[umarf786]

Im planning to apply to oxford and in the process, have been looking at the different colleges..

Just wanted to know --

1) What do you recommend, an open application or application to a specific college?

2) Which college would you go to from the below three ::

Lady Margaret Hall (LMH)
Lincoln
Oriel


Thanks

[Hoofbeat]

Lincoln because I go there and its the best Hehe, but I'm completely biased and also tired so can't be bothered to think sensibly.

Pick the college you like, not the ones we like on here!

[oriel04]

I see your applying for Law. Are you sure that it is worth applying with those grades? No offence, but due to the competitive nature or law, it may be worth considering applying to somewhere else, as it is not uncommon for 4/5/6 rejections in law applications. However, if your set on applying, i'd recommend Oriel, it is a beautiful college. You'll need to ace the LNAT though to guarantee even getting an interview. Good luck.

[Cirsium]

I would definitely recommend applying to a specific college as if you don't there's a chance you may end up at somewhere you don't like at all - as opposed to at somewhere you like, but are not completely in love with. That said don't be put off if you hear that open applications are less likely to succeed - that's mainly because most international applicants apply open and a lower percentage of them get in.

Personally I would recommend Lincoln - small, friendly, quite pretty, nice bar, good location.

[Woostarite]

I'm afraid I have to side with Oriel, especially since you've only got a B in Law, and a B in GCSE mathematics (one of the 'recommended' courses listed in the criteria).
Given only 1 in 5/10 get in for Law, I really think you would be wasting a UCAS option. But good luck with your applications anyway.

[Hoofbeat]

Actually having just looked at your grades, I agree with the two above posters. Your A-Levels are not particularly strong subjects and Media particularly will not be looked upon favourably by the tutors since it is considered an easy option, which leaves you with ABC. Most Law applicants have an A in a strong traditional subject such as English/History, yet this is your worst. Similarly the B in law will worry them - if you can't get an A at A2 in the subject your planning to study at Uni then they'll be very concerned. Govt & Politics is a controversial A2 as well - if its accompanied by 2 traditional subjects then that would be ok, but in your case your subjects are pretty weak. If you have a good reason for your grades being so low, then they might take that into consideration. Another thing to mention is that Lincoln is also pretty competitive for Law as recently we've been having very good exam results at both mods and finals, so you may find it better to apply to a less competitive college.

[Nutter]

Listen to Hoofbeat above; the truth hurts at times, but you'll have to deal with it.

What are your predicted grades? That would matter ALOT in your case, since your AS grades aren't particularly very promising relative to those of other Law applicants.

And since you've already watered down your choices to those 3, just pick one of them instead of making an open application and in all likelihood, being assigned none of those 3 shortlisted colleges. Most students end up loving whatever college they end up in though so don't concern yourself too much with that either - you'll grow into it.

[kizer]

In fairness, people do sometimes get in with those grades for law. However, your subjects are not traditional either.

To be honest I'd be surprised if you got an interview, but an incredible LNAT and interview could of course change all that.

Personally with those grades I would apply to LMH as it is the least popular.

[littlemissvicki]

I have been looking at which college to go to all afternoon (and most of the morning) and i still have no idea. All i know is i don't want to go to an all girls college. Please help!!!!!!!! If u have any info on where is best to go, reputation of the colleges, or where i have the best chance of getting in i would be really grateful.
I am hoping to study law.
thanks, luv vicki

AS levels: Law(A), Psychology (A), English Lit (A), Sociology (A), Biology (A)
My A levels are the same subjects except I've dropped Biology to take politics AS and critical thinking AS.

[Huw Davies]

From looking at the prospectus, are there any colleges which catch your eye? Apart from having boys in, what else are you looking for in a college (small\large, desperate\indifferent towards being in the middle of town, ancient\modern\don't care buildings)? Without knowing much else, most of us will plump for our own college as the best.

Though actually it is quite apparent that St. Anne's is.

[littlemissvicki]

Reasonably large, and near the town centre would be good. I'm not too worried about how old the college is. I live a long way from oxford and would struggle to get to any open days so any advice at all from people already there or who have had a chance to visit would be really useful. Also does anyone know which colleges have the best acceptance rates.
thanks
luv vicki

[kizer]

St John's is reasonably large and near the town centre.

Don't worry too much about acceptance rates, the more popular a college is, the more they pool people to other colleges.

Example: St John's gets 540 applications a year. 120 get in to St John's. But another 60 get in somewhere else. Overall, 1 in 3 get in, which is very good.

[littlemissvicki]

Thank you. I'm off to look at st John's home page now. Please send me any more suggestions.
luv vicki

[Huw Davies]

No college is that from the centre of town - St. Hugh's and LMH are the furthest and about 15-20 minutes' walk.

The Student Union's Alternative Prospectus has college overviews in:
http://www.ousu.org/files/ap2006lowres.pdf

There's their official blurbs here:
http://www.admissions.ox.ac.uk/colleges/

Picking based on favourable-seeming admissions ratios is not recommended. They tend to fluctuate substantially from year to year as people chase the low numbers, and generally if you are a good applicant to a competitive college you will be pooled to a less popular one anyway. For a course like law the competition is tough everywhere.

Getting hold of the paper prospectus (write to or e-mail the university admissions office) will be really helpful for you. There are college descriptions including stuff about size, facilities, and admissions ratios if you really want to use them. Does your school have a copy of it?

[littlemissvicki]

I think there are some paper prospectus' in the college library. Although God knows where for. i think i may have left it a little late to send away for prospectus' as the college wants my draft application by tuesday. thanks for your help. Any ideas about which college to go to for a reasonable social life in Oxford.
luv vicki

[Elles]

Or if you've got a decent connection there are prospectus & other bumph .pdf downloads here - http://www.admissions.ox.ac.uk/downloads/

[Peter_The_Great]

(Original post by littlemissvicki)
reasonable social life in Oxford.

The ultimate party college is Mansfield, yah. Go apply there.

[Athena]

(Original post by Peter_The_Great)
The ultimate party college is Mansfield, yah. Go apply there.

No, Wadham Best entz in the uni, apparently

[LatinMachine]

WIKI! :

http://thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/Cho...Oxford_College

Tis very good advice. I'm afraid you've already got my back up by saying you don't want to an all girl's college: there is nothing wrong with it. Christ I'm not even a Fresher yet and it's getting to me! I feel for every Hilda's girl who has spent time defending it. **breathes** Anyway. Choosing by the number of people who get offers is redundant, it's about the same from college to college. Read the Wiki. You know it makes sense.

[Huw Davies]

There's nothing wrong with it - equally there's nothing wrong not feeling it's for you (though of course many don't get any choice in the matter). The wiki suffers from being incomplete - will try to write an Anne's article when I get time.

Most colleges have a decent social life I think, and there's nothing to stop you doing university societies or just going out with your friends if you want more. Certain ones (Merton, St. John's) are known for having more academic pressure and people won't be going out so much but it's not really a huge effect.