Since being established, an outstanding record of accomplishment has been achieved. This is demonstrated both in terms of success at A-Level and through the placement of students onto the most competitive university degree courses.
The focus at Abbey is very much on the individual. Students are treated as young adults and expected to take a degree of responsibility for their progress while benefiting from expert assistance and
All at Abbey are clear that our goal is to ensure the best chance of top grades for each student and the demands made of our students are considerable. Experience shows that happy students are the most successful and we encourage them to maintain an active life outside of Abbey and to take full advantage of all Cambridge has to offer socially and culturally.
We are proud that our students have gained some of the highest A-level pass rates in the UK. For example, in 2006 our students gained grades A or B in 81% of A-levels sat with us. Of these exams, 56% were grade A. This is, of course, considerably higher than the national average and above almost all UK colleges.
Our students also enter the very best universities. In 2006, ten students entered Cambridge university, two entered Oxford, three into LSE, eight into UCL and eight into Imperial.
Students tell us that they leave Abbey well equipped for success at university and life beyond.
Academic strengths
Abbey Cambridge has gained an excellent reputation in subject areas such as mathematics, science and financial subjects. Our students enter UK universities to study degrees such as Economics, Engineering, Mathematics, Medicine and Law in the most prestigious of all the UK universities - sixteen students entered Oxbridge between 2006-7.
Our staff have an unusually high level of expertise and experience.
Around half our teachers have PhDs or other higher degrees and many have spent considerable time in education. We are also fortunate to have many staff who have had extensive experience in research, in business and in industry. This expertise enables us to provide teaching of an extremely high quality. We find that many students join us because they hear from friends that the teachers at Abbey provide a level of expertise unmatched in other colleges.
Facilities
We provide students with the most up-to-date educational facilities available. This includes twenty teaching rooms, a quiet student study room, a student common room, two ICT suites with network and internet access for all students, a brand new fully-equipped Physics laboratory, a chemistry and biology laboratory and we are able to provide numerous individual tutorial rooms.
Abbey also has a student canteen and large college garden.
Student life
The emphasis at Abbey Cambridge is very much placed upon academic issues. However, the importance of maintaining a balanced lifestyle and the value of an active life outside of Abbey is very much appreciated.
There are no compulsory extra curricular activities at Abbey – rather students are encouraged to participate in the activities that they most enjoy. Clubs, societies and sports are very much student led but receive full support from Abbey in terms of finance and supervision.
Where a students vocational ambition demands a level of extra curricular activity of a specific nature, the college will identify this and ensure that every opportunity is taken for appropriate involvement.
