The Big 'Which Cambridge College?' Thread

I am applying to Cambridge for 2014 and I'm still not sure which college to choose. After hours of "research", I ruled out all except King's and Clare. Both of them seem very appealing.

So, what is your opinion? Which of them is better? Especially if you are currently studying at Cambridge and have first-hand experience, I'd like to hear what you have to say. And could you could go a bit more into detail about pros and cons?

Reply 3981

peter12345

I visited Cambridge once. Inside the King's College place the accommodation seemed very ramshackle and run down. "the rooms and corridors looked like they hadn't been touched since the 70s.

Reply 3982

Helenia

20

What subject?

I went to Clare and would definitely pick it out of those two, but I'm biased!

Reply 3983

Dfwisgod

Hows Emma for the social side? And is it one of the more competitive ones?

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 3984

Bloxorus

16

I can't decide between Jesus and St John's for Economics. Can anyone give me any information that will help me decide?

Reply 3985

jwlcp

What's trinity hall and/or Christ like? :-)

Reply 3986

Natalie21

15

Original post by jwlcp

What's trinity hall and/or Christ like? :-)

They're both lovely. Trinity Hall backs onto the river. But Christ's is better :wink:

.

Reply 3987

St. Brynjar

18

Original post by jwlcp

What's trinity hall and/or Christ like? :-)

I'm off to Trinity Hall in a few months. I'm very biased so take what I'm about to say with a pinch of salt.

Spoiler

Here are some photos:

Spoiler

Reply 3988

lp386

12

Original post by St. Brynjar

I'm off to Trinity Hall in a few months. I'm very biased so take what I'm about to say with a pinch of salt.

Spoiler

Oh, are you in for a shock come exam term... :P

Reply 3989

St. Brynjar

18

Original post by lp386

Oh, are you in for a shock come exam term... :P

Hah I'm well aware I'll have gone insane within a week. All part of the fun eh? :wink:

Reply 3990

alex_hk90

19

Original post by lp386

Oh, are you in for a shock come exam term... :P

I tended to find exam term the most relaxed. :dontknow:

Reply 3991

Bomb

Hey guys, I would like to ask for A100 undergraduate medicine, which college of Cambridge puts most weighting on A levels + BMAT?

Thanks

Reply 3992

lp386

12

Original post by Bomb

Hey guys, I would like to ask for A100 undergraduate medicine, which college of Cambridge puts most weighting on A levels + BMAT?

Thanks

We don't have any information on that, unfortunately - colleges don't state how they weight different parts of the application. (Additionally, it's worth remembering that almost all the applicants will have excellent A Level grades, and almost all the applicants will have good BMAT scores, so there's only a very limited advantage to be gained there.)

Reply 3993

username873490

14

Original post by Lia.

What have you guys heard about Magdalene College? I want to do HSPS there! How's the accomodation and what about the buildings? I've heard that they're supposed to be quite beautiful and up until now I've only seen nice pictures but then again they wouldn't put up photos of the ugly parts on their website, right? Anyways, if you know something about the college, let me know! :smile:

I'm starting at Magdalene in October- It really is beautiful, and a good location. I think the accomodation is a little varied, both in terms of facilities, and buildings- As I'm not there yet, I might not be the best person to ask about it though :smile:

Reply 3994

EleanorKeats

1

Hey guys, I was deciding between Queen's, Christ's and Pembroke (but feel free to mention others if you think that would better match my requirements). Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

-Grass you can walk on (relatively large grounds)
-Pretty buildings (Though I'm not too bothered by one ugly building)
-Gym on site (not necessary but a bonus)
-Theatre/ studio space
-Centrally located
-Lively atmosphere/ good bar

I have ruled out Kings/ Trinity/ St John's - mainly because I was terrified while walking around them. I would prefer somewhere slightly more laid back.

Reply 3995

Oromis263

2

Original post by EleanorKeats

Hey guys, I was deciding between Queen's, Christ's and Pembroke (but feel free to mention others if you think that would better match my requirements). Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

-Grass you can walk on (relatively large grounds)
-Pretty buildings (Though I'm not too bothered by one ugly building)
-Gym on site (not necessary but a bonus)
-Theatre/ studio space
-Centrally located
-Lively atmosphere/ good bar

I have ruled out Kings/ Trinity/ St John's - mainly because I was terrified while walking around them. I would prefer somewhere slightly more laid back.

For laid back, King's is well up there. The buildings may be imposing, but beyond that, from what I've gathered it all seems very chill.

Relatively large grounds + central is going to be difficult, as is the on-site gym (I know most colleges I looked into had one, but it tended to be fairly crap).

Christ's is right next to Christ's Piece, which is a public open space.

Reply 3996

Tortious

16

Original post by EleanorKeats

Hey guys, I was deciding between Queen's, Christ's and Pembroke (but feel free to mention others if you think that would better match my requirements). Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

-Grass you can walk on (relatively large grounds)
-Pretty buildings (Though I'm not too bothered by one ugly building)
-Gym on site (not necessary but a bonus)
-Theatre/ studio space
-Centrally located
-Lively atmosphere/ good bar

I have ruled out Kings/ Trinity/ St John's - mainly because I was terrified while walking around them. I would prefer somewhere slightly more laid back.

Pembroke satisfies most of those criteria. Taking each in turn:

•

Grass - not really supposed to walk on any of the lawns, although in summer we're allowed to sit on the bowling green. It's not that far to Christ's Pieces though, and I never missed not being able to walk on the grass

•

Buildings - all of Pembroke's buildings look great; even Foundress Court, built in 1997, is pretty good. It's quite "simple" because it's actually Japanese-style, and is one of the better looking modern buildings (unlike Queens' bar!). :p: A lot of the college was designed by Alfred Waterhouse, who's fairly famous, and of course the Chapel was built by Sir Christopher Wren :smile:

•

Gym - there's a gym in the basement of Foundress Court, although I didn't get around to using it. It's small, but it's free, and does the job!

•

Theatre/studio space - yep, there's room for this in Foundress Court (called "New Cellars"). We've also got the Pembroke Players who are well-known for their productions; you don't have to be from Pembroke to join, but it's another point in our favour :wink:

•

Centrally located - the main college is 10 minutes from town and the Sidgwick Site, backs onto the Downing Site, and most of the houses are about 5 minutes from the Sidgwick Site too. In first year you'll be in college, so no need to worry about this!

•

Atmosphere/bar - Pembroke's widely acknowledged to have a friendly and laid back atmosphere, which is one of the main reasons why I applied; it's the third oldest college (founded in 1347) but isn't "stuffy" in the slightest. There's a nice mix of old traditions, such as formal every night (if you can find time to go that often!) and a more modern relaxed vibe. The bar isn't the cheapest in Cambridge, with the average pint costing £2.30-£2.70 (at Robinson/Emma it's about £1.90, if memory serves), but it's still cheaper than the pubs and gets fairly lively

Hope this helps. :smile:

Reply 3997

username1042689

21

Original post by Mezzameg

Hey Joe, your questions weren't really specific enough for me to give a simple answer but if you message me I can tell you all about Sidney, it's know as the friendly college for a reason!

I thought it was known as the Sainsbury's college? :colone:

Or is that Selwyn?

Reply 3998

Veni Vidi Fugi

17

Original post by EleanorKeats

Hey guys, I was deciding between Queen's, Christ's and Pembroke (but feel free to mention others if you think that would better match my requirements). Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

-Grass you can walk on (relatively large grounds)
-Pretty buildings (Though I'm not too bothered by one ugly building)
-Gym on site (not necessary but a bonus)
-Theatre/ studio space
-Centrally located
-Lively atmosphere/ good bar
I have ruled out Kings/ Trinity/ St John's - mainly because I was terrified while walking around them. I would prefer somewhere slightly more laid back.

Original post by Tortious

Pembroke satisfies most of those criteria. Taking each in turn:

•

Grass - not really supposed to walk on any of the lawns, although in summer we're allowed to sit on the bowling green. It's not that far to Christ's Pieces though, and I never missed not being able to walk on the grass

•

Buildings - all of Pembroke's buildings look great; even Foundress Court, built in 1997, is pretty good. It's quite "simple" because it's actually Japanese-style, and is one of the better looking modern buildings (unlike Queens' bar!). :p: A lot of the college was designed by Alfred Waterhouse, who's fairly famous, and of course the Chapel was built by Sir Christopher Wren :smile:

•

Gym - there's a gym in the basement of Foundress Court, although I didn't get around to using it. It's small, but it's free, and does the job!

•

Theatre/studio space - yep, there's room for this in Foundress Court (called "New Cellars"). We've also got the Pembroke Players who are well-known for their productions; you don't have to be from Pembroke to join, but it's another point in our favour :wink:

•

Centrally located - the main college is 10 minutes from town and the Sidgwick Site, backs onto the Downing Site, and most of the houses are about 5 minutes from the Sidgwick Site too. In first year you'll be in college, so no need to worry about this!

•

Atmosphere/bar - Pembroke's widely acknowledged to have a friendly and laid back atmosphere, which is one of the main reasons why I applied; it's the third oldest college (founded in 1347) but isn't "stuffy" in the slightest. There's a nice mix of old traditions, such as formal every night (if you can find time to go that often!) and a more modern relaxed vibe. The bar isn't the cheapest in Cambridge, with the average pint costing £2.30-£2.70 (at Robinson/Emma it's about £1.90, if memory serves), but it's still cheaper than the pubs and gets fairly lively

Hope this helps. :smile:

Just further to that, Pembroke's location is really good because it's central enough to be near to everything without being swamped by tourists as other 'central' colleges are. Pembroke's buildings are very much on the 'pretty' rather than 'imposing' side

Reply 3999

Tortious

16

Original post by Veni Vidi Fugi

Just further to that, Pembroke's location is really good because it's central enough to be near to everything without being swamped by tourists as other 'central' colleges are. Pembroke's buildings are very much on the 'pretty' rather than 'imposing' side

Of course - one of the few benefits of the Corpus Clock! :wink:

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