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St Hilda's again : did you REALLY want to go there?
Now that the Oxford decisions have been made, to all those going to St Hilda's:
Was St Hilda's your college of choice? If so, why?
Were you pooled and allocated? If so, are you happy, or is it a case of anything will do if it is Oxford?
Be honest!
Was St Hilda's your college of choice? If so, why?
Were you pooled and allocated? If so, are you happy, or is it a case of anything will do if it is Oxford?
Be honest!
Scroll to see replies
A deafening silence...
...speaks volumes
...speaks volumes
TBH I think you could ask that question about pretty much any college - I mean, recently I heard someone complaining because they'd been pooled into Merton. I don't want to make an assumption about the OP's personal opinion is - but there have been a few people who've bitched about some of the more modern colleges, and I find it pretty annoying. An offer from Oxford is a huge privilege, whichever college it comes from. I haven't seen Hilda's in the 'flesh' - but I do know that it houses some awesome people.
Sorry if you're not attempting to belittle Hilda's, OP - it's just some of the stuff I read on TSR really does beggar belief, and reading this has sort of brought my annoyance to mind again...
Sorry if you're not attempting to belittle Hilda's, OP - it's just some of the stuff I read on TSR really does beggar belief, and reading this has sort of brought my annoyance to mind again...
If i was to ever by some miracle get into Oxford, what college i was accepted into would be the last thing on my mind, i'd just be grateful to be accepted lol.
Indolentbee
Now that the Oxford decisions have been made, to all those going to St Hilda's:
Was St Hilda's your college of choice? If so, why?
Were you pooled and allocated? If so, are you happy, or is it a case of anything will do if it is Oxford?
Be honest!
Was St Hilda's your college of choice? If so, why?
Were you pooled and allocated? If so, are you happy, or is it a case of anything will do if it is Oxford?
Be honest!
Have you been accepted there?
I once read something written by a current Oxford student that apparently St Hilda's has the lowest entrance requirements and basically to avoid it if you have the choice. Although, I think it's safe to say that most people who didn't want to go there at first eventually changed their minds once they got settled in. At least that's what you always hear when questions like these come up.
lunchbox
Have you been accepted there?
Sadly not, though I didn't apply for that college and I don't think I would have done; when I think about "why not", the single sex ethic (about to become historical, I know) and the perennial position at the bottom of the Norrington Table did not make me enthuse. Presumably though some do enthuse...I just don't know any! After all, Oxford is Oxford whichever college you are at. I DID get an offer from UCL and I'm pretty happy with that, despite the Oxford issue.
this thread is so meen nd u are all a load of big fat meenies. there is nothin wrong with st hildas so stop been meen to ppl who go there.
Indolentbee
Sadly not, though I didn't apply for that college and I don't think I would have done; when I think about "why not", the single sex ethic (about to become historical, I know) and the perennial position at the bottom of the Norrington Table did not make me enthuse. Presumably though some do enthuse...I just don't know any! After all, Oxford is Oxford whichever college you are at. I DID get an offer from UCL and I'm pretty happy with that, despite the Oxford issue.
Caused by the finals gap between men and women (women are more likely to get a 2:1 because they take less risks) and arts and science students (same - it's easier to flunk sciences but it's also easier to get 1sts). I have a feeling that if the Norrington Table weren't weighted (i.e. if a 1st and a 2:2 = 2 x 2:1) then there wouldn't be such a massive gap. It's also worth bearing in mind that the difference between for instance the central 10 colleges is about 3%!!
To emphasise my point (first line = college, number of 1sts, number of 2:1s, 2:2s, 3rds, pass degrees, total students, real norrington score and rank). If we stop weighting 1sts (which normally get 5 points)
University College 31 73 13 0 0 117 68.38% 12
31 x 4 = 124
73 x 3 = 219
13 x 2 = 26
0 x 1 = 0
Sum = 369
Max Score = 468
Norrington Score = 78.8%
St Hilda's College 21 92 8 2 0 123 64.88% 27
21 x 4 = 84
92 x 3 = 276
8 x 2 = 16
2 x 1 = 2
Sum = 378
Max possible score = 492
Norrington Score = 76.8%
Then the gap between 12th and 27th place drops from 4% to just 2.
lunchbox
I once read something written by a current Oxford student that apparently St Hilda's has the lowest entrance requirements and basically to avoid it if you have the choice. Although, I think it's safe to say that most people who didn't want to go there at first eventually changed their minds once they got settled in. At least that's what you always hear when questions like these come up.
Well, that's clearly tosh. The entrance requirements are drawn up by the university / the respective faculty, not by individual colleges.
Indolentbee
Sadly not, though I didn't apply for that college and I don't think I would have done; when I think about "why not", the single sex ethic (about to become historical, I know) and the perennial position at the bottom of the Norrington Table did not make me enthuse. Presumably though some do enthuse...I just don't know any! After all, Oxford is Oxford whichever college you are at. I DID get an offer from UCL and I'm pretty happy with that, despite the Oxford issue.
Apart from the fact that this is a gross exaggeration, how come that Hilda's is the only college whose comparatively low position in the Norrington Table is always brought up in such a context? To use a random example, as far as I'm aware, Oriel has ranked consistently lower than Hilda's over the past few years, but I have yet to see a thread calling Oriel a rubbish college because of that and trying to put people off applying there. So why would the Norrington Table be so much more significant for Hilda's?
Low position in the tables is always thrown about for the all-female colleges (yes, yes, I know Hilda's soon won't be). People do it here for Newnham, despite the fact we are NOT at the bottom. We're in the bottom half, of course (though I think we were 13th a couple of years ago), but Bekaboo's illustration shows us just how close the gap can be.
Suffice to say, most people end up loving their college, whichever one it is. And if you're going to do well, you're likely to do well wherever you go.
Suffice to say, most people end up loving their college, whichever one it is. And if you're going to do well, you're likely to do well wherever you go.
I'm in my third year at Hilda's; I applied to Balliol but was pooled. I can honestly say that when I got my offer, I was just delighted to be going to Oxford. But having spent 7 terms at Hilda's, I have to say that I probably would be happier at another college. Hilda's is very paternalistic, for example requiring us to sign in overnight guests (and limiting how often we can have them), and telling us off if we stay out overnight without signing out in the book. I know that lots of other colleges have rules like that on paper, but as far as I'm aware Hilda's is the only one to seriously enforce them. It's very jarring that, as a woman of 21, I have to go to the porters' desk and ask for the signing out book whenever I fancy spending the night at my boyfriend's (which is often), and some of the porters make rather snide and judgemental comments, too. Hopefully everything will change next year; while women are socialised from childhood to be obedient and passive, men aren't, and I hope that there'll be more resistance to the rules once the JCR is mixed.
Quistis
I'm in my third year at Hilda's; I applied to Balliol but was pooled. I can honestly say that when I got my offer, I was just delighted to be going to Oxford. But having spent 7 terms at Hilda's, I have to say that I probably would be happier at another college. Hilda's is very paternalistic, for example requiring us to sign in overnight guests (and limiting how often we can have them), and telling us off if we stay out overnight without signing out in the book. I know that lots of other colleges have rules like that on paper, but as far as I'm aware Hilda's is the only one to seriously enforce them. It's very jarring that, as a woman of 21, I have to go to the porters' desk and ask for the signing out book whenever I fancy spending the night at my boyfriend's (which is often), and some of the porters make rather snide and judgemental comments, too. Hopefully everything will change next year; while women are socialised from childhood to be obedient and passive, men aren't, and I hope that there'll be more resistance to the rules once the JCR is mixed.
But how do they know when you've spent the night out?!
We theoretically have similar rules here, but...well, certainly the students treat them with the flexibility they deserve! (I'd say "disdain", but I kind of understand that fire safety regs come into it...).
I'm pretty sure the security here is no different, qualitatively, to at other colleges, on the whole. It's a shame if Hilda's is a pain in this respect.
Another point that nobody has brought up, is that St. Hilda's isn't the only college where people say they could have been happier somewhere else... I for one can think of at least 2 colleges where I have a feeling I would have been a far happier person... unfortunately I'm too poor to go to one, and the other doesn't do biology!!
Bekaboo
Another point that nobody has brought up, is that St. Hilda's isn't the only college where people say they could have been happier somewhere else... I for one can think of at least 2 colleges where I have a feeling I would have been a far happier person... unfortunately I'm too poor to go to one, and the other doesn't do biology!!
I interpreted it as that person would be happier at ANY other college.
Quistis
I'm in my third year at Hilda's; I applied to Balliol but was pooled. I can honestly say that when I got my offer, I was just delighted to be going to Oxford. But having spent 7 terms at Hilda's, I have to say that I probably would be happier at another college. Hilda's is very paternalistic, for example requiring us to sign in overnight guests (and limiting how often we can have them), and telling us off if we stay out overnight without signing out in the book. I know that lots of other colleges have rules like that on paper, but as far as I'm aware Hilda's is the only one to seriously enforce them. It's very jarring that, as a woman of 21, I have to go to the porters' desk and ask for the signing out book whenever I fancy spending the night at my boyfriend's (which is often), and some of the porters make rather snide and judgemental comments, too. Hopefully everything will change next year; while women are socialised from childhood to be obedient and passive, men aren't, and I hope that there'll be more resistance to the rules once the JCR is mixed.
Why don't you move into a house with some friends or your boyfriend?
Oh for God's sake.
The signing out thing is never seriously used. In my first year I'd spend nights away from college a couple of times a week, and I never once signed out. The only time they tell you off for not signing out is if they have a fire drill (about which we are usually warned beforehand, so it's easy to just sign out that night, to avoid problems.)
If you don't like signing in guests, opt to live on Iffley Road, like me.
The Norrington Table doesn't show everything. It doesn't say anything about the happiness of its students, or the quality of the food, or the architecture or the room size or any of the other factors that add to a student's enjoyment of life in a college. Just because someone is at a college at the bottom of the Norrington Table, that doesn't mean they themselves are necessarily less likely to get a first, for example. If you put the work in, it doesn't matter who your tutors are or what libraries you have access to. And Hilda's doesn't even have a "perennial position at the bottom of the Norrington Table". Like Hobnob said, Oriel has been consistently near the bottom for the past few years, below Hilda's, and it doesn't get any flack for it.
I've lived in Hilda's for two and a half years now. The people there are amazing. Yes, some of the rules are strict, but if you get to know the porters then they're also rather flexible. Yes, there aren't any boys there. But you're still part of a mixed university. Hardly any of my teaching is in college, or single sex. I have groups of friends both within my own college and in other colleges.
I wille be interested to see what happens when the guys come next year. Less so what happens to the atmosphere within college (I like it now, I also like mixed colleges, so I doubt I'll have a problem with the new situation) but rather what happens to the college's reputation. So much of it is based on the fact that we're clearly all hideous brain-dead lesbians. The stereotypes of other colleges aren't taken so literally, or actually believed (Welsh sheep-shaggers at Jesus, boring farts at Merton etc etc).
The signing out thing is never seriously used. In my first year I'd spend nights away from college a couple of times a week, and I never once signed out. The only time they tell you off for not signing out is if they have a fire drill (about which we are usually warned beforehand, so it's easy to just sign out that night, to avoid problems.)
If you don't like signing in guests, opt to live on Iffley Road, like me.
The Norrington Table doesn't show everything. It doesn't say anything about the happiness of its students, or the quality of the food, or the architecture or the room size or any of the other factors that add to a student's enjoyment of life in a college. Just because someone is at a college at the bottom of the Norrington Table, that doesn't mean they themselves are necessarily less likely to get a first, for example. If you put the work in, it doesn't matter who your tutors are or what libraries you have access to. And Hilda's doesn't even have a "perennial position at the bottom of the Norrington Table". Like Hobnob said, Oriel has been consistently near the bottom for the past few years, below Hilda's, and it doesn't get any flack for it.
I've lived in Hilda's for two and a half years now. The people there are amazing. Yes, some of the rules are strict, but if you get to know the porters then they're also rather flexible. Yes, there aren't any boys there. But you're still part of a mixed university. Hardly any of my teaching is in college, or single sex. I have groups of friends both within my own college and in other colleges.
I wille be interested to see what happens when the guys come next year. Less so what happens to the atmosphere within college (I like it now, I also like mixed colleges, so I doubt I'll have a problem with the new situation) but rather what happens to the college's reputation. So much of it is based on the fact that we're clearly all hideous brain-dead lesbians. The stereotypes of other colleges aren't taken so literally, or actually believed (Welsh sheep-shaggers at Jesus, boring farts at Merton etc etc).
The signing out thing is seriously used, Feef - I'm not aware that we are ever warned about fire drills. There was one this term and I was caught not having signed out. I got an email that day from a member of staff asking for an explanation as to my absence, and suggesting that if I didn't have a good explanation and it were to happen again, disciplinary procedures would be enforced. I want to say at this point that I can understand college needing to know our whereabouts for fire safety reasons - that's completely reasonable. But I wish we could sign out remotely by Intranet or phone, so if we don't expect to be staying out but then end up being unable to get home, we can let College know. I do sign out if I'm sure I'll be away overnight, but, St. Hilda's being a way out of town as it is, sometimes I intend to come home, but then find that for one reason or another I can't get back easily or safely. (But to College's credit, when I explained that the reason I'd not signed out was because I'd not expected to be staying out, and that getting back late at night would have been unsafe, they said that was fine and said no more about it, which was good )
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