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Cambridge College Relevance?

Hi everybody!

Could anybody please give me some advice on whether the college choice in Cambridge has any effect on employability? I will be doing an MPhil at Cambridge but did not bother to pick a college in my application but after reading all the threads on this forum I guess that was a mistake.
Would be really thankful if somebody could drop a few lines on whether the college you live in actually matters for employers??

thanks very much appreciate it.

Reply 1

N9ne

7

None at all. Your degree is from Cambridge University, not your college.

Reply 2

Helenia

20

Not really, no. There are some which are famous for specific subjects at undergrad level and some which are famous because they're big, central, rich and pretty, but the quality is roughly equivalent. Besides, I was under the impression that at grad level most of your work was done in the faculty and your college was not much more than nominal value.

Reply 3

$Avatar for sTe\/o$

sTe\/o

16

College choice doesn't matter at all in terms of employability. For an undergrad it's quite important because it determines where you'll be living for the next few years - for a grad it's arguably less important as you'll probably live outside college anyway. It still has some relevance if you plan to use the college's facilities (food/sports etc.) and also in terms of grants (since some colleges are much wealthier than others).

Reply 4

dallepalle

OP

thanks for your qick responses does certainly make sense. :smile:

Reply 5

FadeToBlackout

15

I suppose it would matter only about the atmousphere. If you're in a grad college like Clare Hall, for example, I'd imagine it would be a bit more of a sociable environment in college as everyone's a grad together, not as the single postgrad in a sea of undergrads...

Reply 6

$Avatar for sTe\/o$

sTe\/o

16

Perhaps so, but it seems that the most popular colleges for grads are Trinity, St John's and King's. I get the impression grad-only colleges are not most people's first choice.

Reply 7

Calvin

14

Well presumably though getting into a big famous college is going to be harder than getting into a smaller unknown one. So in so far as the fact that you made it into the college that demostrates you must have some decent ability. But one would imagine that should be evident from other aspects of your resume and your final grades. I'd be more impressed if somebody had a first from Cambridge, Trinity than if they had a first from Cambridge, Merton. But I guess perhaps that's just ignorance on my part and that employers would know better. I doubt it would make any practical difference.

Reply 8

Jerby

Calvin

I'd be more impressed if somebody had a first from Cambridge, Trinity than if they had a first from Cambridge, Merton. But I guess perhaps that's just ignorance on my part

You can say that again. :wink:

Reply 9

puppy

Calvin

Well presumably though getting into a big famous college is going to be harder than getting into a smaller unknown one. So in so far as the fact that you made it into the college that demostrates you must have some decent ability. But one would imagine that should be evident from other aspects of your resume and your final grades. I'd be more impressed if somebody had a first from Cambridge, Trinity than if they had a first from Cambridge, Merton. But I guess perhaps that's just ignorance on my part and that employers would know better. I doubt it would make any practical difference.

Merton? What?

Reply 10

anycon

11

Well presumably though getting into a big famous college is going to be harder than getting into a smaller unknown one.

Emplyers don't care how hard it was for you to get into your college.
Though the old boys' 'Oh so you went to Balliol did you? My alma mater old chap' thing is alive & well.

Reply 11

Troy :0)

svidrigailov

This question doesn't make a damn bit of sense. This is a 'student' forum, not a 'working slave of capitalism' thread; no one here knows a thing about what employers are looking for. Surely a little commonsense wouldn't go amiss here? Do you really think an employer is going to look at your job application and think 'Oh dear, this chap went to Christ's and not St John's, therefore we ought not to hire him, irrespective of his actual qualities'? I doubt going to a college that isn't a thousand years old and personally founded by Jesus Christ will damage your employment prospects in the long run.

There's no need to be like that :rolleyes:

it was a valid question

Reply 12

Alexander

12

Troy :0)

There's no need to be like that :rolleyes:

it was a valid question

Hmm. I don't mean to be harsh to the OP, but I'm sure whether I agree that it was even a valid question: despite the fact virtually nothing is said about colleges and employability on this forum he says he only posted this thread "after reading all the threads on this forum" -- quite a non sequitur. Also the fact that employability seems to be the only thing that he's interested in -- FadeToBlackout's post for example, although quite sensible, was irrelevant to his question. And also he should really know that the college has virtually nothing to do with postgrads academically anyway.

Reply 13

$Avatar for sTe\/o$

sTe\/o

16

You guys need to chill out, there's nothing wrong with the question.

Reply 14

Minta2

svidrigailov

I doubt going to a college that isn't a thousand years old and personally founded by Jesus Christ will damage your employment prospects in the long run.

ROTFL! Svidrigailov, you have surpassed yourself with this post! :biggrin:

Reply 15

Minta2

Calvin

. I'd be more impressed if somebody had a first from Cambridge, Trinity than if they had a first from Cambridge, Merton.

On the contrary, I think an employer would be extrememly impressed that someone had managed to read for a degree at a Cambridge college which doesn't actually exist. Merton is an Oxford college, dear. And btw, the University awards your degree, not the college, so there is no such thing as a degree from a particular college in any case.

Reply 16

dallepalle

OP

Dear Fyodor Mikhaylovich.... (kak zhe tupo..)

I dont know what your problem is some people just have many choices for studies right, thus you have to think about the little things that make the difference. As I am not british I dont have a clue about these kind of things right. So it is perfectly sensible to ask that question. Anyways if you dont like it go back to Dunya, Svidgrigailov....

cheers

Reply 17

gooseymcgoose

11

i've witnessed a lot of "oh i see you went to ________, which room are you in? ah, my old room! listen give me a call, i might be able to help you out with something"

Reply 18

FadeToBlackout

15

svidrigailov

I doubt going to a college that isn't a thousand years old and personally founded by Jesus Christ will damage your employment prospects in the long run.

Someone's been listening to the punt tour guides...

To be fair to the OP, they asked whether the college choice had an effect on employability, and the answer is "no". At least their question has been answered.

Reply 19

Troy :0)

not

i've witnessed a lot of "oh i see you went to ________, which room are you in? ah, my old room! listen give me a call, i might be able to help you out with something"

Now compare your 'lot of' occurrances with the number of opportunities in the graduate job market....hardly worth posting, I think.

And anyway, leaving applications open will probably mean you'll end up at a newer college, whose alumni networks aren't any less significant than the the old prestigious colleges. I think it would be the smaller colleges that have smaller alumni networks, since there's less of them to recruit. As all the new colleges are quite big, I can't see it being an issue. Furthermore, there's nothing to suggest that Trinity students are more employable than, say, Fitz students. Basically, if these networks you describe are prolific, a grad who leaves their application open will be in a good position, all other things equal.

Cambridge College Relevance?

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