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Durham college

heya,
yes in my opinion it is really that good! I suppose its a matter of personal taste but i haven't met one person who doesn't like it yet, i have met quite a few people from other colleges though who are seriously considering swapping to Cuths!! I don't think there is any point phoning durham now, your best bet if you really want to swap is to wait til you arrive and then look into it, it shouod be easier then (if you still wanted to that is!)
I think i know what you mean about 'is it a college you can see' cos i thought the same, cos its called a society i thought it might just be a collective name for all the people not in any other place, but yeah we our based on the bailey, its exactly the same as any other college except for the name, the bar opening hours and the fact that we have a lot more control over any decisions made!!
The accomodation thing......i'm not going to lie, yes it is possible that you could be put in a house that is very far away, there is one place which is about 45 minutes walk from town, but the majority of people get put in places that are at most about 10 minutes walk away, but again if you dont like where you are living you can swap so easily! there have been loads of people that have swapped houses in the first term already!!

I don't know that much about music, although the proctor in our house is a music student so i know a bit, there is no chapel but we do have a choir and they are really active, they have had a few concerts this last term and sang at the Christmas formal, and there is always the university choir you could join!!!

Reply 21

AveHan

KarmaPoliceman

I recently recieved an offer from Durham University, going to St Cuthberts as my college.
I picked St Cuths not really knowin anything about it so i was just wondering what peoples opinion is of that college.

Right...Cuth's is great!!! Whoever said we were quiet could not be futher from the truth! Everyone in Cuth's is really friendly, and likes to have a good time. We are situated at the end of the bailey, the houses there are very picturesque and there is a great beer garden with plenty of room for jism wrestling!! The bar is great, the cheapest in the university, and opens at lunch time. We have great sports teams, and you can play at any level. Also, if you want to found your own team/society, Cuth's will give you the money to do so. Another thing, whoever said there were no practical differences between a college and a society was also very wrong. Our college is run by students, for students, and the students have the power to decide things for themselves, such as what to finance. eg. We managed to get the internet provided by the college in our house, by putting it through the JCR committee. Also, don't worry about acommodation. I live out, in a house, it's great. We're close to the station, 10 mins from lecture theatres, 15 from the science site, which is about the same distance as the bailey is from there. We're 15 mins from the bailey, and 10 mins from the station or the town centre. It's a great location, everyone in the second year wants their houses there. Our house is also massive, and beautiful, and I live with some amazing people. Plus you get your accomodation for 40 weeks, at the same price, which nobody else does, and you also get 3 meals a day provided, 7 days a week! Can't argue with that! If there's anything else at all that you want to know, just ask me or AmyBlue! Hope that helps!

Reply 22

AveHan

kat

really is it that good, i was going 2 fone durham up 2 ask 2 swop afta ive foned cam!
do u know nething about music, ie the choirs, as it doesnt have a chapel, so i presume theres no chapel choir?
could ur accomodation be along way from the society?
and is it an actual college that u can c? or is it just called a col if u know what i mean?
thanx 4 ur help!

Hiya! Well...I too applied to Castle (University) and got put in Cuth's, and I was really upset about it and was going to phone them up and everything...(mainly because I had wanted to live in the castle!) But I am so glad that I didn't! I love Cuth's! It really is as great as Amy says it is, and nothing could ever make me swap colleges, although I too know people who are trying to swap into Cuths! Especially since meeting people from Castle, everyone at Cuths is a lot friendlier, and less snobby, our accomodation is much better, and our bar opens much, much earlier!! I was also really upset that I didn't get to live on the bailey, and angrily rang up Cuths, but our house is so much better, and i'm so glad I am where I am, and living where I am, it all worked out for the best, and I wouldn't have it any other way!
It is a college really, but just with more power, so you get all the benefits of a college and more.
The best way to get good accomodation is to not apply to the bailey, but to a house in a good location, like mine. We'll tell you where, if you let us know. You're very likely to get a place there, as most competition is for the bailey, and you won't risk getting stuck somewhere miles away. There is a slight possibility of this, but most places are close to the centre.
Music wise, yes we don't have a chapel, but we do have a choir, who are very active. At least one choir actually, I seem to remember seeing more than one at the fresher's fair. Our proctor is in about a million choirs and sings at various churches, and the cathedral, so there is loads to get involved in. There are loads of different University Choirs too, all different kinds of music, eg. gospel, folk, and there are also various music groups and orchestras if you're interested in them, and if you're at Cuth's you can even get funding to start your own if you want!
Hope that helps. If you have any more questions let me and Amy know.

Reply 23

kat

1

Thanx alot everybody you have been a great help, i thought i would def want to change my college but im seriously thinking of not changing it, as there seems to be far worst places to be:in my opinion, like hilde and bede and johns. The main reason y i wanted to swop tho was to sing in a chapel choir, but il prob and up in johns and my religious beliefs are quite oposite as a protestant to be with evangelicists!
what would u say the most prestigious colleges were? and which 1s have balls etc?
i would like to go to an older more traitional col, bu from wot u sed cuths seems to be more down them lines than others!
thanks againxxxxxxxxxxx

Reply 24

AmyBlue

well we all have formals and balls, although i think Castle college has formals regularly whereas most of the rest just have a few formals a term and i think we have one college ball a year, but there are loads anyway, most of the societies have their own balls, there are university wide ones (don't go to the freshers ball it is a rip off!!).
I suppose prestigious would again be Castle, just because they have a castle and it tends to attract the very very public school people.

if you want old and traditional then your best bet is somewhere on the bailey, as the hill colleges are new, the oldest three on the bailey are Castle, Hatfield and Cuths in that order, with again Castle probably being the most traditional, although Cuths can be very traditional too!

wow it really seems like i am trying to sell Castle now!! but you have to remember that if you apply there you will almost certainly end up living in a 70's tenement block style place (moatside)!!! how trad is that?!?

anyway like i said don't whatever you do let your choice of college put you off, because if you dont like it you can swap once you're here!! It is also very very strange because you sound exactly how i was when i found i had a place in Cuths, iand now i wouldnt want to be anywhere else!!!

just come and see if you like the uni first, base your decision whether to come on that because being put off by a college is not a good reason!!

Reply 25

kat

1

thanx again amyblue for all your help, its very useful to have some inside information. yes ive been invited to cuthburts/ music open day! so i may aswell go and check it out 4 myself, as i will feel really stupid if i manage to change it and and up somewhere i really dont like!
it it cuthburt students who take the open day people about?
i may see you there if it is!

Reply 26

AmyBlue

when is the open day? they will have open day reps from Cuths, but it is usually someone very respectable as they want to convey a good image of the college to prospective students and their parents.......so errm you are unlikely to see us!! you never know tho!! let us know when it is and we will come say hi if we are there!
i think you will like the music department, if you want traditional.....it is based on Castle green, which is the square in between the castle and the cathedral and it is so pretty and all the buildings are really old!

Reply 27

lydia1404

argghh

ok i've just applied to durham and i was sooooo confused over college i just put O, so are they just going to put me wherever??!! how easy is it to change when i get there if i reall do hate it? is there any way i can choose now? i want to do physics - where is the best place?
cuths sounds good coz i was firstly put off aplying there coz i heard it was like oxford and cambride - fulla rich snobs ! and you say everyones friendly and not so stuck up.
any help at all would be appreciated.

Reply 28

emzie

kat, what course have u applied for? i applied for geo and got put in marys (after applying to hatfield) i rang round every single college (bar cuths/small religious ones) and they all bascially said no or e-mail this person - who said no, as they have been MASSIVLY oversubscribed. the woman at trevs was really snotty with me and said i should count myself lucky that i got accepted at all! bitch - im not going to an all-female college even if is durham so i dont count myself lucky. so yeh, good luck, worth a try - just be ready for the yada yada tho! nb: i rang round about a month ago

Reply 29

covered farm wagon

11

i've got an offer of ABB at grey college to study philosophy, and its almost certainly going to be my first choice (assuming that cambridge aren't going to let me in). i've been to visit and its a beautiful city, the cathedrals lovely and its a general nice atmosphere. and the college bars are so very cheap.

Reply 30

AveHan

emzie

kat, what course have u applied for? i applied for geo and got put in marys (after applying to hatfield) i rang round every single college (bar cuths/small religious ones) and they all bascially said no or e-mail this person - who said no, as they have been MASSIVLY oversubscribed. the woman at trevs was really snotty with me and said i should count myself lucky that i got accepted at all! bitch - im not going to an all-female college even if is durham so i dont count myself lucky. so yeh, good luck, worth a try - just be ready for the yada yada tho! nb: i rang round about a month ago

what's wrong with Cuths? They are more open minded than other colleges and may be more willing to accept you, as they are a larger college so have a bigger quota. I can understand you not wanting to go to a small religious college, but they really aren't too bad, and much nicer than some others. Chads people seem quite friendly and less religious than Johns. I really wouldn't let your choice of college put you off coming to Durham. Basically your college is what you make of it. I know someone who is at Mary's, she just treats it as somewhere to sleep, like a halls, and socialises with people from other colleges. Also it is much easier to swap course, college or accomodation once you get here, as there are always people moving about, and extra places from people who have not accepted insurance offers etc. It really is quite easy to change when you get here.

Reply 31

AveHan

lydia1404

argghh

ok i've just applied to durham and i was sooooo confused over college i just put O, so are they just going to put me wherever??!! how easy is it to change when i get there if i reall do hate it? is there any way i can choose now? i want to do physics - where is the best place?
cuths sounds good coz i was firstly put off aplying there coz i heard it was like oxford and cambride - fulla rich snobs ! and you say everyones friendly and not so stuck up.
any help at all would be appreciated.

Hiya, right well, if you did an open application you do have a greater possibility of ending up in mary's as it is the least popular, and cuths get a lot of people from open applications too - Amy did an open application and go in Cuths! although this may happen it is by no means definate, as a friend of mine got put in Castle on an open application, which is the most popular college, another friend of mine also got transfered from van mildert to hatfield so it doesn't always seem to make sense! How long ago did you submit your form? Durham website has a tracker thing which shows where your application is at, whether it is at your department or college etc. if it's only got to the department and not the college, you may have a chance of changing it if you ring up, however, i'm not sure how likely this is. If you have been already allocated a college it will be considerably more difficult. Cuth's is really not at all snobby, if you don't want to go somewhere snobby avoid hatfield and castle! Me and amy certainly aren't snobby, and nor are most of the people we know there, so i really wouldn't worry about that. Physics...well, most of your lectures will prob be on the science site, which is closest to the hill colleges, esspecially marys. However, it only takes little more than 10 mins from Cuths through the woods, so i wouldn't bother too much about that, most places in Durham are pretty close together, and within walking distance of each other at least. Read what I said to Emzie about changing colleges, it's prob easier when you're here, and if you really hate it, you should definately be able to do something about it. And remember, college life is only what you make of it, you can spend as much or as little time there as you wish. Good luck, hope you get in Cuths! and let me know if there is anything else you want to know.

Reply 32

AveHan

kat

thanx again amyblue for all your help, its very useful to have some inside information. yes ive been invited to cuthburts/ music open day! so i may aswell go and check it out 4 myself, as i will feel really stupid if i manage to change it and and up somewhere i really dont like!
it it cuthburt students who take the open day people about?
i may see you there if it is!

Hiya! Yep Cuths people do the open day, but it will prob be more responsible people than us. Apparently we're not suitable open day rep material! But let us know if you're coming up and we'll say hi and show you what Cuths is really like!

Reply 33

AveHan

kat

Thanx alot everybody you have been a great help, i thought i would def want to change my college but im seriously thinking of not changing it, as there seems to be far worst places to be:in my opinion, like hilde and bede and johns. The main reason y i wanted to swop tho was to sing in a chapel choir, but il prob and up in johns and my religious beliefs are quite oposite as a protestant to be with evangelicists!
what would u say the most prestigious colleges were? and which 1s have balls etc?
i would like to go to an older more traitional col, bu from wot u sed cuths seems to be more down them lines than others!
thanks againxxxxxxxxxxx

Hiya! Well...i'd stick with Cuth's, but i'm just saying that because i love it, i can't tell you how great it is! Don't worry about the choir thing, there are plenty of others you can join, the Cuths choir sing in other churches, and there are university ones that sing in the Cathedral and stuff so you should be fine. The most prestigious college is probably Castle, but prepare for snobs left right and centre. It's also very heavily oversubscribed as you've discovered! Hatfield like to think of themselves as prestigious, but they're not really. I'd say the bailey colleges are more prestigious than the hill ones, being much older and more traditional, and the traditionalness and old buildings is what you want anyway. Cuths is the 3rd oldest, and traditional in many ways. You'll see if you go to a formal there! Most colleges have their own ball. Cuth's ball is in the summer and sold out already! There are also university wide balls, purple FM the student radio had one recently. However, like Amy said, the freshers ball is a total rip off! And some subjects have their own balls too, so you won't be short of balls really. There are also loads of formals. There will be at least a couple every term at Cuths, and other colleges seem to have a similar amount too, so you won't be stuck in that way. Amy's right, if you like old buildings you'll love palace green, and some of the views are great. Been up to Durham yet? It really is beautiful. I'd definately come up on the open day. They're fun anyway, and even if you don't end up coming you'll have a good time, and prob make some friends too.

Reply 34

AmyBlue

wow han thats some hardcore posting!!!

yeah most people i know who did an open application got into Cuths, including me!!! so just wait and see, it is almost impossible to change anything before you get there but once there it is quite easy as spaces in all colleges will open up if people decide to leave!!

Reply 35

OldBailey

I think most of what I'm going to say has been said already, but I just thought I'd add my bit (perhaps to show you that they aren't lying about Cuths!).

Yeah, accomodation is a bit of a problem, it has to be said. The number of people in Cuths has grown massively in the last 20 years, and more recently numbers have been increasing at something like +200 a year. Obviously being restricted in (physical) size, Cuths has to look to place successful applicants in accomodation, some of which can be, as was said in an earlier post, up to 30 mins away. But the majority of the accomodation is well situated, and the accomodation that is the furthest away houses about 80 students and they have their own dining hall and lounges etc, and from what I've seen seem to have developed a strong sense of community.

But I do think it is worth applying to the Bailey if you really want it (it does seem to help if you're female and good-looking...) Seriously though if you strike it lucky like me (Bailey room, dept. 5 mins away, lecture theatres 7 mins away. bar 10 SECONDS away) then you'll be glad you didn't just assume you weren't going to get a room on the Bailey.

The latest news on the housing front though (which won't affect any of you going in 2004/05) is that Cuths is getting brand new accomodation in addition to its presence on the Bailey at a site called Parsons Field Court, which will be the newest, best accomodation in the uni.

The best way of describing Cuths has been used already - run by the students for the students. We have the most cosmopolitan intake in Durham not least because we have the majority of local and mature students. And although it sounds cliched it really does make a difference to the atmosphere. But by the same token there are Rahs in Cuths, but everyone gets on well and in a year and a bit I've not seen anything to suggest otherwise.

Cuths, in physical size, is not the largest college (or rather, society!) by any stretch of the imagination. But we do have the best bar. We open at 12:30 and stay open until 11, apart from formals etc where there are sometimes late licenses. The bar is the main way that the JCR funds itself - i.e. sport, theatre etc and so there is a slight emphasis on the lash in Cuths (actually I think its really because we're all alcoholics). Shots are £1.40 apart from Aftershock which is £1.50 and Absinthe which is £2.00. Stella, Guinness and Real Ale are £1.40, and Worthingtons, Grolsch and Strongbow are £1.30. Carling is £1.20.

The formals this year have been 1st class, and people know they will be. For example the Christmas formal sold out in 15 minutes - and that was for two sittings on successive nights! The other colleges all have formals etc and depending on what type of formal it is you can go to those (only if invited).

One final thing - the Open Day this Jan is apparently quite small, but the one in March, if its anything like last year will be... an experience... The Cuths students take you around but I'm not sure that I'd say we were all 'responsible'.. But we are responsible for making sure you have an excellent time!

On a completely separate thread, I wasn't sure what you were saying about Johns(?) Kat, but from the people I've met they're all really friendly. The bar there isn't bad either, just a little small. From what I've seen of the college, there seems to be a fair mix of different types of Christianity - they're not all purely evangelical nor purely anything else.

Also, about traditional colleges - Castle (that's University in the prospectus) and Hatfield are usually regarded as the two most 'traditional' colleges. The balls at Uni are supposed to be amazing given the location, and Hatfield has lots of formals (I think one a week), but yes Cuths is also fairly 'traditional' and one of the oldest establishments.

Any other qs just ask. Cuths also has a website www.cuths.com where you can get a feel for what it is.

Reply 36

AmyBlue

OldBailey

But I do think it is worth applying to the Bailey if you really want it (it does seem to help if you're female and good-looking...) Seriously though if you strike it lucky like me (Bailey room, dept. 5 mins away, lecture theatres 7 mins away. bar 10 SECONDS away) then you'll be glad you didn't just assume you weren't going to get a room on the Bailey.

The Ave is still better anyday :P (you're close to the bar, but we're close to the Angel!) The Bailey people think they have it better, but so do we!!! but then i guess everybody thinks where they are is the best

but yeah apparently they do go on you photo quite a lot in deciding where to put you, apparently anybody that looked even vaguely alternative (or just looked really really stoned like i did, i wasn't btw i just look like that on all pics!) was put in outlying properties.

Reply 37

OldBailey

AmyBlue

i wasn't [stoned] btw i just look like that on all pics!

Really...

Reply 38

AmyBlue

yes really :P!!! i wasn't!! but everybody who has seen that picture has said the same thing!! Even the guy who put the freshers photo board together said that they were laughing at how wasted i looked when they were doing it!!

Reply 39

OldBailey

Hmmm probably saw it as well as helped with the board (for all of 5 mins!).
Anyhoo sounds like you're having a good time at Cuths.. Your partner in crime 'Han' isn't Hannah of couplets fame?

Durham college

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