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Choosing an Oxford College

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Original post by Mr...
Accomodation for all 3/4 years, friendly and good food


At Balliol accommodation in college is only guaranteed for 2 years, but financial assistance is available for those living out in privately rented accommodation (usually in 2nd year).
Has anyone got any thoughts on University College? I've been allocated there from my open application but I have no idea of its reputation and there's hardly ever any talk of it on here!
Original post by laurakwxo
Has anyone got any thoughts on University College? I've been allocated there from my open application but I have no idea of its reputation and there's hardly ever any talk of it on here!


Univ goes through very good patches and pretty poor ones. It had an incredibly good 18th century by Oxford standards. It also had a very good period in the 1970s and early 80s when it was regularly topping the Norrington Table. On the other hand for much of the period from WWI to the 1960s it was known as "the pub on the High".

One cannot say it is particularly academically distinguished at present.
Original post by laurakwxo
Has anyone got any thoughts on University College? I've been allocated there from my open application but I have no idea of its reputation and there's hardly ever any talk of it on here!


I've applied to Univ, as it's more commonly known. It has a reputation as being a more 'laid back' college, but still does about average in terms of the success of its students in exams. When I visited it seemed really friendly (unlike Somerville... Erggh) and the accommodation was the best I saw, plus I believe it is guaranteed for all 3 years of your degree. I think it looks nicer than most other colleges, with the exception of the obvious ones (which get inundated with tourists, so it's probably a good trade off). It's also the oldest college in Oxford and has it's own pet tortoise :smile:
Original post by nulli tertius
Univ goes through very good patches and pretty poor ones. It had an incredibly good 18th century by Oxford standards. It also had a very good period in the 1970s and early 80s when it was regularly topping the Norrington Table. On the other hand for much of the period from WWI to the 1960s it was known as "the pub on the High".

One cannot say it is particularly academically distinguished at present.


You sound like a Mertoner with all this talk of Norrington tables *boo* *hiss*
Original post by MrSupernova
You sound like a Mertoner with all this talk of Norrington tables *boo* *hiss*


No. I'm not a Mertonian. I'm just someone who thinks you should be working harder :smile:

1970 14
1971 21
1972 8
1973 23 (the 21 thirds didn't help)
1974 6
1975 1
1976 3
1977 1
1978 1
1979 Don't have
1980 1
1981 2
1982 1
1983 5
1984 4
1985 7
1986 6
1987 1
1988 12
1989 7
1990 9
Original post by laurakwxo
Has anyone got any thoughts on University College? I've been allocated there from my open application but I have no idea of its reputation and there's hardly ever any talk of it on here!


Univ is lovely, I stayed there on the open day and the accommodation was good, the room was a really nice size, quite spacious with a mini fridge and a sink as extras to what you might expect. The showers were shared on the corridor which might be offputting for some and I didn't really experience their food as it was one of the few colleges who weren't providing apart from a non-cooked breakfast which was still good, plenty of choice. The students were all really friendly too, it was a lovely atmosphere. Hope that helps!
Original post by nulli tertius
1973 23 (the 21 thirds didn't help)
In a day when more people got 3rds than got 1sts, that's not such a big deal....

Original post by nulli tertius
1979 Don't have
Me neither, we clearly have the same source :tongue:


Original post by laurakwxo
Has anyone got any thoughts on University College? I've been allocated there from my open application but I have no idea of its reputation and there's hardly ever any talk of it on here!
I was seriously considering applying there, seemed like a pleasant place to be. The annexe for later year accommodation is a significant distance away (in North Oxford) but with a bike that's not a big deal. The food seemed good.
Original post by fluteflute
In a day when more people got 3rds than got 1sts, that's not such a big deal....



Yes but to get as many thirds as the House took some doing!
Original post by nulli tertius
Yes but to get as many thirds as the House took some doing!


Hertford and Pembroke managed it too :tongue:
Original post by fluteflute
Hertford and Pembroke managed it too :tongue:


Before the Hertford Scheme of course.

If the Bod has got a Guardian Digital Archive sub August 23rd 1979 page 3 should have the missing entry.
Original post by nulli tertius
Before the Hertford Scheme of course.

If the Bod has got a Guardian Digital Archive sub August 23rd 1979 page 3 should have the missing entry.


A 7 for Univ

Why was it in the Guardian that year? :confused:
Original post by fluteflute
A 7 for Univ

Why was it in the Guardian that year? :confused:


The Times went on strike. Ken Thompson, the owner, locked out the printworkers for a year.
Original post by nulli tertius
The Times went on strike. Ken Thompson, the owner, locked out the printworkers for a year.


Wow, crazy!
Original post by fluteflute
Wow, crazy!


It meant the Times was unable to report the hundreds of bodies in store in Liverpool because the gravediggers and crematoria workers were on strike.

That was the state of late 1970s industrial relations.

The one thing it didn't have an impact on was the newspaper buying public. The Times sold a quarter fewer papers in the late 1970s than it does today. The Daily Telegraph then sold four times as many papers as The Times and both The Sun and the Daily Mirror ten times as many as The Times. Moreover an awful lot of The Times's sale was institutional.
(edited 10 years ago)
Original post by MrSupernova
When I visited it seemed really friendly (unlike Somerville... Erggh)


Can I ask what happened at Somerville to put you off?
Original post by astro67
Can I ask what happened at Somerville to put you off?


Well the two students who showed us round just talked to each other and practically ignored us prospective students... So it was just them having a conversation and us following, which didn't exactly give a fantastic impression. Students seeemed a bit rude when we were shown the JCR too, plus the accommodation wasn't as nice as it was in the other colleges I saw.
Original post by MrSupernova
Well the two students who showed us round just talked to each other and practically ignored us prospective students... So it was just them having a conversation and us following, which didn't exactly give a fantastic impression. Students seeemed a bit rude when we were shown the JCR too, plus the accommodation wasn't as nice as it was in the other colleges I saw.


My friend felt exactly the same way about New College when she went on the open day (she said the person showing her around seemed cold). Now she's here at New College (reallocation post interview) she says that she wouldn't change it for the world.
Original post by pak1994
My friend felt exactly the same way about New College when she went on the open day (she said the person showing her around seemed cold). Now she's here at New College (reallocation post interview) she says that she wouldn't change it for the world.


I agree it isn't always wise to form an opinion of something after half an hour, but ultimately isn't that what the admissions tutors do? First impressions count and I wasn't exactly... well, impressed. I just got a gut feeling that I didn't like it and it would probably be the college I most hope I don't get reallocated to; then again I would much rather go there than not go to Oxford at all. After all, it is regularly said that people almost always love the college they 'end up' at
Original post by MrSupernova
I agree it isn't always wise to form an opinion of something after half an hour, but ultimately isn't that what the admissions tutors do? First impressions count and I wasn't exactly... well, impressed. I just got a gut feeling that I didn't like it and it would probably be the college I most hope I don't get reallocated to; then again I would much rather go there than not go to Oxford at all. After all, it is regularly said that people almost always love the college they 'end up' at


I'm more saying don't worry too much if you do end up there, the chances are you'll love it!
I agree with you that first impressions count. I used all sorts of small insignificant details to make my decisions on where to apply...

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