The Caius Explore Competition, which is set annually by academics from Gonville and Caius College in Cambridge, is open to Year 12 students in schools and colleges across the UK and Northern Ireland, and covers a diverse range of subjects from Archaeology and Architecture to Land Economy, Linguistics, and Politics.

Entrants are asked to tackle a specific question in their chosen field, and are tasked with writing an essay on the subject.

Pavel Croitoru, who is a sixth-former at Springwood High School, came top in the Mathematics category, which asked: ‘How might AI impact mathematics?’

“I entered the Caius Explore Competition for Mathematics, analysing how AI might impact mathematics,” said the 17-year-old, who is now in Year 13 at our school.

“It was a wonderful experience, and I would highly encourage other students to participate. It’s an opportunity to enrich your knowledge in a subject you enjoy, and will be a valuable asset for the university application process, even if your essay does not get selected.”

“We have had students enter before, but Pavel is the first that I know of that has won,” added Connie Loizou, Head of Mathematics at Springwood, which is part of the West Norfolk Academies Trust.

Winners across the different categories were invited to Cambridge to celebrate their achievements.

“As a reward, we had a banquet in the Gonville and Caius dining hall,” Pavel continued. “The seating plan was subject based. I got to sit next to and talk to the Director of Studies for Maths at Gonville and Caius, Dr Jonathan Evans, as well as other current Cambridge maths students.

“We also had a Q and A with the Admissions Officer and Cambridge students, where we were given personal statement and general application advice.”