As an Oxford applicant, choosing a college might seem like a secondary concern. The big shiny thing is the “Oxford” brand that spans college-wide. I personally didn’t care too much about which college I got into, as long as I was admitted. In fact, I submitted an “Open” application, and allowed the Oxford system to send me wherever. It worked out, as I loved my college. However, I realise now how important college is to the Oxford experience and would give it more consideration.
Instead of listing out the traits of each college, 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.
Are you even eligible?
Some colleges may not offer the subject you want, while others may bar you on the basis of the degree level, as well as your age. This should be your first level of screening. Graduate-only colleges are Kellogg, St Antony’s, St Cross, Linacre, Nuffield, Wolfson, and Reuben. Harris Manchester College only takes in students above 21 years old.
Learning and academics
Which professors are cool? Most professors in Oxford are rockstars – though some have more mind-blowing credentials or have done in-depth work in the specific areas you are interested in. You will mostly go for tutorials with Professors in your college, so consider this. Lectures are, in my opinion, a watered-down version of learning that just gives you the context, while tutorials form 80% of the learning experience.
It’s wholly possible to reach out to professors outside of your college and they’re usually happy to help students under their faculty regardless of college. That said, you get more exposure to the professors in your college, whether it’s through formal dinners, or even parties if they decide to join in the fun.
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 such as St Hughs or St Hilda’s). Getting a bike could also mitigate long distances – you can probably go from one end of Oxford to the other in half an hour by bike.
Sports and Clubs
Some colleges are stronger in certain sports, on the basis of greater emphasis and alumni support. Rowing is especially pertinent here, because the boat clubs are often college-specific. 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 assets owned by the college might not sound like much, but this can significantly impact your quality of life. It might be counter-intuitive that the more you might require financial assistance, the more you should apply to a wealthy college. When applying, I was misled by the notion that wealthier colleges would have a posher atmosphere and I would struggle to fit in with the folks coming from old money and British high society. However, wealthier colleges actually have more capacity to support students in both necessary expenses as well as social activities. For instance, during COVID, some colleges offered free accommodations or compensated air travel for students who needed it. Other financial perks are cheaper hall food or subsidised travel trips that you can apply for. Colleges might also provide subsidies for social activities held by the student body, resulting in lower costs (very important when you consider that an Oxford Ball can be £200 per ticket!)
The important part here is the “Willingness to spend”, not all rich colleges are munificent when it comes to student welfare. In addition, it’s important to consider financial assets per student. Smaller colleges might have lesser money in total, but can spend more per student if the population is correspondingly tinier. Since most colleges exist as independent entities (besides Reuben, Kellogg, and St Cross), the disparity in financial spending by colleges can be very different across colleges.
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. You’ll likely form deeper friendships in small colleges because you keep running into the same people repeatedly, while larger colleges can help with meeting a wider range of people.
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 fundamental 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 the years you will be there. 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.
It would be great to have a look into the rooms. I was far more impressed by the rooms at Queen’s compared to Exeter, for instance, though this could also be due to the small sample of rooms I’ve observed.
Some colleges also have separate accommodations for Masters and Undergraduate students. I always thought Keble had wonderful rooms for graduate students, with huge glass windows.
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 too. 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, so it’s worth also charting out the distance to Iffley).
Changing colleges
If you’re already committed to a college, it’s possible to change your college, but it can be a pretty difficult process to navigate. I wouldn’t recommend changing colleges unless you felt incredibly strongly about it, since you’d have to enter a new environment when most in your batch would already have established social circles.
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. Start hitting up the LinkedIn profiles of current students and alumni, folks are usually quite happy to share about their college experience. 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 the years you are there.