The Student Room Group

Durham College Selection

Heyyyy everyone!!!

I recently received an offer to study law at Durham and I absolutely love the town and everything until now. I have to select colleges now but the problem is that I do not know how to start my research. I am a very outgoing international student who will be coming to the UK for the first time for university and I strongly value a balance of both social and academic life. Moreover, having an ensuite is a definite must for me and I cannot go without having one. Are there any suggestions?

Thank you and I would appreciate any comment or opinion if you have any on what I should do next.

Reply 1

check out this youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/@thatonecharlie/videos this guy posts about all things durham
would recommend watching this video first of all https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpeyUgXUc1E

accommodation https://www.durham.ac.uk/global-durham/global-opportunities/incoming-opportunities/non-european-incoming-exchange/accommodation/

i've never been to durham either so i can't offer any personal advice on the social life there. i do know that it's definitely less vibrant and nightlife-y than bigger cities such as manchester or london. just have a quick google search online and see what you can find - i bet there are loads.

congrats on the offer! i applied to durham too albeit to english literature, but i have yet to hear back.

Reply 2

Original post
by Anonymous
Heyyyy everyone!!!
I recently received an offer to study law at Durham and I absolutely love the town and everything until now. I have to select colleges now but the problem is that I do not know how to start my research. I am a very outgoing international student who will be coming to the UK for the first time for university and I strongly value a balance of both social and academic life. Moreover, having an ensuite is a definite must for me and I cannot go without having one. Are there any suggestions?
Thank you and I would appreciate any comment or opinion if you have any on what I should do next.

Hiya!!

First of all, huge congratulations on your Durham Law offer, that’s amazing 🎉 I’m a Durham student rep and totally get how overwhelming the college choice can feel at first - I totally felt like this last year. I am not an international student but I live in the British Chanel Islands so I had to fly over to uni and it felt like a really big move - so I totally get how you feel as an international student.

A couple of things that might help reassure you straight away:

1. Colleges don’t affect your teaching.
Your lectures, seminars and tutors will all be through the Law School, not your college, so academically everyone has the same experience. Colleges are more about community, accommodation and social life. Law lectures are quite centrally taught between the main campus (Lower Mount Joy) and TLC so no college would be too far away.

2. If an ensuite is a must, you’ll want to prioritise the newer colleges or colleges with modern accommodation, because many of the older Bailey colleges have shared bathrooms in first year and shared rooms also.
Colleges that commonly offer lots of ensuite rooms include:

South College newest college, very modern, lots of ensuite rooms, strong social atmosphere.

Josephine Butler College really friendly, known for being sociable, lots of ensuite options.

John Snow College modern accommodation, plenty of ensuites.

Stephenson College also newer and mostly ensuite.

St Mary’s College a mix, but many ensuite rooms and quite central.

If you’re looking for a good social + academic balance, the Hill colleges (like Butler, Snow, Stephenson, South) tend to have:

big events and formals

active sports and societies

lots of international students

modern accommodation

They’re about 15–20 minutes walk from the city centre, but most students actually like that because the accommodation is newer and the colleges feel really lively. But also - the Bailey is equally as lively, just the colleges tend to be on the more smaller scale. Just really depends what you favour.

3. Don’t stress too much about getting the “perfect” college.
Durham’s college system means every college has:

formals and social events

sports teams and societies

a strong community

People end up loving whichever college they’re allocated. I ended up getting my 10th choice out of my rankings but I still love my college so much and would never change it!

4. What I’d recommend doing next:

Look at the Durham college accommodation pages (they show room types and bathroom info).

The Durham Student Colleges - student blogs and content

Watch college tours on YouTube they give a good feel for vibe.

Make a shortlist of 3–4 colleges that offer lots of ensuites ( find information on the durham website here.)

Honestly you’ll have a great experience in whatever college you choose. Don't stress too much about the rankings either - you may not get your top choice anyways. Every college is great and they all have their pros and cons. Best of luck ranking. Any questions about Law or student life feel free to ask!

-Lacey, DU Student Rep 🙂💜

Reply 3

Original post
by Anonymous
Heyyyy everyone!!!
I recently received an offer to study law at Durham and I absolutely love the town and everything until now. I have to select colleges now but the problem is that I do not know how to start my research. I am a very outgoing international student who will be coming to the UK for the first time for university and I strongly value a balance of both social and academic life. Moreover, having an ensuite is a definite must for me and I cannot go without having one. Are there any suggestions?
Thank you and I would appreciate any comment or opinion if you have any on what I should do next.

Hello,

Here’s my suggestion:

St Mary’s

Hatfield

Grey

University

Trev

Cuths

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