Changing Subject

The Cambridge tripos is supposed to be quite flexible, allowing students to study different courses in Part I and Part II. For many Part II courses it is not necessary to have studied the accompanying Part I. However, it can be highly dependent on a student's college and what subject they want to change into whether change will be possible. In some colleges, the subject that they might want to change into could be full and not have room for them, especially if it is a subject such as Medicine that is oversubscribed. The college may also demand a certain level of attainment before they allow a student to change and might set a test to see if they are capable of succeeding in the course they want to change into. Some colleges are just naturally more reluctant to allow students to change than others, and the individual situations can affect things as well.

The easiest time to change is the end of the year, giving the student the summer to catch up on any reading. It is also possible to change within the first month after arriving. If a student approaches you who wants to change course, encourage them to talk to their DoS and the DoS of the course that they want to change into and also their personal tutor. Getting the full support of their tutor and the DoS of the subject they are joining is crucial and they must convince them that they are making the decision on solid academic grounds. It might be a good idea for the student to find out as much as they can about the course they want to change into.

If the college is happy for a student to change, they might then have to send a written submission to the faculty which they want to change into, which their DoS or tutor can do on their behalf.

One of the problems that might come up is when a student wants to change from a two year part 1 to a one year part 1 and vice versa. The college might suggest that they can only change when they have completed the first part of the tripos. The other potential problem is when students want to change and start again – because of the University rules (you should complete your degree in 9 terms) colleges are often reluctant to let a student start their degree all over again and might instead suggest that they drop out and reapply through UCAS (quite drastic, but if the student is serious about the change, they might consider it).

For more information on the rules of changing subject see the University’s Ordinances CHAPTER V, B.A. DEGREE AND M.A. DEGREE, BACHELOR OF ARTS, BY HONOURS (p398 in 2007).