Nihal - Economics

Name: Nihal Shah
Subject: Economics
Year: 3rd

A-levels taken: Mathematics, Economics and Chemistry

What does your working week entail?

8-14 hours of lectures every week and 4 to 5 supervisions every two weeks. The supervisions involve extra reading and writing essays/problems. All together a supervision piece can take around 5-10 hour(partly thinking time, partly writing time and mostly procrastination/facebooking time).

How easy was the transition from A-level to the first year of your degree?

First year economics was very different to A level economics, and was much more difficult. Also I hadn't covered most of the statistics needed. So at first the transition was difficult. But over time, after getting used to the Cambridge system I felt (as most people do) comfortable in learning. The biggest change was that at Cambridge you don't get 'taught' like you do at at school. The Exams are not as formulaic as A level exams and to that extent understanding and extra reading is vital. But once I got used to being 'lectured' and 'supervised' I found the system much more enjoyable than school.

How easily can you fit social activities into your working week?

Perhaps, the biggest challenge was trying to socialize but keep on top of my work - however, over time you soon learn how to prioritize and maintain a decent work-play balance. I was Treasurer of the JCR in my second year, and despite this huge time commitment found time to enjoy myself and still hand in work on time.


What sort of things did you talk about in your interview?

Current affairs, and questions on pre-sent essays and general economics. The interviews were more of a discussion then an interview.