Getting pooled to a different college

Did anybody else get picked from the pool by a college different to the one they applied to?

I'm really psyched that I got an offer - I never thought they'd even consider me after I botched my interview - and I feel bad about whining, but I'm a little bit uneasy about having been pooled to a college that I'm not a huge fan of. I wasn't invited to a second interview or anything, I just received an offer yesterday from Murray Edwards which stated that Queens' had put me into the Winter Pool. Slightly gutted - I loved Queens' and Medwards is so different to what I'd wanted!!

Oh well, I guess it's modern all-girls accommodation for me.

Congratulations on your offer. Very few poolees need a 2nd interview so well done for avoiding that

Medwards has an Offer Holder Day - I strongly recommend going along

Medwards

is nothing like as good as "Hurry Bedwards".

Did anybody else get picked from the pool by a college different to the one they applied to?

I'm really psyched that I got an offer - I never thought they'd even consider me after I botched my interview - and I feel bad about whining, but I'm a little bit uneasy about having been pooled to a college that I'm not a huge fan of. I wasn't invited to a second interview or anything, I just received an offer yesterday from Murray Edwards which stated that Queens' had put me into the Winter Pool. Slightly gutted - I loved Queens' and Medwards is so different to what I'd wanted!!

Oh well, I guess it's modern all-girls accommodation for me.

Over many many years, I've met many people who were pooled to a college which they didn't even consider when applying, and I have never met anyone who were unhappy with their college. In fact all of them say they were glad they had been pooled.
Almost everyone at Cambridge, including the people who were pooled, thinks their college is the best, no matter what, and that's the magic of Cambridge colleges.

Every year some candidates in this forum ask a question like yours, especially the ones who were pooled to a female college. As far as I remember and I know from their posts after they accepted their offer, they are all happy where they are.

So, congratulations!
You should grab the chance if you want to read your favourite subject at Cambridge!

That's helpful to hear, thank you!! I don't really mind the fact that it's all girls, it's not like my lectures won't be mixed anyway. I know it's superficial but I think it's the architecture that bothers me most. I'm not averse to staying in a modern college - I really really liked Robinson when I visited on the Open Day - it's just a lot of the hill colleges struck me as being quite...unappealing aesthetically? It's a very daft thing to get wound up about isn't it😂

I hope I do find it as great as all the other undergrads, and hopefully the external appearance won't bother me too much.

Well, many old colleges with gloriously beautiful buildings also have one or two (or more sometimes) ugly buildings as their accommodation that was built in '70s or later to cope with a rapid and huge increase of students. It's very likely you'll be living in one if them at some stage during your course. Many applicants don't know this because colleges are good at marketing.
Also, I know inside of some colleges' beautiful buildings are not as wonderful as outside, at all. some definitely had its days......

I can honestly tell you the aesthetic of college buildings is the last thing you'll worry and mind about once you start there.

Never been inside Medwards, but their facility seems to be quite good according to some Medwards students in this forum.


Edit:
If this makes you less unhappy about not going to queens, one of their modern accomm building, called Cripps, is often regarded as THE ugliest accomm building at Cambridge.

I found that with King's!!! It looks so grand from the outside but I was slightly underwhelmed by the accommodation. It was still nice though! I'm sure Medwards is fine really, I'll be happy wherever I go. Just so happens that it was at the bottom of my radar - then again, I can't be prejudiced, I've never actually visited the college or been inside. I'm just presuming I don't like it based on pictures and the like.

That's funny, I stayed in the Cripps court when I was there for my interview and I didn't find it that bad. I guess I was just enamoured with the Old Court and the conveyer belt in the dining hall. Nice, it's like he was an accommodation Beta tester😂

Did anybody else get picked from the pool by a college different to the one they applied to?

I'm really psyched that I got an offer - I never thought they'd even consider me after I botched my interview - and I feel bad about whining, but I'm a little bit uneasy about having been pooled to a college that I'm not a huge fan of. I wasn't invited to a second interview or anything, I just received an offer yesterday from Murray Edwards which stated that Queens' had put me into the Winter Pool. Slightly gutted - I loved Queens' and Medwards is so different to what I'd wanted!!

Oh well, I guess it's modern all-girls accommodation for me.

Well, king's is not the only one like that.

Don't know how the inside of Cripps is like these days but if I remember correctly, they've done a major refurbishment work a few years ago, so it may not be too bad inside now.
And the same can be true with other "ugly' buildings. The inside may not be as ugly as it looks outside as all colleges try to improve/refurbish their accommodation when they can.
Don't judge a book by its cover.

same situation for me, I applied to St John's as I love having a lot of people in a big college and co-ed, but I was pooled to Newnham. I don't know what I'm going to do because all girls accommodation puts me off so much as I've been in it before and disliked it every time :' but it's obviously hard because it's still an offer from Cambridge!

Did anybody else get picked from the pool by a college different to the one they applied to?

I'm really psyched that I got an offer - I never thought they'd even consider me after I botched my interview - and I feel bad about whining, but I'm a little bit uneasy about having been pooled to a college that I'm not a huge fan of. I wasn't invited to a second interview or anything, I just received an offer yesterday from Murray Edwards which stated that Queens' had put me into the Winter Pool. Slightly gutted - I loved Queens' and Medwards is so different to what I'd wanted!!

Oh well, I guess it's modern all-girls accommodation for me.

Ahh, hello there lovely! Firstly, congratulations on the offer, you're now officially a Cambridge Offer Holder!

I got pooled to an all girls college too (Newnham) with a completely different vibe to my first choice, but I've done a ton of research and found that it actually suits me more than my first choice!

If they do an offer day, I'd 100% recommend going in order to get a feel of the place, and it might actually be what you're looking for

It might be a case of finding out more about the little things: Newnham lets you have a lil fridge in your room which makes me so happy!! There'll probably be some small differences and things Medwards has which Queens never did, I guess?

Well done though

Thanks, my dad reckons that Medwards might be better for me because it's quite relaxed and quirky - a bit like me I suppose.

I got pooled to an all girls college too (Newnham) with a completely different vibe to my first choice, but I've done a ton of research and found that it actually suits me more than my first choice!

If they do an offer day, I'd 100% recommend going in order to get a feel of the place, and it might actually be what you're looking for

Does how well you fit the vibe of the college affect your chances of an offer?

As this thread is 5 years old, it might not be the best place to ask.

But no, we don't take that into account. Colleges sometimes get reputations, but don't forget that the undergraduate cohort which will have been at Medwards 5 years ago will all have graduated (or be in their final year of clinical Medicine) by now. Sometimes we all forget just how quickly student populations change!

Hi,
Please can you explain what the summer pool is?