Merton or Magdalen, Oxford

Right, I have narrowed the choice of colleges between Merton and Magdalen for law. I need a little more help! If there are any Merton or Magdalen Lawyers out there, why did you choose your college and why is it better than the other? What is the Oxford Law Course like?

Reply 1

tagzt

4

jamierwilliams

Right, I have narrowed the choice of colleges between Merton and Magdalen for law. I need a little more help! If there are any Merton or Magdalen Lawyers out there, why did you choose your college and why is it better than the other? What is the Oxford Law Course like?

i have a friend doing law at magdalen, he picked it because its beautiful, very prestigious (especially for law)...i think something like 13 law lords went to magdalen..its very highly regarded for law and he's having a good time.

whichever college you pick out of those two they are both bery good.

Reply 2

Kalypso

1

tagzt

i have a friend doing law at magdalen

Ooh, who is he? Is he in the first year?

Reply 3

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jamierwilliams

Right, I have narrowed the choice of colleges between Merton and Magdalen for law. I need a little more help! If there are any Merton or Magdalen Lawyers out there, why did you choose your college and why is it better than the other? What is the Oxford Law Course like?

Make sure you sample both via open days or maybe even away from the open days when you may get a better feel. Both have very distinctive cultures and aren't that similar. Your choice may end up being based on where you feel most comfortable rather than anything specifically lawyerish.

Reply 4

way2go

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Both have very distinctive cultures and aren't that similar.

Please explain. What is the difference?

Reply 5

tagzt

4

way2go

Please explain. What is the difference?

well they are both academic colleges, not too sure about any other comparisons to make.

Reply 6

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tagzt

well they are both academic colleges, not too sure about any other comparisons to make.

I think those of us from other colleges would generally consider Merton to be more academic than Magdalen. Merton's regular slot at the top of the Norington table seems to mean that it attracts those who feel they are strong candidates and those who are comfortable with the competition to get in. Anecdotally it seems that even if the numbes don't look high, the quality of applicants means that it is particularly competitive. Tagzt, is this fair?

Maglalen has a reputation for being one of the posher colleges, being particularly popular with the wealthier public school set. Not wholly a myth.

Reply 7

tagzt

4

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I think those of us from other colleges would generally consider Merton to be more academic than Magdalen. Merton's regular slot at the top of the Norington table seems to mean that it attracts those who feel they are strong candidates and those who are comfortable with the competition to get in. Anecdotally it seems that even if the numbes don't look high, the quality of applicants means that it is particularly competitive. Tagzt, is this fair?

Maglalen has a reputation for being one of the posher colleges, being particularly popular with the wealthier public school set. Not wholly a myth.

yeh thats a fair comment, merton may not have the highest number of apps per place but the people who do apply will be of very high calibre. however the same is true of magdalen, it usually has by far the highest number of people applying for law...although someone told me that is usually because a lot of public schooled candidates who are not actually that good apply hoping the "old boys network" still exists. however it does not, i the second year at magdalen i think something like 10/11 of the 13 studying law are from state school (thats a rough number, i cant remember the exact numbers but its very much state school dominated for law at least)

Reply 8

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tagzt

yeh thats a fair comment, merton may not have the highest number of apps per place but the people who do apply will be of very high calibre. however the same is true of magdalen, it usually has by far the highest number of people applying for law...although someone told me that is usually because a lot of public schooled candidates who are not actually that good apply hoping the "old boys network" still exists. however it does not, i the second year at magdalen i think something like 10/11 of the 13 studying law are from state school (thats a rough number, i cant remember the exact numbers but its very much state school dominated for law at least)

The law figures are interesting - it must mean they have strong independent school majorities on some subjects given their stats. Poor old Magdalen. Still haunted by Laura Spence.

Reply 9

Sar

jamierwilliams

Right, I have narrowed the choice of colleges between Merton and Magdalen for law. I need a little more help! If there are any Merton or Magdalen Lawyers out there, why did you choose your college and why is it better than the other? What is the Oxford Law Course like?

They're both supposed to be excellent colleges but I have a feeling they also both have a reputation for favouring public school kids. Not sure though. xx

Reply 10

JrW

OP

14

I come from a private 'public' school but i was wondering if the universities actually ask the income in your household? If they do I think that is extremely prejudice and unfair to those who have not been as priveliged to be educated in a public school (however there are many state schools that are better than state schools).

Reply 11

tagzt

4

jamierwilliams

I come from a private 'public' school but i was wondering if the universities actually ask the income in your household? If they do I think that is extremely prejudice and unfair to those who have not been as priveliged to be educated in a public school (however there are many state schools that are better than state schools).

merton does not have any bias against state/public school...our tutors genuinely did not know what type of school we went to until we had our meetings with them and it came up in conversation...they are looking for your academic potential not your income! just give it your best shot, both the colleges u have picked r excellent so just go for it.

Reply 12

JrW

OP

14

tagzt

merton does not have any bias against state/public school...our tutors genuinely did not know what type of school we went to until we had our meetings with them and it came up in conversation...they are looking for your academic potential not your income! just give it your best shot, both the colleges u have picked r excellent so just go for it.

tagzt, did u get my PM?

Reply 13

Suzy_vet

I live near oxford and go there quite often. I have a friend at merton, and from what i can tell its one of the best, most open and friendly colleges with a brilliant mix of people. Magdalen (or however you spell it) is rather stuck up in general (im sure not all). They stand on street corners and choir sing, and one of my etachers went there for an interview and said it was terrible. he ended up at queens.

Reply 14

hildabeast

7

Why are you restricting yourself to Merton and Magdalen? I've heard from most lawyer-types that Brasenose still has the best reputation and tradition in law.

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Reply 15

4Ed

15

What would Merton be like for Maths (purely theoretically speaking)..... i'm not going to apply there, but was considering it....... I know two people there who are doing PhDs in Chemistry and sum form of Medicine respectively, and they say it's the best college all round anyway (i don't know of any other colleges, havent really been to them either)

Reply 16

dreamer

My mate is doing maths at Merton, she seems to like it. However, the course is quite 'laid-back' in comparison to univs like Warwick and Cambridge (according to her).

Reply 17

redcat

jamierwilliams

I come from a private 'public' school but i was wondering if the universities actually ask the income in your household? If they do I think that is extremely prejudice and unfair to those who have not been as priveliged to be educated in a public school (however there are many state schools that are better than state schools).

Could you be more incoherent?

Reply 18

LEOFIELDING

4Ed

What would Merton be like for Maths (purely theoretically speaking)..... i'm not going to apply there, but was considering it....... I know two people there who are doing PhDs in Chemistry and sum form of Medicine respectively, and they say it's the best college all round anyway (i don't know of any other colleges, havent really been to them either)

From what I can tell Merton is v. good for Maths, but i'm studying French and Spanish at Merton and having an awesome time! The people here are really funny and down to earth

Reply 19

way2go

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I think those of us from other colleges would generally consider Merton to be more academic than Magdalen. Merton's regular slot at the top of the Norington table seems to mean that it attracts those who feel they are strong candidates and those who are comfortable with the competition to get in. Anecdotally it seems that even if the numbes don't look high, the quality of applicants means that it is particularly competitive. Tagzt, is this fair?

Couldn't it just be that applicants at Merton and Magdalen are of the same quality, but that the academic atmosphere and perhaps slightly better tutors at Merton get their students to obtain better results?

At the moment I have narrowed my choice between the same two colleges, so I am quite interested in this matter. Although Magdalen looks extremely nice, I thought (given the numbers), that it was far more difficult to get in than Merton. Furthermore, it seemed to me that the tutors at Merton for my subject (physics) were more friendly and had wider interests, which agreed better with my own interests. Therefore, Merton is my 1st choice right now. However, I am still doing some research on the colleges, and the beautifull on-site accommodation at Magdalen always looks very temptingly.

I live near oxford and go there quite often. I have a friend at merton, and from what i can tell its one of the best, most open and friendly colleges with a brilliant mix of people. Magdalen (or however you spell it) is rather stuck up in general (im sure not all). They stand on street corners and choir sing, and one of my etachers went there for an interview and said it was terrible. he ended up at queens.

I found that it is very difficult to get a good view of what the college atmosphere is like. I heard people say that Merton is quite arrogant; others say it is very friendly and open-minded. The same is true for Magdalen: some say it is one of the prestigious colleges, though not as posh and conservative as Christ Church, Balliol and New, but actually very informal; others say it is very stuck-up and posh. By now, I don't know what to believe anymore and I don't led me guide too much by all prejudiced and exagerated opinions of others. I do believe that there exists a distinct difference in culture between the two colleges, but actually I still don't know what this difference exactly is. If anyone would be able to formulate a clear and fair comparison between the two, I would be very happy to read that.

At the end both colleges are extremely difficult to get into. Therefore, James, I advise you to consider your application very carefully. If you are a strong applicant just go for it. If you have any doubts, please also have a look at other colleges, if it is Oxford you want and not just Merton or Magdalen.
Also make sure you have a good backup. I myself will be applying for a 2nd BA, so I know beforehand that the chance of getting in is extremely tiny. Therefore I already have thought of a backup. With a good backup you can apply to any college you like, because if they reject you, it isn't the end of the world if you know what I mean.

Merton or Magdalen, Oxford

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