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For those who chose between Murray Edwards and Newnham what persuaded you either way?

Hi there, I'm considering applying for the Cambridge Foundation Year in 2025 after hopefully doing an Access Course starting next September (I'm 34 and have had a lot of barriers to education, and tick a lot of the eligibility criteria for the Foundation Year). I plan on then applying to do a UG degree in History at Cambridge. I'm particularly interested in both Murray Edwards and Newnham - I'm planning on going to the open day in September to have a look around, but just wondering what others' experiences have been. A brief list of what matters most for me in terms of choosing a college (no particular order):

*friendliness and pastoral support

*kitchen access and plenty of en-suite room availability (I need an en-suite for disability reasons)

*a good art room

*nice gardens where you can walk on the grass, and ideally some kind of gardening/veg plot for students as I enjoy gardening

*LGBTQ+ friendly esp trans friendly

Brief list of what *doesn't* matter to me (again no particular order):

*bar prices (I don't drink alcohol)

*quality of formals (I probably wouldn't be interested in going to them all that often but a few per term might be fun)

*access to male students (I'm a lesbian and also socialise mostly with women and other queer people anyway)

*sports facilities (not sporty at all and my disabilities make it difficult anyway)

*how prestigious a college is or not

*nightlife

I don't really have a strong opinion either way as both colleges seem great and they both have strengths and weaknesses, so just interested in people's honest opinions.

Reply 1

Paralove

Tbh both tick most if not all of those boxes. I personally chose Newnham because it was the nice in-between of old and new and walking on grass, and so incredibly pretty, as well as ovens in all kitchens (or access to one) and right across the road from my lectures. I'd say rooms-wise my preference was Newnham for sure but I also went when I was 18 so different needs perhaps. I did look at both though as my two main options, and ME also has ovens etc.

If disability is in the mix, depending on your necessary adjustments etc it might be worth considering availability of step-free access, proximity to your classes (not just for the FY but beyond) and any particular funds or types of support you could need access to, which would be one to email the admissions teams about.