Event Details

Registrations are still open for the Intercollege Quiz Competition and the Students’ Union’s University Challenge selection process.

Registrations are still open for the Intercollege Quiz Competition and the Students’ Union’s University Challenge selection process. Entering the competition is designed to be a fun, personal challenge and all students are encouraged to give it a try and see how you perform – you might just surprise yourself!

All students are welcome from first-year undergraduate to postgraduate researchers. We particularly welcome participation from women+ and students from black and minority ethnic backgrounds who are typically underrepresented in the competition.

University Challenge is renowned for being TV’s toughest quiz team tournament. Airing on BBC Two, students from across the UK face the most fiendish of general knowledge tests. The Intercollegiate Quiz Competition will follow the same style and format as the televised show, pitting the nine colleges against each other in order to crown a winner.

The competitions will start with individual entry tests. Each test will be 20-minutes under exam conditions. The style of questions will be similar to those in the competition. Each test will focus on a specialist area and you can choose to sit just one or multiple of the tests – you can sit them all if you fancy! The tests will run as follows:

• Thursday 14th November 18:00, Minor Hall: History & Geography
• Thursday 14th November 18:45, Minor Hall: Biological & Medical Sciences

Please pre-register your attendance for any of the tests on this form.

The top-scoring individuals from each paper will be invited to compete in a live ‘on the buzzer’ general knowledge final on Thursday 21st November 18:00. The top performer from each specialist area will become part of the selected University Challenge team, plus one additional reserve member place. They will be supported through the University Challenge application and audition process.

The top scoring individual from each college on each paper will also be invited to represent their college in the Intercollegiate Quiz Competition. This competition will run as a nine-team single elimination tournament and rounds will take place across various evenings from Thursday 21st November to Monday 9th December. You can find out more about the Intercollege Competitions at @9colleges on Insta!

Charley, Captain of Lancaster’s 2024 team, said that “Trialling and auditioning for University Challenge really has been a highlight of my university experience. Getting to represent my university on such a prestigious stage is absolutely incredible and an experience I would recommend to everyone. It has helped build my confidence and leadership and I believe in my ability far more now than I did before, and even when you get things wrong, that’s okay because your team is there to support you. As the Captain, I was able to watch my team grow and develop both as quizzers and as academics, and what they have achieved is incredible. I would encourage anyone to apply for the University Challenge team, even if you’re not sure if you’re the right person, any knowledge is good knowledge in a quiz and everyone has something to learn from each other!”