“My future coffee makers at Starbucks […] you think it matters if someone has a degree in music let alone from Cambridge […] I’ve never felt more working class […] council house scum.” All of these are comments on a post on the Caius Schools TikTok. It is easy, an automatic impulse, to villainize social media. Often the enemy to academics, it is an addictive, unhealthy, dangerous distraction that tempts us away from studying our hardest.

However, where a notion of exclusivity often overshadows the reality of diversity, leading people to believe Cambridge is reserved for the elite, access and outreach teams work tirelessly to combat misconceptions and reach disadvantaged students. In this endeavour, social media is a crucial ally. Lizzie Arnold, the newly elected GCSU Access officer 2025/2026, wants to target those who feel unwelcome to change this, using social media to portray alternative sides to Cambridge.

She regards social media as “an amazing tool,” capable of “breaking down stigmas, encouraging people to apply and spreading information.” She said, “everything I found out [about Cambridge] came from the social media […] [which were] most helpful for those in schools with little Oxbridge information.” Caius is jokingly referred to as ‘the TikTok college,’ but it was this very platform which influenced me, and many others like Lizzie, to apply.

“Caius is jokingly referred to as ‘the TikTok college,’ but it was this very platform which influenced me, and many others like Lizzie, to apply.”

As Lizzie pointed out, not everyone lives in a convenient place to visit Cambridge. “Lots of people are in an unfortunate position, whether that’s due to geographical or financial barriers,” she notes. Social media functions as a vital form of virtual transportation, reducing the distance between prospective students and Cambridge.

Involving students from similar backgrounds can encourage others to feel welcome, although this makes them vulnerable online. “There are working class students here who feel welcome, but also safe and supported by the college: social media can be reassuring as it can promote the kind of support, bursaries and mental health support available,” Lizzie argues. Matilda Sheekey, a keen Outreach volunteer, suggested including international students speaking different languages, alongside subtitles, to help international parents understand videos and to demonstrate the diversity of the student body.

I also spoke to Francesca and Tom, the Emmanuel college Outreach Team, who run the Emmanuel Instagram account together. To Francesca, from a state comprehensive herself, outreach means ensuring opportunity, and “recognising that students without resources immediately to hand suffer from a lack of tools rather than a lack of aspiration.”

She is “personally invested in the power of outreach” after her life was changed by a year 12 Shakespeare outreach residential. For Tom, outreach has been central to his Cambridge experience after attending a languages residential at Trinity college as a first-generation student from a state comprehensive. Outreach goes beyond school assemblies now, it “fills the gap of a missing Oxbridge coordinator/careers advisor,” Tom said.

“online information is readily available to anyone; impactful 90 second clips can replace selective Oxbridge mailing lists”

Francesca highlights how online information is readily available to anyone; impactful 90 second clips can replace selective Oxbridge mailing lists, and mentioned that outreach works best when it features the same group of students multiple times: Instagram ensures a prospective student can stay engaged with life at a college.

Tom views social media as “overwhelmingly positive. [...] It is unparalleled in its power to have a wide reach […] whilst we are usually reliant on preoccupied schools remembering to invite us in, social media allows us to bypass barriers.” Francesca argues that social media videos offer a glimpse behind the perfect postcard image of King’s Parade, both myth-busting and using a human face, something less intimidating than scrolling through relentless information on a college website.

Though the positives may outweigh the negatives, neither should be ignored. Francesca believes it is important to protect participating students from negative comments, but highlighted that correcting misinformation by responding to comments is helpful too. Matilda agreed that blocking comments can feel like “blocking communication with a college, which should feel accessible.”

“we’ve seen a completely diversified group of applicants.”

Negative comments are more visible than quiet appreciation, making positive responses harder to measure, and yet Francesca noted “we’ve seen a completely diversified group of applicants.” Tom claims that, MML applicants, for example, had tripled, and therefore they are “secure in the knowledge that those who we want to hear it, are hearing it” and the ones commenting cruel things are not the intended audience. “Outreach definitely gives you a thick skin, but that comes with the territory of social media,” he adds.

I asked if being the University of Cambridge influences online attention. Francesca said “we’d be kidding ourselves if that wasn’t a reason […] people are drawn to Cambridge university on a global scale.” For Tom,  Cambridge is, “put on a pedestal as a world leading institution […] generally attracting interest is less of a challenge.”

This makes surprising content vital: social media can chip away at the old-fashioned, Saltburn-esque picture people have of our archaic institution, which film and TV only serve to dramatise. Francesca added that typical clips mocking posh Oxbridge accents can damage outreach and to repel this by engaging with popular trends is effective – Traitors skits or POVs – as underrepresented students are more likely to stumble across these.

Matilda feels she has become the student helper who once helped her. Following an outreach experience in year 11, “the very first time I thought Cambridge could be the place for me,” she was part of another scheme in year 12 with Lucy Cavendish – “Cambridge then became part of my vocabulary, something real and achievable.” Though she found face-to-face programmes more effective, she acknowledged social media resonates more with young people, saying, “It’s speaking their language, a more fun way of interacting with outreach, rather than scrolling through websites for information.” She recounted seeing “a post on the @caiusents page [which] used a Gwen Stefani song to advertise a bop and I immediately liked the vibe.”

Lizzie sees the potential of social media being limitless: “the more we try to push for change, the more people will become receptive to it; this is just the beginning.” If these examples are anything to go by, we should remember the lives social media has and will continue to change before we dismiss it for all its flaws.