Pairings: Caitlin de Jode

Caitlin de Jode

Schools Liaison Officer

Trinity can mean many things to many people. A citadel of knowledge and opportunity. A way of life. A workplace. A home. To me, it’s all of those, and more, but for many of us – women and non-binary people, students of colour, first-generation students – it can be hard to feel at home here, with the weight of Trinity’s aristocratic, patriarchal history bearing down upon you.

But we make history too. It’s only 40 years since women were admitted to Trinity and today, it’s the work done by the Admissions team to change things for the better that makes me most proud of the College. We work with hundreds of schools and thousands of young people, offering information and, we hope, inspiration, to give them the chance to change their lives, as Cambridge changed mine.

As a former student and current employee of the College, I’ve experienced Trinity from almost every angle, and explored every court and corner. Except the roof, obviously. I’ve eaten feasts in our grand Hall, cooked beans on toast in a Whewell’s Court kitchen, grabbed lunch with my colleagues in the staff dining room. I know Trinity inside and out. My job means I’m constantly surrounded by young people seeing Trinity for the first time and honestly, I can think of no greater privilege.