Why 14 black male Cambridge students posed for this photo

Cambridge ACS

"Young black men don't grow up thinking they'll make it here. They should."

This was the intended message behind a photo of 14 black male students from Cambridge University that has been liked more than 2,000 times on Facebook.

The group posed for several images that were shared in a bid to encourage more black students to apply to the university.

The post on Facebook said: "In 2015, only 15 black, male undergraduates were accepted into Cambridge.

"However, it is important that despite their underrepresentation, we let young black people know that this is something that they can aspire to."

Of 3,449 students accepted into Cambridge during the 2015/2016 academic year, 38 defined themselves as black, a proportion of just over 1%. This figure did not include any students who defined themselves on their application as mixed race.

Folajimi Babasola, 20, who is studying engineering and appeared in the photo, said he wanted the image to challenge the "stereotype" of a Cambridge student.

He said: "The aim of the picture was really to encourage more black students to apply here because many people get discouraged by a particular image or stereotype of a Cambridge student that they have in their mind, thinking that they won't fit in or be accepted."

He said he wanted to show others "there are people very much like them here and if we can get here, they can."

William Gore, 19, who studies English, saidhe felt "really lucky" to be involved in a photo that has gone viral.

He said he wanted to send out a message that black students should "apply" to Cambridge, adding: "You don't need to change who you are to get here.

"There are people here at Cambridge from different backgrounds, who don't fit the stereotypical image of what a Cambridge student looks like, doing their thing and killing it."