Choosing an Oxford College

Yes sorry I phrased that wrong - I believe that at St John's I'd be able to live in the College's main site for all three years, whereas at Univ I'd have to move to another site (in the north of Oxford, I believe?)

Hey everyone I'm applying for Medicine for 2015 entry.
I can't decide between St John's and Univ. I visited quite a few on the open day and these two were my favourites. I liked the accommodation at St John's and how you get on site accommodation for three years. Also seems quite good on helping with expenses, travel, etc. Univ seemed a bit more relaxed and I liked the location more.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated

You can live in Univ for 3 years

Your final year would just be at their accommodation on Staverton Road!

I'm about to start medicine at Univ, so if you got in there there's a ~25% chance you'll have me as your college parent... Make of that what you will. I know Univ has some travel grants and bursaries too, but I'm not really sure how much they give you, cos all their info in the subject is pretty vague. St John's is ridiculously rich though - I know they give every student a massive "book grant" which I believe can be spent on iPads and laptops as well as proper academic stuff, so that's pretty good.


Thought it was 2nd year?


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I'm about to start medicine at Univ, so if you got in there there's a ~25% chance you'll have me as your college parent... Make of that what you will. I know Univ has some travel grants and bursaries too, but I'm not really sure how much they give you, cos all their info in the subject is pretty vague. St John's is ridiculously rich though - I know they give every student a massive "book grant" which I believe can be spent on iPads and laptops as well as proper academic stuff, so that's pretty good.


Thought it was 2nd year?


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Hello!

It's a few years before I have to apply to University (I sit my GCSEs in the coming year and haven't even put forward a Sixth Form application yet!), however, my big ambition is to go to Oxford University and study French and Spanish.

I've been looking into colleges and, personally, I would prefer to be a member of a less formal college- I know that in some colleges I've heard you have to wear your gown all the time and go to fancy dinners every night etc; and that's not really what I want to do xD
I'd prefer to be in a college where things are more friendly and a lot less formal; there is little pressure to be dressed up in fancy clothes and eat fancily, if you understand what I mean?

Anyway, the colleges that offer the course I'd like to do are:
Brasenose College, Christ Church, Exeter College, Hertford College, Jesus College, Keble College, Lady Margaret Hall, Lincoln College, Magdalen College, Merton College, New College, Oriel College, Pembroke College, The Queen's College, Somerville College, St Anne's College, St Catherine's College, St Edmund Hall, St Hilda's College, St Hugh's College, St John's College, St Peter's College, Trinity College, Wadham College, Worcester College

Out of these, which colleges would you say are the least and most formal?


Thank you ^_^ <3

Hello!

It's a few years before I have to apply to University (I sit my GCSEs in the coming year and haven't even put forward a Sixth Form application yet!), however, my big ambition is to go to Oxford University and study French and Spanish.

I've been looking into colleges and, personally, I would prefer to be a member of a less formal college- I know that in some colleges I've heard you have to wear your gown all the time and go to fancy dinners every night etc; and that's not really what I want to do xD
I'd prefer to be in a college where things are more friendly and a lot less formal; there is little pressure to be dressed up in fancy clothes and eat fancily, if you understand what I mean?

Anyway, the colleges that offer the course I'd like to do are:
Brasenose College, Christ Church, Exeter College, Hertford College, Jesus College, Keble College, Lady Margaret Hall, Lincoln College, Magdalen College, Merton College, New College, Oriel College, Pembroke College, The Queen's College, Somerville College, St Anne's College, St Catherine's College, St Edmund Hall, St Hilda's College, St Hugh's College, St John's College, St Peter's College, Trinity College, Wadham College, Worcester College

Out of these, which colleges would you say are the least and most formal?


Thank you ^_^ <3

Hahahah OK - don't know if that should deter me from Univ or not :P Congrats on getting in

Hey everyone,

I'm hoping to apply to Oxford for medicine in September and need some advice about which college to apply to. Here are my criteria:

- relatively large intake for medicine
- middle sized, not huge or tiny but anywhere in the middle is fine
- central (ish) location, would be good if it wasn't too far from the station and/or the medical sciences teaching centre
- access to a good gym not too far away from the College, preferably free
- decent accommodation which isn't too expensive
- good food
- really friendly atmosphere, not too hard core academic :P

Any suggestions? So far I seem to be going with Brasenose but I'd like to hear if any others seem to meet these criteria!

Thank you!

Hello.
I am so confused about which college to apply to out of Balliol, Christ Church and St John's for law?
My main preference would be cheaper accommodation and more grants and bursaries.
Which of these has a better reputation for law and better career prospects because I have heard some colleges do not fare well when it comes to employment.
Also, I have heard that Balliol has a keen interest for international students, as I am one of them, is that the case in reality?
Is there anything else about these colleges you would like to point out?
Any suggestion would much appreciated.
Thanks

I start at Worcester College in October and love it because students are able to shape their experience entirely; there is a casual hall (dinner) every evening and a more formal hall about an hour or so later, this means that you choose whether or not to engage within the formalities of the college. It is university policy, however, that students sit exams in formal gowns which are also worn during certain ceremonies which include matriculation and graduation. It seems to me that you'd like a college with a smaller student population as they have a more 'family'-esque atmosphere. I would avoid places such as Christ Church and Exeter as they have a greater degree of pomp and ceremony which attracts a certain level of snobbery (not that this is a bad thing, but it's not everyone's idea of a good time). Good luck with your exams!

St John's has some of the cheapest accommodation and some of the best grants of any college.

I wouldn't worry about employment - that will be much more down to your own interests/applications than the college you've come from. Similarly I wouldn't pay attention to the suggestion some colleges are keener of internationals, I've never heard that suggested before.

Everyone has this opinion that St John's is very competitive and successful international applicants are really few for SJC.
Also, what's the kind of atmosphere at St John's and the student life?
I'd like to know your views on Balliol and Christ Church too, if you have any
Thanks

Everyone has this opinion that St John's is very competitive and successful international applicants are really few for SJC.
Also, what's the kind of atmosphere at St John's and the student life?
I'd like to know your views on Balliol and Christ Church too, if you have any
Thanks

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I'd like to apply for Oxford to study maths. I looked around five colleges on the open day and loved all of them, and don't want to do an open application. Can anyone give any opinions on these colleges? I know there aren't any that are easier to get into but still.
Christchurch
Queen's
Univ
Brasenose
Worcester
thanks for any help anyone can give me!

Christ Church also has relatively cheap accommodation, currently £19.12 a night (saying that I don't really know how this compares across the university). All rooms are charged at a flat rate, however, whereas I know that some colleges have a scaling system where better rooms cost more. Accommodation is of a pretty high standard, with more or less guaranteed en-suites for first and third year, and is guaranteed for your entire degree (3 or 4 years).

A book grant of £240 is offered to all undergrads, and being a wealthy college it has a fair number of grants too. Christ Church also has it's own 24/7 Law Library, which I've been told is well stocked and pretty handy.

Don't believe the 'rah' stereotype the college has - of course there are some students who could fit that description, but the same can be said for all colleges.

Christ Church also has relatively cheap accommodation, currently £19.12 a night (saying that I don't really know how this compares across the university). All rooms are charged at a flat rate, however, whereas I know that some colleges have a scaling system where better rooms cost more. Accommodation is of a pretty high standard, with more or less guaranteed en-suites for first and third year, and is guaranteed for your entire degree (3 or 4 years).

A book grant of £240 is offered to all undergrads, and being a wealthy college it has a fair number of grants too. Christ Church also has it's own 24/7 Law Library, which I've been told is well stocked and pretty handy.

Don't believe the 'rah' stereotype the college has - of course there are some students who could fit that description, but the same can be said for all colleges.



ChCh is a great college! It's very large and takes on students from most subjects, so it's quite a diverse student body. The accommodation is good, often trading in for a more sought after room as you progress through the years, but for the same price. Although there are a lot of tourists, there are parts of college that they're not allowed in, so they're not everywhere. The tourists also subsidise our costs meaning that hall food is very cheap and still of good quality!

tl;dr - Christ Church is amazing. (not biased at all)

Everyone? I'm a student there and there are plenty of international students around I've just flown back from visiting a friend who is one!

I love it, but I'm sure I would have loved the atmosphere in all the colleges equally - they're all great.

Umm Christ Church gets a lot of tourists, which could be annoying, but the people I know there are happy (and I've enjoyed the food when I've visited, but some disagree). Balliol has some pretty bits, and is well located, but I don't know enough to say more than that.

Applying to Oxford? Want some help choosing a college?

Check out the guide on the TSR wiki: How to choose an Oxford College

Then if you have any questions, or need any help, post in this thread