Instead of listing out the traits of each college like this, which is often subject to changes, I thought it’d be more helpful to give you a framework of considerations. In general, most colleges have friendly cultures and people will be nice, though this is subject to each individual cohort of students.
Learning
Which professors are cool? Not every professor in Oxford is a rockstar – some have mind-blowing credentials or have done in-depth work. You will go for tutorials with Professors in your college, so consider this. Lectures are in my opinion a watered down version of learning – tutorials are the key.
Location
Colleges that are close to the city centre will definitely be more convenient. You can also look to optimise the distance to your department building based on your course. I would say that location is less important, though, since most of Oxford can be reached on foot in half an hour – unless you’re at a college that is really far away from everywhere else (St Hughs or St Hilda’s). Getting a bike could also mitigate far distances.
Sports and Clubs
Rowing is especially pertinent here, because the clubs are often college-specific. Some colleges are stronger, on the basis of greater emphasis and alumni support. Some colleges share a boat club with other colleges, which can be a way to meet people outside your college, but also entails more difficult coordination.
Financial muscle = Endowment X Willingness to spend on students
The concept of financial muscle might not sound like much, but this can significantly impact your quality of life. During COVID, some colleges offered free accommodations or compensated air travel for students who needed it. Other financial muscle can result in cheap hall food or subsidised travel trips that you can apply for.
Community and Culture
While most colleges will have the same community, some are slightly different. A mature/graduate college will be more sensible. You might have fewer chances for a crazy night out, but also much lower chances of waking up to vomit outside your door, courtesy of someone else’s crazy night out.
Other colleges have traditions – Tortoise races, pancake race, time ceremony to stabilise the time-space continuum – these are some of the fun stuff that should not form the reason for your application but can get you excited about a college.
Accommodations and Facilities
The price of accommodations and meals will likely be your second greatest expense after tuition. Look for this number – they can vary very differently and represent a significant savings.
As for the rooms, do consider whether you are guaranteed accommodations for all three years. Believe me, renting outside of college is an absolute pain. You have to deal with landlords well-accustomed to an oligopolistic economic structure. College life is also where you can meet with friends spontaneously.
Other considerations are the availability of en-suite rooms as well as kitchens. Accessibility requirements are also different across colleges; given the old buildings, ramps are quite rare, and lifts are even rarer!
You can also consider the aesthetics of the accommodation buildings – not a huge thing I cared about – but some people don’t quite like Brutalist buildings, or want to live in a castle instead of a modern building.
Find out about the library – you will probably spend a lot of time there. Other facilities include a gym (some colleges have a membership to Iffley gym instead of their own gym, it’s worth also charting out the distance to Iffley).
Conclusion
I would always recommend against making an open application – you want to have some degree of control over your college given how it could shape a large part of your Oxford experience. I’d also recommend speaking with people from those colleges to figure out how the colleges fit on the above framework, as you make your choice. Go for Open Days as well if you can to see the College first-hand for yourself. Invest time in this decision, because you will feel the difference for three years.
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