Pembroke College Cambridge

History

UCAS Code V100. Around 171 admitted per year at Cambridge. Pembroke seeks to admit around 8 per year. Assessment, no registration required. Two pieces of written work required. History required. A Level typical offer A star A A. Scottish advanced highers typical offer A1 A2 A2. International baccalaureate typical offer: 42-43 points, with 776 at HL.

Cambridge has one of the largest and most renowned History departments in the world, with a huge variety of expertise and courses on offer. Coverage ranges from ancient Greek to the present day. Many different kinds of history - be that political, economic, social, international, global or cultural history are all well catered for. Courses reflect the latest trends in historical research and in wider society, touching on issues such as globalisation, the legacies of colonialism and environmental change. A number of courses are shared with other departments, such as Classics, Modern Languages and Politics.

Learning at Cambridge involves lecture- and class-based teaching but also an emphasis on individual tutorials ('supervisions') and self-directed research. You will develop the ability and confidence to analyse a wide variety of historical problems and themes, build an understanding of significant processes and changes across time, and learn how to set out your ideas to maximum effect in class and on paper. These are important skills which many employers value, and Pembroke historians have gone on to be successful in very many different careers, for example in research, administration, finance, the law, teaching, and the media. 

We require History at A Level or IB higher level or an equivalent, but please get in touch with us in advance of making an application if you are not studying History.

History at Pembroke

Pembroke College has a rich history to draw from and its current students - there are about 8 in each year - are characterised by their interest, their talent and their diversity.  We work hard to help our students realise their full potential and we encourage them to explore widely among the available courses in order to develop their own interests.  All Cambridge colleges pool their teaching resources to provide supervisions to students in the University, so what students cover is not dependent on the expertise of the fellowship in the College. 

Our historians have a strong sense of group identity and individual satisfaction, and over the last ten years our exam performance has been among the best in the university. Throughout the three years of the course, the main teaching that students receive is the weekly supervision. Preparation for the supervision involves guided and self-organised reading and writing an essay. We seek to find the best and most appropriate supervisors for each student and course from across the University. 

Your Director of Studies will discuss your course choices, arrange your supervisions, and provide oversight over your progress. In addition to your weekly supervision, you will find many of the lectures put on by the History Faculty very useful for your courses, and you can expect to attend several lectures a week. Some of your courses will be taught through Faculty classes, where you will work with other undergraduate historians from across the University.

History students at Pembroke also meet regularly in classes in order to discuss general historical problems - through famous history books, through exploring themes across history or through undertaking their own comparative work. Pembroke also has a beautiful library with a large and up-to-date collection of history books. Moreover, the University Library and the History Faculty Library are two of the finest libraries in the country open to History students.

Pembroke History Teaching Staff

The College has several Fellows involved in teaching undergraduates:

Dr Arthur Asseraf 

Arthur is a historian of modern France, North Africa, and the Western Mediterranean, with particular interests in the history of colonialism and information. His first book is about the circulation of news in colonial Algeria.

Dr Caroline Burt - Director of Studies (Part IB)

I'm one of the Directors of Studies in History as well as being Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Pembroke College. The key thing about being a Director of Studies to me is seeing students progress and helping them to do that. When a student fulfils their potential, they have a huge sense of achievement, which is great to see!

I came to Cambridge as an undergraduate from a working-class background in Manchester, and Cambridge seemed a world away from my experience! For a start, it was much smaller than Manchester, but so many things seemed alien to me. I feared that I wouldn't fit in, wouldn't be good enough, but I did and I was - so if there's a moral to that story it's never to dismiss an application to us on the grounds that you won't be good enough if your grades are telling  you the opposite; and not to assume that you won't fit in!

My own research is on medieval history, and I work at the intersection between politics, government and ideas. I wrote my PhD and first book on Edward I. My second book is on a longer period from 1199 to 1399; it tells the story of six dramatic reigns, including two depositions and Magna Carta, as well as the ways in which the English state took shape in the same period - through the creation of Parliament, a system of national taxation, professional armies, for example.

I love to understand the ways in which ideas and pragmatism are combined in political actors, and how, given the extensive reach of English medieval government, that directly affected people across England in the alter medieval period. 

Dr Paul Cavill - Director of Studies (Part IA)

I'm one of the Directors of Study in History. As such, I'm here to help our historians make the most of their time at Pembroke on an academic front. I'll be organising your supervisions and also teaching you as a group about different kinds of history. (Classes for first-years are a bit like a historians' book club.) I work on early modern British history and so, if you choose papers in that area, I'll also be supervising you myself. (You can read more about my interests on my Faculty webpage) I'm also keen to support the student-led History Society and always enjoy our annual get-together at the Historians' dinner. 

Dr Marcus Colla

Marcus is a historian of 20th-century central and eastern Europe, especially German. His first book, on the role of history in the GDR, appeared in 2022. 

Prof. Renaud Morieux - Director of Studies (Part II)

Renaud specialises in transnational history of the 18th-century, focusing on Britain, France and their empires. He has a particular interest in the history of oceans, migration and incarceration.

Prof. Jon Parry 

Jon works on the political history of 19th- and 20th-century Britain. He has written about British attitudes to Europe and about the Prime Minister Disraeli. He has recently published a book on British perceptions of the Middle East.

Prof. Paul Warde 

Paul teaches environmental and economic history. His latest book explores the concept of sustainability and a co-written history of the environment.

Further information can be found on the page about History on the University website. To read a day in the life of one of our recent Pembroke Historians click here.

Go to History faculty website

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