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Chris Fang (Medicine 1991) recalls the moment he decided to give to ����Ӱҵ College  – and why he decided to increase his donation to support widening participation.

In 2007, Chris received a call from the Caius Telephone Campaign and had a warm conversation with John, an arts student, before choosing to set-up a monthly direct debit. 

“We spoke at some length about our shared experiences at Caius. By the end of the conversation, I had been convinced to  give a regular, although relatively small, donation,” he says, of his £30 per month gift. “In subsequent correspondence with the fundraising team I expressed a wish that my gift would go towards widening access.”

Chris’s preference was based on his own school experience. The son of an academic at the University of Liverpool, he attended a selective comprehensive in Liverpool, which educated children from all over the city, based on academic potential and extracurricular talents, in, for example, sport, music or drama. 

“My educational experience allowed me to see that there were very intelligent and gifted children from a broad spectrum of backgrounds,” Chris says. “The school gave them the opportunity to consider university despite there perhaps having been no history of attending higher education in their families. For some children, however, the idea of going to Oxbridge was just something they thought was out of the question, even though some of my peers from more working class backgrounds probably had as good a chance as anyone of winning a place.

“This background is what made me wish to prioritise my gift for widening access, to enable those children to at least entertain the idea that gaining entry to Cambridge University is an attainable goal.”

Chris recalls his generation was fortunate to precede the introduction of tuition fees and he was grateful for the subsidised College accommodation. This enabled him to enjoy the experience of Caius, and graduate largely unencumbered by debt.

It is why when he was approached to increase his gift, from £30 a month to over £200 a month, he agreed after careful consideration. It is this generosity which supports students like Carys Earl (Medicine 2021), who was interviewed on the College website this week. 

“I contacted the College as my gift had remained unchanged and I was conscious that its real value had been eroded by inflation,” Chris adds. “This led to a conversation (with Linda Hanssler, the Deputy Development Director) which brought into focus the financial difficulties of clinical medics, an issue that I was ignorant of. As I was only thinking in terms of increasing my monthly gift to £50, the proposed increase to over £200 in my donation came as an initial shock.

“Linda put forward a convincing case and I recognised that I did have the financial means to do this.

“I spoke to my wife and, with little hesitation, she agreed that  increasing our gift would be the right thing to do. £2,800 a year (with Gift Aid this equals £3,500, covering a full bursary) is a reasonable sum but knowing that gift is making a positive impact in the life of a student gives me much satisfaction.

“As I do have some grasp of the inner workings of an institution like Caius, it means I am confident that the money will go to where it will have a maximum effect.”

Chris Fang then and now

Chris, who has three teenage children, would encourage others to give if they have the means.

He adds: “My contemporaries and I enjoyed a time when society provided more funding for our education and day-to-day expenses whilst at university. That is no longer the case. I think we should reflect upon our good fortune and do what we can in return, at a time when we are more financially secure.

“Obviously everyone's financial circumstances are different, but if someone is able to start gifting whatever they can afford to, it would be of great benefit to the current group of students.”

The financial challenges for clinical medicine students are acute. To seek to address it in some way, Clinical Medicine students are the focus of the fundraising campaign for Caius Giving Day, which takes place over 36 hours on February 26 to 27. .

On the need for doctors from all backgrounds, Chris says: “A diverse medical workforce is an important pre requisite that enhances the functioning of the teams that deliver healthcare and this ultimately feeds through to better patient care.”

Chris has corresponded with Carys, and is happy to see her thriving not just academically, but also in her rowing, as a member of the Cambridge Boat Race crew.

“It's a once in a lifetime opportunity for Carys to participate in The Boat Race,” he adds. “I'm more than happy that my financial assistance helped her to achieve this, not only for herself, but also to represent Caius in what is one of the most  iconic sporting events in the world.”

Watching Carys compete in the winning crew and seal victory over Oxford in the 2024 Boat Race was satisfying for Chris “It was a quietly rewarding moment for me as I felt that maybe my support had played a very tiny part in giving Carys the freedom to accomplish her goal,” Chris says.

Read an interview with Carys Earl (Medicine 2021) on what Chris' support means