Promoting aspiration through outreach
- 02 September 2026
- 3 minutes
Sidrah Zubair is passionate about giving young people an opportunity to reach their potential. As London Outreach Officer for Gonville & Caius College, Sidrah’s role is to support them to do just that by encouraging aspiration.
While a direct aim of Sidrah’s goal is attracting applications to Caius, a wider aim is promoting the University of Cambridge, a university education and a desire to further education. The focus of her work at Caius is on Year 10 and Year 12 students, working specifically with Caius’ Link Areas – seven London boroughs (Barnet, Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Lewisham, Newham and Waltham Forest) – under the Cambridge scheme.
Sidrah, who taught in schools for four years after attending Goldsmiths, Durham and King’s College London universities for her various degrees, says: “I want to show young people you can apply for the course that you're actually passionate about and the university you're passionate about. And if it happens to be Cambridge, and if it happens to be a particular course at Cambridge, then you should very well go for it.”
When undertaking her work, Sidrah reflects on her own experience, both as a teacher and a university applicant.
She adds: “I didn't enjoy all the aspects of teaching, but I loved working with young people, talking to them and getting to know them. When you give them a chance, they're actually really funny, they're really clever and they're really astute.
“When I was in sixth form, I wasn't really offered a lot of guidance. I wish I had had a bit more personalised support.”
Caius’ outreach and admissions activity, which Sidrah leads in London, has different focuses depending on the school age group – but the provision of aspiration extends far beyond applying to Caius.
Year 10 students are introduced to Oxford and Cambridge – how they are different to other universities – and also learn about supercurricular work and how to support their applications to any university.
Interactions with Year 12 students is more tailored and application specific, with personal statements, admissions tests, guidance on what Caius and Cambridge are looking for, and interview preparation shared. Practical tips on costs are also offered.
Sidrah adds: “I was surprised by how financially minded they are. They want to know how much university is, how much it costs for a year, how do they pay for it, accommodation costs, whether meals are included and things like that.
“We don't want cost to be like a barrier; that's one thing I always say in my talks. Cambridge and Oxford are quite well off and they've got a lot of resources, including financial resources for students. Money should never be a barrier to attending university. I always emphasise that there will be support available, financial support like bursaries, scholarships, grants, things like that, that you can access for various different things.”
Sidrah collaborates with local authorities and other universities and colleges – such as Mansfield College, Oxford – and individual schools.
One of the most rewarding parts of her work has been with the London Virtual Schools, with Caius hosting a residential for care-experienced young people for a second time this summer.
She adds: “A residential experience can show them they can very much be in this environment if they want to be, if they're passionate about it, they want to pursue a certain course or subject. They will be given support to aspire to reach their potential.”
