoyable for one of my interviews but not as great for the other one. I had 2 interviews which lasted 30 minutes each where I was asked a range of biological questions (as I applied for the biological stream of Natural Sciences). The interviewers were really nice and friendly which definitely made me feel more comfortable and eased the nerves. In terms of the structure of the interview, basic questions were asked to build confidence and then it developed into questions which required more thought. The questions asked can definitely be answered by knowing your A Level content inside out. The most important part about the interview is listening to the question and thinking about which A-level topic it might link to. During the interview, I made sure to tell them my thought process so they could see what ideas I had relating to the question asked. This is definitely a key thing you should be doing as the interviewers just want to know how you think, rather than you being able to reach an answer straight away. In a lot of my questions I wasn’t entirely sure on what the answer they wanted me to get was, but I always made sure to tell them what ideas I was having and they added clues to help me develop these further. It is important to listen and respond to the hints they give you. If you don’t understand the question make sure you ask them to reword or repeat it; don’t start speaking about what you thought the question meant, but rather ask for clarification to make sure what you say is relevant. Always prepare a little answer to “ Tell me something that interests you in science”, as it is a popular conversation starter (you could just do what I did and mention something that was in your personal statement). Make sure you are flexible with your arguments and ideas, if you realise that what you are saying is not making sense or if you change your mind, don’t be afraid to let them know; this shows that you are engaging with the content and can process new ideas and information to change your argument. Make sure you know your A level content – I cannot stress this enough!
Natural Sciences at Cambridge is one of the most demanding science courses in the country in terms of the amount of content and contact hours. You will be working at least 8 hours a day but this can vary massively depending on how you work and learn. You will definitely not be able to manage to get through the course if you don’t have a real interest in science. The course is extremely challenging but it is definitely rewarding and enriching due to how broad it is. You don’t have to pick one science straight away like in other unis; you have the opportunity to explore which modules you like and enjoy, and how all the sciences interlink (as all the sciences are dependent on each other). Overall Natural Sciences is a challenging but rewarding degree which you will enjoy if you like to be pushed and have a true interest in sciences.