Choosing an Oxford College

Caius do only have a very few vet places each year though (only 1 or 2 I think, compared with their 25 medics!) so that's worth considering.

Reply 241

dagak

1

Two, but there is only few person (6-7) who applying....

Reply 242

Tasslehoff

Heys,
I'm applying for Chemical Engineering... which colleges do you guys recommend?
I've been looking at Downing, Magdalene and Trinity so far.. and I find Downing rather captivating..

Reply 243

Hakchak

3

Hi,

I'm thinking of applying for engineering at cambridge but am currently torn between three colleges:
Emmanuel
Gonville and Caius
Pembroke

Looking at the stats:

http://www.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/statistics/docs/eng.doc#pembroke

Year of application
Note: 2005 admissions cycle is not yet complete
2002 2003 2004 2005
All applications 80 88 70 74
All offers including 20 17 22 17
(winter pool) 0 0 1 0
Offers by other Colleges 6 9 6 0
All admissions including 14 15 19 N/A
(summer pool) 0 0 0 N/A

It seems that pembroke has the most applications by far. Does that mean it will be harder to get in? Also does the quality of applicants differ between these colleges?

Reply 244

Willa

11

Hakchak

It seems that pembroke has the most applications by far. Does that mean it will be harder to get in? Also does the quality of applicants differ between these colleges?

Come on, you're probably an intelligent person. What if all those people who applied to pembroke happened to be less able candidates than all of those who applied to Emmanuel or Caius, do you think in that case Pembroke would be the hardest to get in to?

Reality is you're going to have a hard time getting in at whichever college you apply, they all will have the same high expectations of applicants. And if you've genuinely got what it takes (not a borderline case) then you should be capable of getting in at any of the colleges (taking in to account the winter pool).

Personally I would ignore the stats. But it's up to you how you use them. I would do this:

Think what college you would apply to if you ignored the stats, and then imagine how you would feel if you got rejected. Would you regret your choice because of the stats?

Think what college you would apply to if you counted the stats, and then imagine how you would feel if you were accepted. Would you regret not having applied to your "first choice" where you may well have gotten in, just because you didn't think the stats were in your favour?

Which scenario are you more comfortable with? That should help you determine what you should do.

Reply 245

Willa

11

Tasslehoff

and I find Downing rather captivating..

So downing it is. Apply there.

Reply 246

Tasslehoff

no other recommendations? :P which college does ChemEng students normally apply to anyways? (forgive me for my ignorance as I didnt intend to apply to UK until last month...)

Reply 247

Willa

11

Tasslehoff

no other recommendations? :P which college does ChemEng students normally apply to anyways? (forgive me for my ignorance as I didnt intend to apply to UK until last month...)

there's no "specialist" college for ChemEng. All colleges will do all the major subjects, and they are all more similar than different when it comes to the academic side of things.
You've highlighted downing as captivating, hence that is the college for you. What has this whole thread been about: getting people to apply to the college they like most - all these worries about "is it good for this/that subject?" are irrelevant in almost all cases.

Apply to downing. There's certainly no reason I can think of which suggests you shouldnt.

Reply 248

cpmannen

Ok, so after having read through all these pages, I must say that the selection process has become even more of a jungle than before, hehe! On the one hand Oxford themselves claim that the choice of college doesn't really matter, especially not for an international (Sweden) student as myself, but the profile of the college does still seem to matter quite alot. Now, the problem with being an international student is that it is a bit of a hassle to figure out these profiles, even with the aid of the official/alternative prospectus and everything written here. So what to do? It seems too easy to do an open application, due to the fact that there is a lot at stake and alot of available information, but what if you end up in a college totally alienated to what you want!?

After reading through what feels like more or less everything issued concerning Oxford colleges, I have found Balliol quite interesting. Now, I will be applying to EcMng '07, and I will be 21 when I presumedly would enroll. So questions, hehe. Is Balliol primarily a leftie haven where they just walk around and protest all day, or is it more of a liberal party college where they also manage to get some work done? Its really hard to get a feel of the colleges without talking to anyone, but thats the main impression I've got so far. I'm looking for a large central college where you can party and work out and chill, but that's at least decently academic, and doesn't purely consist of 18-year olds (the mature colleges look super dull and boring, so they aren't really and option). Would Balliok fulfill this, or is there some place even more fun? :smile:

Reply 249

Ronove

18

No single college is going to be full of one kind of person. You seem to like Balliol enough, and if you make an open application you might, as you say, be put in a college that isn't quite to your taste (though everyone seems to fit in once they're there). So, apply to Balliol (presuming they do your subject and so on, Oxford colleges are stupid etc). Woo.

Reply 250

rivengurl

Tasslehoff

Heys,
I'm applying for Chemical Engineering... which colleges do you guys recommend?
I've been looking at Downing, Magdalene and Trinity so far.. and I find Downing rather captivating..

If you like Downing, then apply. There're Malaysian students offered a place there.

Reply 251

CamSPSer

cpmannen

Ok, so after having read through all these pages, I must say that the selection process has become even more of a jungle than before, hehe! On the one hand Oxford themselves claim that the choice of college doesn't really matter, especially not for an international (Sweden) student as myself, but the profile of the college does still seem to matter quite alot. Now, the problem with being an international student is that it is a bit of a hassle to figure out these profiles, even with the aid of the official/alternative prospectus and everything written here. So what to do? It seems too easy to do an open application, due to the fact that there is a lot at stake and alot of available information, but what if you end up in a college totally alienated to what you want!?

After reading through what feels like more or less everything issued concerning Oxford colleges, I have found Balliol quite interesting. Now, I will be applying to EcMng '07, and I will be 21 when I presumedly would enroll. So questions, hehe. Is Balliol primarily a leftie haven where they just walk around and protest all day, or is it more of a liberal party college where they also manage to get some work done? Its really hard to get a feel of the colleges without talking to anyone, but thats the main impression I've got so far. I'm looking for a large central college where you can party and work out and chill, but that's at least decently academic, and doesn't purely consist of 18-year olds (the mature colleges look super dull and boring, so they aren't really and option). Would Balliok fulfill this, or is there some place even more fun? :smile:

Despite colleges being central they often make you have accomodation which is not very central for at least one year
no college at oxbridge is party college, if you want to goa round protesting thats often done by societies rather than colleges unless its something to do with the college, ie rent hikes
Also although college choice can be important you might get pooled elsewhere, colleges are at the end of the day more similar than different and with your subject, societies etcetera you won't be forced to stay around college all the time

Reply 252

wilkinson42

2

Honestly cannot decide - Gonville and Caius or Trinity College???
Here are the positives and negatives.....

G+C -------- + Really like the location
+ Really like the Old Courts atmosphere
+ New accommodation block being built
+ Italian tutor on the site
- May miss out on living in Old Courts
Trinity ----- + Language labs on the site
+ Fantastic old buildings I will be definitely live in
+ OK location
- No italian tutor on the site

Which one should I go for?

Reply 253

Jigglypuff

16

chriswilky

Honestly cannot decide - Gonville and Caius or Trinity College???
Here are the positives and negatives.....

G+C -------- + Really like the location
+ Really like the Old Courts atmosphere
+ New accommodation block being built
+ Italian tutor on the site
- May miss out on living in Old Courts
Trinity ----- + Language labs on the site
+ Fantastic old buildings I will be definitely live in
+ OK location
- No italian tutor on the site

Which one should I go for?

Are the locations of the two really that different? I mean, they're both pretty goddamn central. Anyway, sounds as if they're pretty much equal in terms of what you want. I had several colleges that had what I wanted so in the end went with my instincts. Imagine applying to one and consider if you would feel sad at not applying to the other, and do the same for the other college. Whichever you feel saddest about not applying to, apply there.

Or maybe I am too simple :p:

Reply 254

Willa

11

Hmmm. From what I've heard of Gonville And Caius, you don't really get to live in the college that much, accomodation is all over the place. Although that might just be exaggeration - but I'd definitely try and google the location of the caius accomodation for each year.

And for trinity, with an Italian tutor off site, do you know where you have to go for supervisions? Is it far?

Reply 255

blanco

Willa

Hmmm. From what I've heard of Gonville And Caius, you don't really get to live in the college that much, accomodation is all over the place. Although that might just be exaggeration - but I'd definitely try and google the location of the caius accomodation for each year.

And for trinity, with an Italian tutor off site, do you know where you have to go for supervisions? Is it far?

Which college gives more firsts for computing?

And which one is easier to get into between trinity, christ and GC?

Thanks!

Reply 256

Willa

11

blanco

Which college gives more firsts for computing?

And which one is easier to get into between trinity, christ and GC?

Thanks!

No college "gives" out more firsts. It's the student which earns the first. If you want a first, work hard enough, and you can have a first regardless of what college you go to. Any college is going to be there to support you if you want to try and get a first, but it's ultimately up to you how hard you work.....just going to a good college isn't going to carry you through.

And again, when it comes to trying to find a college that is "easy" to get in to, you're forgetting that it's up to you and your potential which determines if you are going to get in or not.

Stop trying to pass the buck, you can't blame the college you applied to if you don't get in, nor can you blame the college you go to if you don't get a first.....well, at least in most cases that is in my opinion.

Reply 257

kashiya

1

CamSPSer

The fact that you are polish and female impacts not one bit on whether Gonville and Caius is a good college. If you like it then apply there. Equally I think non-english applicants are recommended to do an open application rather than apply to a college
http://www.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/international/more.html

nah... nobody does it. We are applying at the same conditions like the UK students are, so I think its nonsense to say that Intl applicants should make open applications...

Reply 258

Quelafuerzateacompañe

Thanks again for the guide! I know it was written ages ago now, but I've only just come across it, and the link to the Alternative Colleges Prospectus really helped me. I don't suppose anyone's come up with any other Oxford stereotypes? (Not that I'm relying on them, they just entertain me!)

On a more serious note, I'm trying to decide between Hertford, Oriel, Lady Margaret Hall and St. Catz. Oriel is the only one I can't get information on how much it'll cost me per week for accomodation, and aside from that they're fairly even. Besides the fact that LMH and St. Catz are quite a way further out of the 'centre' of Oxford University than the other two, does anyone go to any of those that could give me any insight? I'm hoping to study English with a modern language- Spanish- and my important criterion when choosing a college are whether or not they have access to a student kitchen, or at least a fridge and microwave, and whether they're welcoming to state school students. (I know, I know, it doesn't matter... but it'd be good to get an insider's opinion, just in case!)

Thanks again!

Reply 259

WokSz

17

Can anyone give me any insight on Corpus Christi (Oxford)? IB has been really helpful, but I'm looking for anything else? thanks guys!

Choosing an Oxford College

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