Statutes and Ordinances of the University of Cambridge
CHAPTER IV
pp. 259–265
PRELIMINARY EXAMINATIONS AND TRIPOS EXAMINATIONS

The provisions contained in this Chapter are Regulations of the General Board

In this section

PRELIMINARY EXAMINATIONS

SPECIAL REGULATIONS

ANGLO-SAXON, NORSE, AND CELTIC

1. There shall be a Preliminary Examination for Part I and for Part II of the Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic Tripos.

Part I

2. The examination shall consist of Papers 1–10 of Part I of the Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic Tripos, as follows:

 Paper  1.

England before the Norman Conquest

 Paper  2.

Scandinavian history in the Viking Age

 Paper  3.

The Brittonic-speaking peoples from the fourth century to the twelfth

 Paper  4.

The Gaelic-speaking peoples from the fourth century to the twelfth

 Paper  5.

Old English language and literature

 Paper  6.

Old Norse language and literature

 Paper  7.

Medieval Welsh language and literature

 Paper  8.

Medieval Irish language and literature

 Paper  9.

Insular Latin language and literature

 Paper 10.

Palaeography and codicology

3. In order to be classed, a candidate shall offer any four papers.

Part II

4. The examination shall consist of papers 1–10 of Part I of the Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic Tripos, as listed above.

5. In order to be classed, a candidate shall offer any four papers.

ASIAN AND MIDDLE EASTERN STUDIES

1. There shall be a Preliminary Examination for Part II of the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Tripos.

2. The subjects of examination shall be as follows:

   Chinese with Japanese

   Japanese with Chinese

Each candidate shall offer one subject.

3. There shall be separate examinations for each subject, as specified below:

  1. (a)Chinese with Japanese
  2. Candidates shall offer:
  3. (i)Papers J.1–3 from the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Tripos;
  4. (ii)one paper chosen from Papers J.6, J.9–10, AMES.1, and C.7–8 from the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Tripos;
  5. (iii)an oral examination in Japanese, under conditions set out by the Faculty Board from time to time.
  6. (b)Japanese with Chinese
  7. Candidates shall offer:
  8. (i)Papers C.1–3 from the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Tripos;
  9. (ii)one paper chosen from Papers C.7–8, AMES.1, and J.7–10, from the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Tripos;
  10. (iii)an oral examination in Chinese, under conditions set out by the Faculty Board from time to time.

4. No candidate shall offer a paper he or she has previously offered in any Honours Examination.

5. The Examiners shall be the Examiners for Part Ia and Part Ib of the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Tripos.

CLASSICS

1. There shall be Preliminary Examinations for Part Ia, and for Part II of the Classical Tripos.

Part Ia

2. Candidates wishing to present themselves for Part Ia of the Classical Tripos under Regulation 2(b) of the General Regulations for the Classical Tripos should successfully complete the Preliminary Examination for Part Ia.

3. The examination shall consist of:

(a) Two written papers, each of three hours:

   Paper 1.

Latin texts

   Paper 2.

Latin questions

(b) A portfolio of two essays each of no more than 4,000 words in length, including notes but excluding bibliography, and on a topic approved by the Faculty Board of Classics. Candidates should submit the titles of their essays through their Directors of Studies to the Academic Secretary of the Faculty in time to be considered by the third Monday of Full Easter Term. The essays shall be typewritten, in English, and shall be submitted through the candidate's Director of Studies to the Academic Secretary, in accordance with detailed arrangements approved by the Board, so as to arrive not later than the seventh Tuesday of the Full Easter Term in which the examination takes place. Candidates will be required to declare that the essays are their own work and that they do not contain material already used to any substantial extent for a comparable purpose. Where appropriate full and proper acknowledgement must be given to the work of others.

4. In the class-list a mark of distinction may be attached to the name of any candidate whose work in the examination shows special merit.

Part II

5. The papers for this examination shall be taken from among the papers for Part II of the Classical Tripos, and the Examiners shall be the Examiners for that examination. Every candidate shall offer two papers, of which not more than one may be taken from the Schedule of Optional Papers.

SUPPLEMENTARY REGULATIONS

Part Ia

Paper 1. Latin texts

This paper will contain passages in Latin for seen translation and for critical discussion.

Paper 2. Latin questions

This paper will contain passages in Latin for unseen translation, and exercises on the Latin language.

EDUCATION

[1. There shall be a Preliminary Examination for Part II of the Education Tripos.

2. The examination shall comprise four sections, as set out below. Candidates shall offer:

either

Option A

  1. (a)the examination requirements set out in Section I and Section II; and
  2. (b)one further paper taken from the examination requirements set out in Section III;

or

Option B

  1. (a)the examination requirements set out in Section I; and
  2. (b)three further papers taken from the examination requirements for Section II, Section III, and Section IV, providing that candidates shall offer no fewer than two papers from Section IV.

Section I. Education studies

Section I consists of two written papers, each of three hours’ duration.

Paper 1

Disciplines of education I

Paper 2

Disciplines of education II

Section II. Modernity, globalization, and education

Section II consists of two written papers, each of three hours' duration.

Paper 3

Modernity, globalization, and education

Paper 4

Language, communication, and literacy

Section III. Special subjects

Candidates may offer one special subject, which shall count as one paper. The special subjects, and the examination requirements for each special subject, shall be announced by the Faculty Board from time to time, providing that due care is taken to give sufficient notice to all candidates.

Section IV. Subject studies

Candidates may offer two or three papers from only one subject area specified in Schedule 1 to the Education Tripos.1 Where stated, some papers are examined by means other than a single written paper. Some subject areas may restrict the combinations of papers that may be offered.

3. For either Preliminary Examination, no candidate shall offer any paper, dissertation, or other exercise that he or she has previously offered in any University examination.

4. A candidate who intends to submit a dissertation under Regulation 2 shall submit the proposed topic to the Secretary of the Faculty Board through her or his Director of Studies, by a date announced by the Faculty Board not later than the beginning of the Michaelmas Term preceding the examination. The Secretary shall communicate the approval or rejection of the proposed topic to the candidate no later than the beginning of the Lent Term preceding the examination.

The submitted dissertation shall be of not less than 8,000 words and not more than 10,000 words, inclusive of notes and appendices. Dissertations shall be submitted by candidates through the Undergraduate Office to the Secretary of the Faculty Board by a date specified by the Faculty Board not later than the beginning of the Michaelmas Term preceding the examination. Each dissertation shall be in typescript, unless previous permission has been obtained from the Faculty Board to present it in manuscript; it shall bear the candidate’s examination number and shall be accompanied by a brief synopsis.

Candidates will be required to declare that the dissertation is their own work and that it does not contain material already used to any substantial extent for a comparable purpose. At the discretion of the Examiners, a candidate may be examined viva voce on her or his dissertation.]2
 

〈1. There shall be a Preliminary Examination for Part II of the Education Tripos.

2. The examination shall comprise three sections, as set out below. All candidates shall offer:

  1. (a)the examination requirements for Section I;
  2. (b)the examination requirement for the appropriate pathway as laid out in Section II;
  3. (c)two papers chosen from Section III.

Section I

Paper 1

Designing educational research

Paper 2

Emergence of educational thinking and systems

Section II

Education, psychology, and learning pathway

Paper 3

Formal and informal contexts of learning

Education, policy, and international development pathway

Paper 4

International issues in inclusion and diversity in education

Education, English, drama, and the arts pathway

One paper chosen from the following:

Paper 5

International literatures, arts, and cultures

Paper 6

Theatre, practice, and production

Section III

Critical debates in education: an introduction (also serves as Paper 1 of Part Ia of the Education Tripos)

Language, communication, and literacies (also serves as Paper 2 of Part Ia of the Education Tripos)

Experience of childhood and youth (also serves as Paper 3 of Part Ib of the Education Tripos)

Education, global inequalities, and social justice (also serves as Paper 4 of Part Ib of the Education Tripos)

International literatures, arts, and cultures (also serves as Paper 6 of Part Ib of the Education Tripos)

Learning and human development (also serves as Paper 5 of Part Ib of the Education Tripos)

Poetics, aesthetics, and criticism (also serves as Paper 6 of Part Ia of the Education Tripos)

Drama production and its contexts (also serves as Paper 7 of Part Ia of the Education Tripos)

A paper chosen from the published list for the relevant pathway for Part Ia and Part Ib of the Tripos

Statistics and methods (also serves as paper SOC5 of the Human, Social, and Political Sciences Tripos, Paper 7 of Part Ib, and Paper 3 of Part II of the Education Tripos)

3. The examination for each paper in the Preliminary Examination for Part II of the Education Tripos will be by the same method as the equivalent paper in Part Ia or Part Ib of the Education Tripos, as applicable.

4. No candidate shall offer any paper, dissertation, or other exercise that he or she has previously offered in any University examination.〉2

ENGLISH

1. There shall be a Preliminary Examination for Part I, and for Part II, of the English Tripos.

2. The Examiners shall be the Examiners for Parts I and II of the Tripos.

3. (a) For the purposes of the Regulations and any Supplementary Regulations, the study of ‘English literature’ shall be understood to mean, in the Preliminary Examination to both Parts of the Tripos, the study of literary works written in the English language (including Old English); of literary works of the British Isles including Ireland (whether written in English, or in other languages such as Latin or French); and of literary works written in Old Norse and the Medieval Celtic languages. It shall be understood to embrace the study of the English language.

(b) The study of ‘English literature’ shall normally also embrace, in the Preliminary Examination to both Parts of the Tripos, English literary translations of works originally written in other languages, so long as due consideration is given to the fact of translation.

(c)  For the Preliminary Examination to Part I of the English Tripos, the study of ‘English literature’ shall also embrace such philosophical, historical and other writing as normally comes within the scope of Papers 3, 4, 6 and 7 of Part I of the Tripos as illustrated by reading lists announced by the Faculty Board.

(d) For the Preliminary Examination to Part II of the English Tripos, the study of ‘English literature’ shall also embrace such philosophical, historical and other writing, and such products of non-literary media and expressive forms, as normally come within the scope of Papers 1, 2, and 20 to 25 of Part II of the Tripos as illustrated by reading lists announced by the Faculty Board.

(e) In the Preliminary Examination to both Parts of the Tripos, relevant comparisons with other materials that fall outside the scope of ‘English literature’ thus defined shall be accepted; but only so long as greater weight falls, in each answer offered, on materials that come within the aforementioned scope.

4. Candidates must not use the same material twice, either within any given paper or across either examination as a whole.

Part I

5. The papers in the Preliminary Examination for Part I shall be as follows:

Paper A.

English literature and its contexts, 1300–1550

Paper B.

English literature and its contexts, 1500–1700

Paper C.

English literature and its contexts, 1660–1870

Paper D1.

English literature and its contexts, 1830–1945

Paper D2.

English literature and its contexts, 1870–present

A candidate shall offer either Paper A or Paper D, and either Paper B or Paper C. Every paper shall be set for three hours. Candidates offering Paper D may do so by offering either Paper D1 or Paper D2 but not both. Candidates offering any of Papers B, C, D1, and D2 shall be required to demonstrate, in each such paper offered, substantial knowledge of English literature before and after the medial date specified for the paper in question.

Part II

6. The papers in the Preliminary Examination for Part II shall be as follows: Papers 1, 2, and 20 to 25 of Part II of the English Tripos. A candidate shall offer any two papers. Every paper shall be set for three hours except Papers 1 and 21 which shall be set for three and a half hours. In Papers 21 to 25 candidates shall be required to demonstrate substantial knowledge of the literature of the British Isles (which may include Ireland). Candidates offering any of Papers 22, 24, 25A, and 25B shall be required to demonstrate, in each such paper offered, substantial knowledge of English literature before and after the medial date specified for the paper in question.

GEOGRAPHY

1. There shall be a Preliminary Examination for Part II of the Geographical Tripos.

2. The papers for this examination shall be taken from among the papers for Part Ib of the Geographical Tripos and the Examiners shall be the Examiners for that examination.

3. Each candidate shall

  1. (a)offer Paper 1 from Group A of Part Ib of the Geographical Tripos and
  2. (b)offer three papers from Group B of Part Ib of the Geographical Tripos; and
  3. (c)submit to the Examiners, in accordance with arrangements to be specified by the Head of Department of Geography and, by a date or dates to be announced not later than the first quarter of Michaelmas Term, a record of a practical exercise or exercises undertaken by the candidate. All items in section (c) shall be submitted together with a declaration as specified in Regulation 25 of the Geographical Tripos.

HISTORY

1. There shall be Preliminary Examinations for Part I and for Part II of the Historical Tripos.

Part I

2. The examination shall consist of nineteen papers as follows:

Section A

Paper  1.

Historical argument and practice

Section B

British Political History

Paper  2.

British political history, 380–1100

Paper  3.

British political history, 1050–1509

Paper  4.

British political history, 1485–1714

Paper  5.

British political history, 1688–1886

Paper  6.

British political history, since 1880

Section C

British Economic and Social History

Paper  7.

British economic and social history, 380–1100

Paper  8.

British economic and social history, 1050–c. 1500

Paper  9.

British economic and social history, c. 1500–1750

Paper 10.

British economic and social history, 1700–1880

Paper 11.

British economic and social history, since c. 1880

Section D

European History

Paper 12.

European history, 776 bcad 69

Paper 13.

European history, 31 bcad 900

Paper 14.

European history, 900–c. 1215

Paper 15.

European history, 1200–1520

Paper 16.

European history, 1450–1760

Paper 17.

European history, 1715–1890

Paper 18.

European history, since 1890

Section E

World History

Paper 19.

World history, from 1400

3. In order to be included in the list of successful candidates, a candidate shall offer Paper 1 and two papers from Sections B–E. Only one paper may be offered from each section.

Part II

4. The examination shall consist of Papers 1 and 4–30 of Part II of the Historical Tripos. In order to be included in the list of successful candidates a candidate shall offer Paper 1 and either two or three papers, provided that no candidate shall offer a paper which he or she would not be permitted to offer as a candidate for the Tripos. The Examiners shall be the Examiners for Part II of the Tripos.

SUPPLEMENTARY REGULATIONS

Part I

Paper 1. Historical argument and practice

This paper aims to provide an opportunity for candidates to reflect on broad issues of historical argument and practice. The paper is a means of enabling candidates to raise and discuss fundamental questions which relate their specialist knowledge to more general themes of historical inquiry and explanation. The paper will offer a choice of questions, from which candidates will be required to answer one.

Papers 2–19. British, European, and world history

The scope of Papers 2–18 shall be that of the corresponding papers in Part I of the Tripos. The scope of Paper 19 shall be that of Papers 21 and 23 in Part I.

Three questions must be answered but no question shall be specified as compulsory, except that in Paper 3 (British political history, 1050–1509), Paper 4 (British political history, 1485–1714), and in Paper 18 (European history, since 1890), candidates will be required to answer at least one question from each of sections A and B.

NATURAL SCIENCES

1. There shall be a Preliminary Examination for Part II of the Natural Sciences Tripos. The subjects of the examination shall be as follows:

 Chemistry

Materials Science

 Earth Sciences

Physics

 History and Philosophy of Science

Psychology

2. Each candidate for the examination shall offer one of these subjects and shall satisfy the requirements set out in the regulations below. No candidate may offer a paper which they have previously offered in Part Ib of the Natural Sciences Tripos.

3. The examination in Chemistry shall consist of the examination requirements for the subjects Chemistry A and Chemistry B in Part Ib of the Tripos. The Examiners in Chemistry A and Chemistry B in Part Ib shall be the Examiners in Chemistry in the Preliminary Examination.

4. The examination in Physics shall consist of:

  1. either(i)the examination requirements for the subjects Physics A and Physics B in Part Ib of the Tripos
  2. or(ii)the examination requirements for the subjects Physics A and Physics B and Mathematics in Part Ib of the Tripos.

The Examiners in the subjects Physics A and Physics B and Mathematics in Part Ib shall, as appropriate, be the Examiners in Physics in the Preliminary Examination.

5. The examination in Earth Sciences shall consist of the examination requirements for the subjects Earth Sciences A and Earth Sciences B in Part Ib of the Tripos. The Examiners in Earth Sciences A and Earth Sciences B in Part Ib shall, as appropriate, be the Examiners in Earth Sciences in the Preliminary Examination.

6. The examination in History and Philosophy of Science shall consist of:

  1. (a)the papers in History and Philosophy of Science set for Part Ib of the Tripos;
  2. and
  3. (b)three essays, each of not more than 5,000 words in length and on three separate topics approved by the Board of History and Philosophy of Science. Not more than one topic may be chosen from any one field.

The Examiners in History and Philosophy of Science in Part Ib shall be the Examiners in History and Philosophy of Science in the Preliminary Examination.

7. The examination in Materials Science shall consist of the examination requirements for Materials Science in Part Ib of the Tripos and two subjects selected from Chemistry A, Mathematics, Physics A, and Physics B, in Part Ib of the Tripos. The Examiners in Materials Science in Part Ib shall be the Examiners in Materials Science in the Preliminary Examination.

8. The examination in Psychology shall consist of the examination requirements for Experimental Psychology in Part Ib of the Tripos. The Examiners in Experimental Psychology in Part Ib shall be the Examiners in Psychology in the Preliminary Examination.

9. For each subject there shall be published a separate class-list, which shall be signed by the Examiners in that subject. In each list the names of the successful candidates shall be arranged in three classes, of which the second shall be divided into two divisions.

PSYCHOLOGICAL AND BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES TRIPOS

Notice (Reporter, 2016–17, p. 304)

1. There shall be a Preliminary Examination for Part II of the Psychological and Behavioural Sciences Tripos.

2. The scheme of examination shall be as follows:

PBS 3

Social and developmental psychology

PBS 4

Cognitive neuroscience and experimental psychology (lectures and practicals drawn from the subject Experimental Psychology in Part Ib of the Natural Sciences Tripos)

Two Optional Papers from the list published in accordance with Regulation 9 of the regulations for the Psychological and Behavioural Sciences Tripos; subject to Regulation 4 of the Tripos regulations, any candidate who has not previously completed Part Ia of the Tripos must, except with the permission of the Committee of Management, offer PBS 1 and PBS 2 as Optional Papers if he or she has not previously offered these papers within another Tripos.

SUPPLEMENTARY REGULATIONS

There shall be an examination of three hours’ duration set for Paper PBS 3. Paper PBS 4 will be examined by one examination of three hours’ duration and a second examination of one and a half hours’ duration. Other papers will be examined in accordance with the regulations set down by the Faculty or comparable authority concerned.

Footnotes

  1. 1. See p. 313.a
  2. 2. The regulations in angular brackets will replace the regulations in square brackets with effect from 1 October 2018.a b