Samantha Dennison: Rejected Cambridge

Despite the unconditional offer, Samantha - who was Head of Year at Christ College in Brecon - admitted to being a little nervous before she found out her results.

"But obviously it wasn't the same as everyone else because a university place didn't depend on it," she said.

Having decided Cambridge University was not for her, the teenager decided she liked the idea of Harvard.

"I had the chance to go over at Easter and preferred it to anything else I had seen over here."

But the process was not that simple and involved filling in forms, writing essays, taking exams and also interviews.

The school is delighted by her success.

Teachers said the secret of her success was that they encouraged her to aim high and helped push her in the right direction.