A teenager has won a place at one of the top universities in the world to study to become a doctor.

Munaib Chowdhury, from Forest Gate, will swap East London for Corpus Christie, Cambridge, rated the best in Britain four years in a row.

The 17-year-old, whose dad works in a supermarket, is set to arrive at the prestigious university next month entering the freshman year to study medicine.

The university, established in 1352 by the Guild of Corpus Christi and the Guild of the Blessed Virgin Mary, has produced a host of leading public figures, including Downton Abbey star Hugh Bonneville.

Munaib said: “It does give me a certain satisfaction to know that the people I was up against for this course tend to come from the very best backgrounds.

“They have access to the best resources in the country, their parents can afford to send them to extra tuition classes, to mock interviews and all the things necessary to win a place at somewhere like Cambridge.”

He added that he has not had the same advantages they have had but yet still secured a place in the same ways they did.

The youngster attributes his success to teachers at Forest Gate Community School, who gave him the academic grounding and confidence to apply to Cambridge.

The school also run a scholarship programme which has seen four pupils win places at the country’s top sixth-form, including David Cameron’s old school Eton College.

He said: “Without the support I got from the school there is no way I would have won a place at Cambridge.

“At this school, if you are very bright they make sure you do not waste your potential. They push you and push you to your very limit. There is no hiding place.”

Forest Gate Community School head teacher Simon Elliott said: “Munaib success is further proof of what we tell pupils at this school. Your background is no barrier to what you can achieve.”