Choosing an Oxford College

Anyone can tell me the advantages or disadvantages of choosing a small college over a big one?

Anyone can tell me the advantages or disadvantages of choosing a small college over a big one?

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If you mean big in terms of the size of the central site...
Big colleges have wide open spaces where you can find a quiet spot if you want one. Smaller colleges tend to be more natural communities since the students there bump into one another with greater frequency. That's the main difference.

If you mean big in terms of total number of students...
There is not much difference in size. Corpus Christi is small with 250 students, St Catherine's large with 487 & Christ Church 423. The others lie between 300 and 360.

Hmm i guess both physical size and population size ... is somerville considered small too?

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If you mean big in terms of total number of students...
There is not much difference in size. Corpus Christi is small with 250 students, St Catherine's large with 487 & Christ Church 423. The others lie between 300 and 360.

Its hard to know exactly as there are differing numbers of 4th years and some colleges take a lot more international visitors than others, but those numbers are not in line with Oxford's own numbers at all. http://www.ox.ac.uk/about/facts-and-figures/admissions-statistics/college-success-rates

Going down the list, Balliol has a total intake (inflow) of 331 over 3 years and the prospectus estimates the stock at 382.
For the next college, Brasenose, the intake is 313 over 3 years and the stock 370. The next, Christ Church, has an inflow of 359 but a stock of 423 which makes it an outlier.

Hmm i guess both physical size and population size ... is somerville considered small too?

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I'd say Somerville is big, at least in terms of physical size. Small to me would be something like the Turl Street colleges or Brasenose.

How much should I worry about proximity to the faculty buildings I'd need? I stayed at Pembroke in the summer and it seemed quite a way from Physics (which is what I hope to do).

How much should I worry about proximity to the faculty buildings I'd need? I stayed at Pembroke in the summer and it seemed quite a way from Physics (which is what I hope to do).

Physics has a lot of contact hours so decide whether you're fine with going all the way to the science area from Pembroke (for example) everyday or not. It's not always nice walking 15 minutes in the morning in the colder months, but I'm sure some people enjoy the walk Location is usually important to people for that reason. If you want something close by, consider Keble, Wadham, Somerville and Mansfield (among others)

Are there any other factors you'd like to consider? As there are quite a few colleges which are old and near the town centre :L

You might like to consider Univ, St.Johns, Balliol, Brasenose etc

Thank you for your recommendations. I heard someone said the colleges which are younger are easier to get in, I don't know if it is true or not.

Not at all true, your choice of college has no affect on your chances of getting in

Evidence?

Evidence?

That's what the pooling system is for -

Colleges work co-operatively to try and ensure all applicants for a particular subject, across all colleges, can be compared against one another, in order that the very best people get Oxford places. As a result, around 27% of successful candidates for 2013 entry are at a college other than the college they named as their preference.