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NEWS
Entry standards
Imperial’s Maths Department has
‘highest’ entry standards in UK
Cambridge uses the Sixth Term Examination
Paper (STEP) for Mathematics
Potential undergraduate maths students may fi nd it
harder to receive an offer from Imperial this year as a
result of the A*. Imperial’s Mathematics Department
has the highest A level entry requirements in the UK,
asking for A*A*A with the A*s in Maths and Further
Maths. Although these criteria are much more demanding
than those of other universities, they are
only a marginal change from Imperial’s previous highest
offer of AAA with As in each maths module. “We
rely entirely on the UCAS form and A level results, so
it is not surprising that our minimal entry requirement
is higher.” Prof. Alexei Skorobogatov, Imperial’s Mathematics
Admissions Tutor, explains.
A College spokesperson said: “The College aims
to identify, attract and develop students of the highest
ability and the admissions criteria refl ect this”
and added that “The A* grade for A levels is one
way to help academic departments [...] identify
those who would benefi t most from an education at
Imperial”. However some students believe that the
current system is unfair. “Everyone always drops
a few marks in exams,” Navid Nabijou, a fi rst year
undergraduate mathematics student, states, “some
people who have a clear knowledge of mathematics
will be ruled out because they make errors in calculations.
Many students also fi nd that they aren’t
used to the way university mathematics is. A good
STEP test mark shows a lot more about mathematical
understanding than an A* at A level.”
The Sixth Term Examination Paper, or STEP, is
used by Cambridge University, which requires lower
A level grades of A*AA. “STEP is a far better predictor
of success in our mathematics examinations
than A-levels.” Steve Siklos of Cambridge University
Admissions Offi ce believes. “The questions are less
standard and less structured, which helps to distinguish
between ability and good teaching.” The STEP
test helps Cambridge to select students while preparing
them for the sort of mathematics they will experience
at university. Interviews are also conducted
for all successful applicants, though only 1200
students apply for Mathematics at Cambridge each
year. Interviews are logistically diffi cult to conduct
at Imperial due to the sheer number of applicants:
2000 students apply for only 220 places.
The current system of A*A*A without interviews or
additional tests has only been enforced for a year
and so it is too early to tell whether it has any real
faults. The system is not yet fi xed and Imperial may
even consider an alternative form of testing in future
years. “Our admissions criteria are reviewed every
year to make sure that we are selecting the best
qualifi ed students for our degrees” Prof. Skorobogatov
reassures.
Zainab Ali
New senior medical leadership positions have
been announced in a bid to strengthen integration
with the UK’s fi rst Academic Health Science
Centre (AHSC). Professor Stephen Smith,
Principal of the Faculty of Medicine and Chief
Executive of the IC Healthcare NHS Trust, is
to become Pro Rector (Health) and combine
his roles. Professor Smith formed the AHSC
in 2007 by leading the integration of College
and the NHS Trust. He is also the Founding
Dean of the Nanyang Technological University
Medical School, Imperial’s campus in Singapore.
Responsibilities of the new role include
managing Imperial’s strategic opportunities in
health science research and education across
the world.
The AHSC is a partnership intended to transform
the health and quality of life of patients by
integrating healthcare research, teaching and
clinical care. The IC NHS Trust is supported
by the National Institute for Health Research
through its Biomedical Research Center designation.
Plans to extend the AHSC to form
an Academic Health Science System (AHSS)
are under way, and this will be chaired by the
rector of Imperial College, Sir Keith O’Nions,
who said “Building on the success of our original
AHSC model, which ties together teaching,
research and healthcare through integrated
RAG Week raises
over £2,000
RAG Week kicked off with a bar
night on Monday, followed by
the joint CGCU/RCSU RAG Ball
the day after. Held at Carbon,
attendees enjoyed a free glass
of champagne and a classy atmosphere
for a good night. The
CGCU Slave Auction saw our own
Chief Editor Kadhim Shubber
sold for £15 amongst others for
quite a bit more. A cooking sale
took place on Thursday, and an
ACC pub-crawl the day after.
The most talked about event,
however, was LOST – in which
over 100 people participated,
a large contrast to the 27 last
year. 2 coaches carried them to
a small town on the coast in Dorset
called Christchurch, about
2 and a half hours away. Participants
got free Ben’s cookies,
food from Pizza Hut, free beer
and much more. Over £1000
was raised for RAG, and the fastest
team to get back were Ben
Krikler, Lorena Freitas and Simon
Good, raising £95.29.
Friday 19 NOVEMBER 2010
FELIX
News Editors: Matt Colvin
Alex Karapetian
news.felix@imperial.ac.uk
New Pro-Rector announced
Major personnel changes in Engineering and Medicine
Alex Karapetian
Professor Stephen Smith
leadership and governance, we are making
governance changes to become more inclusive
and that will open doors to other potential associates
in the AHSS.”
Additionally, Professor Jeff Magee, currently
Head of the Department of Computing,
and Deputy Principal (Research), has been appointed
Principal of the Faculty of Engineering
and will commence his role in January 2011.
With over 30 years experience in the fi eld of
Computer Science research and extensive work
with BP, BT, Barclays Capital and others under
his belt, he will lead the Faculty of Engineering’s
activities and be a member of the senior
decision-making body of the College.
Professor Magee will succeed Professor Ste-
phen Richardson, Principal and Deputy Rector
since November 2009. Sir Keith O’Nions
welcomed the appointment and said: “this is
a demanding job, requiring great energy and
vision, but over his time at Imperial Jeff has
demonstrated these qualities many times over.
It is with great confi dence and pleasure that we
welcome him to his new role.”
In response to his appointment to the role,
Professor Magee said “The Faculty of Engineering
at Imperial has a world-leading breadth
and depth of engineering expertise and talent.
It is a very great honour and privilege to be
appointed its Principal, a great opportunity
to facilitate the application of its engineering
expertise to the serious problems that face our
society and a great personal challenge to live
up to the record of my predecessor.”
Regarding the senior medical leadership positions,
Professor Jenny Higham, Director of
Education for the Faculty of Medicine, said
“This is an exciting and challenging time for
Imperial’s Faculty of Medicine. I look forward
to working closely with others to ensure our
continued success in research, education and
translation, both in London and with our international
partners.”
The changes to both the Medicine and Engineering
Faculties should further their long
standing respectable positions within the UK
and on a global scale.
This reminds me of my fi rst kiss. Don’t ask why, I promised to never speak of it