The Big 'Which Cambridge College?' Thread
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I don't believe that any college is really better than the others for a particular subject as all your lectures are carried out by the department not the college. Really the only way you can choose is by looking for one that feels right. As someone earlier said visiting the colleges is probably the best way to decide on this. If you still can't choose have a look at which ones are closer to your faculty building, a walkable distance from a supermarket etc.. You could also narrow the list down based on accomodation costs or activities offered e.g sports teams.
Yeah i looked at Queens, Selwyn and Emma and loved Emma but since I've got home I really like the sound of Queens! Does anyone know what the social life is like at Selwyn? Thanks everyone 
I posted in the relevant thread but haven't been getting responses so i thought I'll post here
I need help choosing a college!
Until a few days ago I was set on Oxford but now I am thinking of Cambridge!
Here is what I want ( I have been to Cambridge and seen quite a few colleges):
It needs to be decently close to the medicine faculty, (don't mind it being a small walk/bike away).
I love old architecture and a slight "castle ish" look. (Like King's/St John's/Clare)
Food needs to be good and a nice veggie option from time to time is nice.
Nice big lawns and quads.
Can't bee overly small, so a medium to large college is nice.
Please help
I need help choosing a college!
Until a few days ago I was set on Oxford but now I am thinking of Cambridge!
Here is what I want ( I have been to Cambridge and seen quite a few colleges):
It needs to be decently close to the medicine faculty, (don't mind it being a small walk/bike away).
I love old architecture and a slight "castle ish" look. (Like King's/St John's/Clare)
Food needs to be good and a nice veggie option from time to time is nice.
Nice big lawns and quads.
Can't bee overly small, so a medium to large college is nice.
Please help
I'm an international student planning to apply for Land Economy for 2012. At the moment, I'm really stuck between whether to choose between Downing or Trinity Hall.
Both of them seem great by the prospectus but I could really use some opinions or suggestion to help me choose. As I never been to Cambridge I don't know what the colleges and the surronding area look like so if anyone could tell me that would be great.
Thanks!
Both of them seem great by the prospectus but I could really use some opinions or suggestion to help me choose. As I never been to Cambridge I don't know what the colleges and the surronding area look like so if anyone could tell me that would be great.
Thanks!
Original post by RaspberryHaze
Yeah i looked at Queens, Selwyn and Emma and loved Emma but since I've got home I really like the sound of Queens! Does anyone know what the social life is like at Selwyn? Thanks everyone
basically all colleges have similar social lives as each has a decent mix of people. Selwyn has a good bar and an amazing jcr/tvroom thing. on the other hand, from a social point of view, other colleges are a shorter stagger home...
Hi everyone,
I'm looking for a college in Cambridge to do economics but are stucking with choosing a college.
I have several choices like Caius, Pembroke and Clare
I like the older school because of architecture, somewhere near centre and river with good facilities (eg gym, music room, accomodation)
Please help!!!!
PS about the teaching, i don't stress to much on ranking . Thanks
I'm looking for a college in Cambridge to do economics but are stucking with choosing a college.
I have several choices like Caius, Pembroke and Clare
I like the older school because of architecture, somewhere near centre and river with good facilities (eg gym, music room, accomodation)
Please help!!!!
PS about the teaching, i don't stress to much on ranking . Thanks
Original post by angela9x0x
Hi everyone,
I'm looking for a college in Cambridge to do economics but are stucking with choosing a college.
I have several choices like Caius, Pembroke and Clare
I like the older school because of architecture, somewhere near centre and river with good facilities (eg gym, music room, accomodation)
Please help!!!!
PS about the teaching, i don't stress to much on ranking . Thanks
I'm looking for a college in Cambridge to do economics but are stucking with choosing a college.
I have several choices like Caius, Pembroke and Clare
I like the older school because of architecture, somewhere near centre and river with good facilities (eg gym, music room, accomodation)
Please help!!!!
PS about the teaching, i don't stress to much on ranking . Thanks
Pembroke has all of those things...except it's not on the river!
Have you visited the three you're considering? Hello, recently one of the teachers in my sixth form (who happened to go to Cambridge) told me the following, and I just wanted to check if this is true:
The Tompkins table portrays the academic results of all the colleges in Cambridge, and some colleges seem to be hogging the top spot for decades (ahem Trinity, Emmanual and a couple of others), while others are getting consecutive places in the last 5. Assuming the quality of teaching is the same all around, then that must mean these top colleges have students of a higher standard than the lower colleges obviously, and therefore the admissions deptartments of these colleges must have a much higher proportion of better applicants to choose from (compared to the colleges in last place). Now, I've been told at every possible occasion that applications to Cambridge are fair, that there isn't some 'easier'/'harder' colleges etc... But surely, if Trinity have such a high standard of students, they must be harder to get into for an 'average' student of Cambridge callibre.
So I just wanted to know what difference there is between say Emmanuel and some low-down-the-table college like Hughes Hall or St Edmund's (these might be mature colleges I don't know, but if they are then just insert the next lowest college that is not mature/gender selective) in terms of admissions. Like will Emmanuel genuinly expect higher results GCSE and A-Level-wise, will it give a tougher interview, will this competition for places mean that someone who doesn't expect to be at the top of the Cambridge foodchain has a lower chance of getting in?
I know the pool should supposedly correct this whole business, but losing one chance out of 2/3 just because Emmanuel has better food doesn't look like a good option to me.
The Tompkins table portrays the academic results of all the colleges in Cambridge, and some colleges seem to be hogging the top spot for decades (ahem Trinity, Emmanual and a couple of others), while others are getting consecutive places in the last 5. Assuming the quality of teaching is the same all around, then that must mean these top colleges have students of a higher standard than the lower colleges obviously, and therefore the admissions deptartments of these colleges must have a much higher proportion of better applicants to choose from (compared to the colleges in last place). Now, I've been told at every possible occasion that applications to Cambridge are fair, that there isn't some 'easier'/'harder' colleges etc... But surely, if Trinity have such a high standard of students, they must be harder to get into for an 'average' student of Cambridge callibre.
So I just wanted to know what difference there is between say Emmanuel and some low-down-the-table college like Hughes Hall or St Edmund's (these might be mature colleges I don't know, but if they are then just insert the next lowest college that is not mature/gender selective) in terms of admissions. Like will Emmanuel genuinly expect higher results GCSE and A-Level-wise, will it give a tougher interview, will this competition for places mean that someone who doesn't expect to be at the top of the Cambridge foodchain has a lower chance of getting in?
I know the pool should supposedly correct this whole business, but losing one chance out of 2/3 just because Emmanuel has better food doesn't look like a good option to me.
Original post by Tortious
Pembroke has all of those things...except it's not on the river! Have you visited the three you're considering?
Have you visited the three you're considering? Thanks
I visited Downing and Emma instead but don't like the halls in these college.
What's about the bursar? Which college among 3 do you think is most generous?
Original post by angela9x0x
Thanks
I visited Downing and Emma instead but don't like the halls in these college.
What's about the bursar? Which college among 3 do you think is most generous?
I visited Downing and Emma instead but don't like the halls in these college.
What's about the bursar? Which college among 3 do you think is most generous?
Well, I don't know much about the financial help available from Pembroke, but there's a £60 and then there's the University-wide "Cambridge Bursary Scheme".
You say you didn't like the accommodation in Downing and Emma - on that basis, you might want to check out Pembroke's accommodation (photos on the TSR Wiki page). In first year, everyone lives in college, then in subsequent years you can choose to live in one of the college houses instead. I've opted to stay on-site for second year though since the location's much more central.
Original post by Morphius1
Hello, recently one of the teachers in my sixth form (who happened to go to Cambridge) told me the following, and I just wanted to check if this is true:
The Tompkins table portrays the academic results of all the colleges in Cambridge, and some colleges seem to be hogging the top spot for decades (ahem Trinity, Emmanual and a couple of others), while others are getting consecutive places in the last 5. Assuming the quality of teaching is the same all around, then that must mean these top colleges have students of a higher standard than the lower colleges obviously, and therefore the admissions deptartments of these colleges must have a much higher proportion of better applicants to choose from (compared to the colleges in last place). Now, I've been told at every possible occasion that applications to Cambridge are fair, that there isn't some 'easier'/'harder' colleges etc... But surely, if Trinity have such a high standard of students, they must be harder to get into for an 'average' student of Cambridge callibre.
So I just wanted to know what difference there is between say Emmanuel and some low-down-the-table college like Hughes Hall or St Edmund's (these might be mature colleges I don't know, but if they are then just insert the next lowest college that is not mature/gender selective) in terms of admissions. Like will Emmanuel genuinly expect higher results GCSE and A-Level-wise, will it give a tougher interview, will this competition for places mean that someone who doesn't expect to be at the top of the Cambridge foodchain has a lower chance of getting in?
I know the pool should supposedly correct this whole business, but losing one chance out of 2/3 just because Emmanuel has better food doesn't look like a good option to me.
The Tompkins table portrays the academic results of all the colleges in Cambridge, and some colleges seem to be hogging the top spot for decades (ahem Trinity, Emmanual and a couple of others), while others are getting consecutive places in the last 5. Assuming the quality of teaching is the same all around, then that must mean these top colleges have students of a higher standard than the lower colleges obviously, and therefore the admissions deptartments of these colleges must have a much higher proportion of better applicants to choose from (compared to the colleges in last place). Now, I've been told at every possible occasion that applications to Cambridge are fair, that there isn't some 'easier'/'harder' colleges etc... But surely, if Trinity have such a high standard of students, they must be harder to get into for an 'average' student of Cambridge callibre.
So I just wanted to know what difference there is between say Emmanuel and some low-down-the-table college like Hughes Hall or St Edmund's (these might be mature colleges I don't know, but if they are then just insert the next lowest college that is not mature/gender selective) in terms of admissions. Like will Emmanuel genuinly expect higher results GCSE and A-Level-wise, will it give a tougher interview, will this competition for places mean that someone who doesn't expect to be at the top of the Cambridge foodchain has a lower chance of getting in?
I know the pool should supposedly correct this whole business, but losing one chance out of 2/3 just because Emmanuel has better food doesn't look like a good option to me.
There's a huge number of misconceptions at play here.
1. The quality of teaching isn't always the same, but will vary depending on the fellows in any given year. That said, it's also worth noting that the vast majority of students will occasionally be supervised by people at other colleges, and people will do different optional papers. Tomkins rankings, then, are not necessarily a good index of teaching quality.
2. The "top" colleges might set higher standards for some subjects--Churchill is particularly demanding for law--but that doesn't necessarily translate into higher-performing students. Nor does the fact that a college is highly-ranked overall mean it has the best (or most) supervisors for any given subject. Churchill has the highest admissions standards for law, but there's more law fellows at Downing (or for that matter Caius or Pembroke).
3. Trinity has more students applying, and fewer places, but actually a lot of it is going to come down to interview (assuming students have similar A level marks--which they usually will).
4. You might have a better chance of an offer at a college that's lower down in the table, but that will have more to do with fewer applicants/place than with a lower standard per se. You really ought to choose your college on the basis of what suits you best--who teaches there, what are the facilities like, what is the college culture like, where is it--not on the basis of trying to play a numbers game. The numbers change from year to year.
5. Hughes and St Edmunds only admit mature students and grads, yes. They also admit *far* fewer undergrads in any given year than the traditional colleges, which means a few poor results can disproportionately affect their standing. The other issue here is that mature students often have other pressures on them which result in fewer firsts. It's also worth noting that whatever the Tomkins table rankings of a particular college, all Cambridge students go to the same lectures, sit the same exams, and often have the same supervisors--so it can seem a bit silly to act as though some colleges were just better than others. The differences are very easy to exaggerate, and I've never met anyone at Cambridge who actually cares about the Tomkins table.
You are more likely to get into your first choice college if it is lower down the Tomkins but only if it is less oversubscribed for your course. However if you deserve a place you are more likely to get into a different college through the pool if you apply to a popular college.
Some colleges are nearly always net contributors to the pool and some are takers from the pool and some vary from year to year or course.
So if you want to choose college a less competitive one may be better, especially for girls who tend to get pooled to girls only colleges. If you just want to get into cambridge and don't care where, it shouldn't make a difference.
Some colleges are nearly always net contributors to the pool and some are takers from the pool and some vary from year to year or course.
So if you want to choose college a less competitive one may be better, especially for girls who tend to get pooled to girls only colleges. If you just want to get into cambridge and don't care where, it shouldn't make a difference.
Hmm, I having been through the system last year I believe that the pool system genuinely works. I applied to Trinity but was pooled to Churchill, which according to the Tompkins table means I dropped from 2nd to 3rd. Hardly anything drastic. If you are good enough then you will get an offer no matter which college you apply to.
Hi I'm a mature student thinking of applying for Land Economy. Not sure which college yet as I'm waiting for responses to my emails before deciding but I'm thinking one of Hughes Hall, St Edmund's, Trinity, St John's, Gonville and Caius or Sidney Sussex.
Any advice on how best to choose a college, preparing a good personal statement and reading lists etc?
Also is it a no no for mature students wanting to study at the "non-mature" colleges? What sort of factors do you take into account when choosing your college? Is there any advantage or disadvantage with an open application?
Any advice on how best to choose a college, preparing a good personal statement and reading lists etc?
Also is it a no no for mature students wanting to study at the "non-mature" colleges? What sort of factors do you take into account when choosing your college? Is there any advantage or disadvantage with an open application?
I applied to Clare college when it was 18th in the Tompkins. That year it was one of the most oversubscribed colleges.
Take from that what you will.
Take from that what you will.
Original post by angela9x0x
Hi everyone,
I'm looking for a college in Cambridge to do economics but are stucking with choosing a college.
I have several choices like Caius, Pembroke and Clare
I like the older school because of architecture, somewhere near centre and river with good facilities (eg gym, music room, accomodation)
I'm looking for a college in Cambridge to do economics but are stucking with choosing a college.
I have several choices like Caius, Pembroke and Clare
I like the older school because of architecture, somewhere near centre and river with good facilities (eg gym, music room, accomodation)
Pembroke is the 3rd oldest college (established 1347) so has old architecture, is near the centre, and has good facilities (in fact the gym and music room are in the basement of the accommodation block where the majority of 1st years stay). It's not that close to the river though (the other two are much closer/actually on it).
Original post by angela9x0x
What's about the bursar? Which college among 3 do you think is most generous?
I don't know exactly as I think a lot of the bursaries are university-wide rather than college-specific. But we all get £60 a year for textbooks and if you stay during the vacation for work you can claim back a significant proportion of your accommodation during that vacation. Moreover, there are quite a lot of college prizes for exam results that are relatively generous (I got £400 worth in 2nd year).
I don't think Emmanuel is regarded as being particularly difficult to get into, and we've held a position in the top 5 for the last 10 years.
Cambridge's claim is that "chances of admission to the University is independent of college choice". That's not to say that there aren't colleges which are harder to get into, but make up for it by putting more applicants into the pool.
Original post by Gridiron-Gangster
Hi I'm a mature student thinking of applying for Land Economy. Not sure which college yet as I'm waiting for responses to my emails before deciding but I'm thinking one of Hughes Hall, St Edmund's, Trinity, St John's, Gonville and Caius or Sidney Sussex.
Any advice on how best to choose a college, preparing a good personal statement and reading lists etc?
Also is it a no no for mature students wanting to study at the "non-mature" colleges? What sort of factors do you take into account when choosing your college? Is there any advantage or disadvantage with an open application?
Any advice on how best to choose a college, preparing a good personal statement and reading lists etc?
Also is it a no no for mature students wanting to study at the "non-mature" colleges? What sort of factors do you take into account when choosing your college? Is there any advantage or disadvantage with an open application?
Well the best advice I think is just to apply to the college you like the look/sound of most, regardless of whether or not it's "mature", but here are some things to bear in mind:
- Applying to a non-mature college does *not*, on the whole, mean that you will be "stuck" with a bunch of 18 year olds fresh out of puberty. Generally mature undergraduates are part of the college MCR (college student association for graduate students) so most of your socialising will be at graduate events and you might well be housed in graduate accommodation too. That's not to say that there aren't plenty of opportunities to socialise with "real" undergraduates if you so choose, and of course all of your teaching will be with them too.
- Mature colleges are poor. No matter how "friendly" or "welcoming" they might be, fact remains that they tend to be in fairly low-grade modern buildings, have low budgets for student events etc. and generally provide far fewer perks than the big rich traditional colleges.
- Mature colleges are easier to get into. Not enough people apply to mature colleges, and unless a traditional college REALLY wants you chances are you'll be pooled to a mature college anyway if they think you meet basic requirements. There is much less competition at mature colleges and meeting grade requirements and performing respectably in interview are pretty likely to get you an offer. In theory the pooling system is supposed to remove disparities between college admissions, but in reality it's much easier to get rejected flat out from Trinity than from mature colleges.
EDIT: Also I'm fairly sure this isn't the best thread for this. Maybe someone can move?
(edited 12 years ago)
Original post by BigFudamental
Well the best advice I think is just to apply to the college you like the look/sound of most, regardless of whether or not it's "mature", but here are some things to bear in mind:
- Applying to a non-mature college does *not*, on the whole, mean that you will be "stuck" with a bunch of 18 year olds fresh out of puberty. Generally mature undergraduates are part of the college MCR (college student association for graduate students) so most of your socialising will be at graduate events and you might well be housed in graduate accommodation too. That's not to say that there aren't plenty of opportunities to socialise with "real" undergraduates if you so choose, and of course all of your teaching will be with them too.
- Mature colleges are poor. No matter how "friendly" or "welcoming" they might be, fact remains that they tend to be in fairly low-grade modern buildings, have low budgets for student events etc. and generally provide far fewer perks than the big rich traditional colleges.
- Mature colleges are easier to get into. Not enough people apply to mature colleges, and unless a traditional college REALLY wants you chances are you'll be pooled to a mature college anyway if they think you meet basic requirements. There is much less competition at mature colleges and meeting grade requirements and performing respectably in interview are pretty likely to get you an offer. In theory the pooling system is supposed to remove disparities between college admissions, but in reality it's much easier to get rejected flat out from Trinity than from mature colleges.
EDIT: Also I'm fairly sure this isn't the best thread for this. Maybe someone can move?
- Applying to a non-mature college does *not*, on the whole, mean that you will be "stuck" with a bunch of 18 year olds fresh out of puberty. Generally mature undergraduates are part of the college MCR (college student association for graduate students) so most of your socialising will be at graduate events and you might well be housed in graduate accommodation too. That's not to say that there aren't plenty of opportunities to socialise with "real" undergraduates if you so choose, and of course all of your teaching will be with them too.
- Mature colleges are poor. No matter how "friendly" or "welcoming" they might be, fact remains that they tend to be in fairly low-grade modern buildings, have low budgets for student events etc. and generally provide far fewer perks than the big rich traditional colleges.
- Mature colleges are easier to get into. Not enough people apply to mature colleges, and unless a traditional college REALLY wants you chances are you'll be pooled to a mature college anyway if they think you meet basic requirements. There is much less competition at mature colleges and meeting grade requirements and performing respectably in interview are pretty likely to get you an offer. In theory the pooling system is supposed to remove disparities between college admissions, but in reality it's much easier to get rejected flat out from Trinity than from mature colleges.
EDIT: Also I'm fairly sure this isn't the best thread for this. Maybe someone can move?
Well I'm starting to receive replies from some of the colleges. Wolfson said they would want me to do another A-Level which I wouldn't be too keen on. The rest who replied (all non-mature colleges) have either advised me to apply to the mature colleges or to wait for a response from the mature colleges and forward this reply onto them i.e. they would follow the stance the mature colleges would take.
As for the mature colleges being "low-grade" well I wouldn't go as far as saying that but ofcourse they don't offer the traditional "Cambridge experience" you would get at some of the older colleges but when all is said and done I would be happy to simply get an offer from Cambridge irrespective of the college as I guess in my position I can't be too choosy and saying all that there's no guarantee I would even get to an itnerview and subsequent offer right? I'll just have to wait and see.
(edited 12 years ago)
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