This discussion is now closed.
Check out other Related discussions
- I'm A Muslim. Ask Me Anything!
- HK Christian Assembly Hall 2023 Youth Conference insights
- Share thoughts that have inspired you personally
- The Cambridge College Hurt/Heal Game [part 2]
- Oxford college help urgent
- Oxford College hurt/heal
- Oxbridge applicants for modern languages - 2025 entry (applying in 2024)
- Girlfriend is gonna tickle me?
- Transferring Uni Dilema
- Finding myself.
- Changing course at Oxford
- Christ Church food
- Political Quiz: Are you a fascist?
- do you have to defer all of your ucas applications?
- Christ Law
- best cambridge colleges for vegan food?
- Wha career path should I take?
- Cambridge World of Words residential
- Canterbury Christ Church and University of Kent accommodation
- Official Canterbury Christ Church University freshers 2023 chat
Christs: The Truth
I went to the open day on friday and out of all the colleges Christs was the college that appealed to me the most followed very closely by Clare and Emma going on accomdation, bulidings and overall feel of the college etc. (Lots were ruled out cos they didnt accept applicants for my course).
Anyway, I have heard so much about Christs being 'the hard working college' and obviously they are a lot of people who are extremely clever who go there but are they quite what people make out or is everything emphasised.
I'd really like it if people could give me their views on the college, for and against it, any cambridge students views would greatly be appreciated!
And also anyones views on Clare and Emma please....
Anyway, I have heard so much about Christs being 'the hard working college' and obviously they are a lot of people who are extremely clever who go there but are they quite what people make out or is everything emphasised.
I'd really like it if people could give me their views on the college, for and against it, any cambridge students views would greatly be appreciated!
And also anyones views on Clare and Emma please....
Scroll to see replies
Clare and Emma are reputed as the "friendly college", in fact both claim the nickname as their own. As a Clareite, I do have to say that Clare is friendlier so far... 
Anyway, Clare life generally revolves around the gorgeous Old Court, built in the 1630s, 40s and early 50s. (Sorry, am an Historian, habits die hard!). The Buttery (which is amazing and social, despite the obsession with grease), hall, and bar are there, plus its where a lot of supervisors and DoS' and Tutors have offices. There's about 60 or so rooms for third year students, too.
In terms of eating, the buttery is good, cheap and filling, though if you don't choose carefully you'll probably put on weight! Hall food is, in my opinion, rubbish as there's never enough and it normally involves things I don't like. Be that as it may, the formal hall experience (in the C17th hall) is amazing. The college bar and JCR, Clare Cellars, are good.Its a fun bar, and Cellars hosts a range of events from DnB on fridays through the cheesy Fat Poppadaddies to smooth Clare Jazz and Clare Comedy with the uber-talented Matt Kirshen (ex-Clareite) and a lot of good student comedians. Cellars is also going to have a lot more techinical kit and lights, soon, too, when I get around to buying them so it will look amazing and be an even better venue for music.
In terms of accomodation, first years live in the Memorial COurt complex, which consists of two early 1930s grey brick courts and a more recent additional court, with amazing rooms. LOTS of ensuites and a nice rangeof rooms. It is reputed to be the best first year accommodation in Cambridge. All the first years live together, so a great community spirit is engendered and life is good, especially after exams... Mem, as it is known, is in the shadow of the phallic UL tower and is about 3 minutes walk away from the Sidgewick site, where a lot of the Arts faculties are. I could and did get out of bed at 5 to 9, and still be in lectures in History by the time they started.
Second and some third years live in the Colony. This is to the north of town, where Bridge Street and the ringroad cross over. It is a bit further away from everything, but has good community spirit. There area mix of rooms from the cheap but VERY community spirited Castle End block, through marginally better rooms with balconies in Castle House, up to flats with communal cooking facilities, living rooms and the rest in Castlebrae, Braeside, and the rest.
In terms of sport, Clare has an active boat club (I THINK all the Clareite TSR members are members of CBC) and it has a high participation rate and a lot of fun. Other sports like football are played for fun; Clare seems to be middling at sport.
What it does excel at is music. It is known as the musical college, with John Rutter a recent famous alumnus. The chapel choir is world famous, and it seems like everyone plays at least one instrument. However, if you don't don't worry; I don't play anything and it doesn't affect you at all.
Just a couple of random points to finish off; we have an excellant May Ball, rated highly; a famous venue (Cellars) for jazz, loved by the pros and the up and coming student talent; an hilarious college magazine, Clareification (www.srcf.ucam.org/clareification) and just a general good time.
Anyway, Clare life generally revolves around the gorgeous Old Court, built in the 1630s, 40s and early 50s. (Sorry, am an Historian, habits die hard!). The Buttery (which is amazing and social, despite the obsession with grease), hall, and bar are there, plus its where a lot of supervisors and DoS' and Tutors have offices. There's about 60 or so rooms for third year students, too.
In terms of eating, the buttery is good, cheap and filling, though if you don't choose carefully you'll probably put on weight! Hall food is, in my opinion, rubbish as there's never enough and it normally involves things I don't like. Be that as it may, the formal hall experience (in the C17th hall) is amazing. The college bar and JCR, Clare Cellars, are good.Its a fun bar, and Cellars hosts a range of events from DnB on fridays through the cheesy Fat Poppadaddies to smooth Clare Jazz and Clare Comedy with the uber-talented Matt Kirshen (ex-Clareite) and a lot of good student comedians. Cellars is also going to have a lot more techinical kit and lights, soon, too, when I get around to buying them so it will look amazing and be an even better venue for music.
In terms of accomodation, first years live in the Memorial COurt complex, which consists of two early 1930s grey brick courts and a more recent additional court, with amazing rooms. LOTS of ensuites and a nice rangeof rooms. It is reputed to be the best first year accommodation in Cambridge. All the first years live together, so a great community spirit is engendered and life is good, especially after exams... Mem, as it is known, is in the shadow of the phallic UL tower and is about 3 minutes walk away from the Sidgewick site, where a lot of the Arts faculties are. I could and did get out of bed at 5 to 9, and still be in lectures in History by the time they started.
Second and some third years live in the Colony. This is to the north of town, where Bridge Street and the ringroad cross over. It is a bit further away from everything, but has good community spirit. There area mix of rooms from the cheap but VERY community spirited Castle End block, through marginally better rooms with balconies in Castle House, up to flats with communal cooking facilities, living rooms and the rest in Castlebrae, Braeside, and the rest.
In terms of sport, Clare has an active boat club (I THINK all the Clareite TSR members are members of CBC) and it has a high participation rate and a lot of fun. Other sports like football are played for fun; Clare seems to be middling at sport.
What it does excel at is music. It is known as the musical college, with John Rutter a recent famous alumnus. The chapel choir is world famous, and it seems like everyone plays at least one instrument. However, if you don't don't worry; I don't play anything and it doesn't affect you at all.
Just a couple of random points to finish off; we have an excellant May Ball, rated highly; a famous venue (Cellars) for jazz, loved by the pros and the up and coming student talent; an hilarious college magazine, Clareification (www.srcf.ucam.org/clareification) and just a general good time.
Christ's formal WAS a bit of a let-down, but probably as ridiculous as basing one's entire application on accommodation is basing it on a formal hall...
Emma - bar is entirely student run, meaning that during the exam period it can be closed without warning depending on whether (the JCR?) is able to run it in line with their papers. The second year accommodation can be fairly far out, but fairly nice.
Christ's bar is closed during much of the exam period, but at least you know what to expect
Emma - bar is entirely student run, meaning that during the exam period it can be closed without warning depending on whether (the JCR?) is able to run it in line with their papers. The second year accommodation can be fairly far out, but fairly nice.
Christ's bar is closed during much of the exam period, but at least you know what to expect
synaesthesia
Christ's formal WAS a bit of a let-down, but probably as ridiculous as basing one's entire application on accommodation is basing it on a formal hall...
Emma - bar is entirely student run, meaning that during the exam period it can be closed without warning depending on whether (the JCR?) is able to run it in line with their papers. The second year accommodation can be fairly far out, but fairly nice.
Christ's bar is closed during much of the exam period, but at least you know what to expect
Emma - bar is entirely student run, meaning that during the exam period it can be closed without warning depending on whether (the JCR?) is able to run it in line with their papers. The second year accommodation can be fairly far out, but fairly nice.
Christ's bar is closed during much of the exam period, but at least you know what to expect
Oooooh, I hope i didn't give the impression of choosing a college based on accomodation, that was just one of the factors although to be honest from looking round the 7/8 colleges i looked round, accomodation is much the same throughout the university (from what I can tell).
But yeah those are my three that I've narrowed them down to, so if anyone else wants to 'sell' their college to me, would be very useful!
* (I THINK all the TSR members who are CURRENTLY at Clare are members of CBC)
I knew my essay skills wpould be handy one day....
I knew my essay skills wpould be handy one day....
I'd like to defend Christ's a bit here!
Perhaps the college can be a bit hard-working at times, but there are many people who manage to avoid working particularly hard! The bar is generally open normal-ish hours, and whilst it isn't the biggest or flashiest of college bars it's actually very sociable and quite relaxed. There isn't actually that much the college can do to make people work, try as they might: as far as I know there isn't an unusual rate of people getting kicked out, and you can just ignore your DoS telling you to get a first or die trying if you want to.
All college stereotypes should be taken with a pinch of salt. I must admit, I've never heard people talking about Clare and Emma being the "friendly" colleges apart from people from those colleges on this forum: probably because most people don't have any real cause to find their own college unfriendly! In terms of the other comparative benefits of the colleges, it's worth noting that at both Emmanuel and Christ's most of the accommodation is on the central college site with nearby houses. At Christ's you can live all three years in college if you want to, and I think you can at Emmanuel as well, whilst at Clare very few live in the Old Court. But it is on the river, which is always nice.
Going on looks and accommodation is really nothing to be ashamed of, in reality there isn't that much separating the colleges (or at least, hardly anything that you can work out before you apply). If you want big music events in college all the time, the other two might suit you better than Christ's. But you can just go to those events anyway if you're at another college. Christ's is a beautiful college, with a great mix of architecture and a lovely garden. About a third of offers are basically unconditional, which is nice, and the college is quite generous with bursaries if that's a concern.
You should probably go with your gut feeling: it's essentially impossible to get any idea of what your time at Cambridge will be like before you get here (perhaps because different people can have completely different experiences here), but you certainly shouldn't be put off by the academic reputation. The way I see it, the college is perhaps more forthcoming in helping those who need it - friends of mine having difficulties had no problems getting extra supervisions and ended up with very good results - and you don't have to work particularly hard if you don't want to. If you do well, though, the college is particularly forthcoming with money and nice rooms...
I do love Christ's, so go for it if you liked the look of it!
Perhaps the college can be a bit hard-working at times, but there are many people who manage to avoid working particularly hard! The bar is generally open normal-ish hours, and whilst it isn't the biggest or flashiest of college bars it's actually very sociable and quite relaxed. There isn't actually that much the college can do to make people work, try as they might: as far as I know there isn't an unusual rate of people getting kicked out, and you can just ignore your DoS telling you to get a first or die trying if you want to.
All college stereotypes should be taken with a pinch of salt. I must admit, I've never heard people talking about Clare and Emma being the "friendly" colleges apart from people from those colleges on this forum: probably because most people don't have any real cause to find their own college unfriendly! In terms of the other comparative benefits of the colleges, it's worth noting that at both Emmanuel and Christ's most of the accommodation is on the central college site with nearby houses. At Christ's you can live all three years in college if you want to, and I think you can at Emmanuel as well, whilst at Clare very few live in the Old Court. But it is on the river, which is always nice.
Going on looks and accommodation is really nothing to be ashamed of, in reality there isn't that much separating the colleges (or at least, hardly anything that you can work out before you apply). If you want big music events in college all the time, the other two might suit you better than Christ's. But you can just go to those events anyway if you're at another college. Christ's is a beautiful college, with a great mix of architecture and a lovely garden. About a third of offers are basically unconditional, which is nice, and the college is quite generous with bursaries if that's a concern.
You should probably go with your gut feeling: it's essentially impossible to get any idea of what your time at Cambridge will be like before you get here (perhaps because different people can have completely different experiences here), but you certainly shouldn't be put off by the academic reputation. The way I see it, the college is perhaps more forthcoming in helping those who need it - friends of mine having difficulties had no problems getting extra supervisions and ended up with very good results - and you don't have to work particularly hard if you don't want to. If you do well, though, the college is particularly forthcoming with money and nice rooms...
I do love Christ's, so go for it if you liked the look of it!
Camford
Truth about Christs: Staircase 3's lock can be opened with a piece of hard enough thing. I use card. I bet they never tell you this sort of thing on an open day, do they?
Why would you even be trying to break into another college's accommodation?!
Also, those doors are only the outside ones, and everyone's individual room has a lockable door.
aka_chloe
obviously they are a lot of people who are extremely clever who go there
But then the rest of the Cambridge crowd aren't exactly thick either, are they?
Anyhow, I liked Chirsts (especially the gardens) but that big wierd building at the back scared me away.
aka_chloe
Oooooh, I hope i didn't give the impression of choosing a college based on accomodation
Not at all - accommodation was just something I plucked out of the air
I agree with the sausage's final sentence - I think at the end of the day, instinct will be very important. I certainly wished I'd followed mine for subject - would have saved much hassle.
synaesthesia
Christ's formal WAS a bit of a let-down
I have been to a Christ's formal because my aunt used to teach German there. I thought the food was good and the hall is quite pretty. Why do you think it is a let-down? By the way, how does one judge whether a formal is good or bad- in other words what are the criterion (apart from the obvious like food and drink)?
jeffreyweingard
By the way, how does one judge whether a formal is good or bad- in other words what are the criterion (apart from the obvious like food and drink)?
Generally the best way is to go to as many other formals as possible
But you can generally judge on whether it's silver service, alcohol limits, surroundings, company etc as well as the food.
A.
Alaric
But you can generally judge on whether it's silver service, alcohol limits, surroundings, company etc as well as the food.
A.
A.
Alaric
Well not all limit it, but Clare has a limit of a bottle of wine between two people. I don't think I ever failed to find a tea-totaller to go in with though
A.
A.
but it's interesting to know. Thanks.Now you can go back to High Table, could you find out if that limit applies there, Alaric? I wondered...
amateurish
Why would you even be trying to break into another college's accommodation?!
Also, those doors are only the outside ones, and everyone's individual room has a lockable door.
Also, those doors are only the outside ones, and everyone's individual room has a lockable door.
I had a friend living in that staircase last year. and I just can't be bothered to wait for other people to open that door for me... or ask him for the password.
Related discussions
- I'm A Muslim. Ask Me Anything!
- HK Christian Assembly Hall 2023 Youth Conference insights
- Share thoughts that have inspired you personally
- The Cambridge College Hurt/Heal Game [part 2]
- Oxford college help urgent
- Oxford College hurt/heal
- Oxbridge applicants for modern languages - 2025 entry (applying in 2024)
- Girlfriend is gonna tickle me?
- Transferring Uni Dilema
- Finding myself.
- Changing course at Oxford
- Christ Church food
- Political Quiz: Are you a fascist?
- do you have to defer all of your ucas applications?
- Christ Law
- best cambridge colleges for vegan food?
- Wha career path should I take?
- Cambridge World of Words residential
- Canterbury Christ Church and University of Kent accommodation
- Official Canterbury Christ Church University freshers 2023 chat
Latest
Last reply 1 minute ago
AQA GCSE French Speaking Higher (8658/SH) [Exam Chat]Last reply 2 minutes ago
Official London School of Economics and Political Science 2024 Applicant ThreadLast reply 2 minutes ago
yet to receive a woodhouse interviewLast reply 3 minutes ago
Official Newcastle University Offer Holders Thread for 2024 entryLast reply 4 minutes ago
JP Morgan Degree Apprenticeship 2023Last reply 5 minutes ago
Bank of America Degree Apprenticeship 2024Last reply 5 minutes ago
Official University of Edinburgh Applicant Thread for 2024Posted 6 minutes ago
Imperial MSc Artificial Intelligence Applications and InnovationLast reply 8 minutes ago
Software Engineering Degree Apprenticeship | Digital & Technology Solutions Level 6Last reply 9 minutes ago
Official Veterinary Medicine Applicants thread 2024 entryTrending
Last reply 27 minutes ago
MPhil Advanced Computer Science Cambridge - 2024 EntryLast reply 5 days ago
Easy Colleges in Cambridge to get in - should this be allowedLast reply 1 week ago
MPhil in Machine Learning and Machine Intelligence at Cambridge 2024Last reply 2 weeks ago
How likely will Cambridge allow me in if I miss my subject specific offer?Last reply 2 weeks ago
What to do for a competitive application for Mathematics at top universities.Trending
Last reply 27 minutes ago
MPhil Advanced Computer Science Cambridge - 2024 EntryLast reply 5 days ago
Easy Colleges in Cambridge to get in - should this be allowedLast reply 1 week ago
MPhil in Machine Learning and Machine Intelligence at Cambridge 2024Last reply 2 weeks ago
How likely will Cambridge allow me in if I miss my subject specific offer?Last reply 2 weeks ago
What to do for a competitive application for Mathematics at top universities.
