Female only colleges at Cambridge - why do people apply and whats the vibe?

[Norahh]

Just curious if anyone has any experience?

Very few people do - DD1 is at Murray Edwards because she got pooled there, along with 90 per cent of her cohort. She knows two girls who did choose it though - one who’s just more comfortable in an all-female environment (she’s Asian, if that’s relevant) and one because her best mate was applying there. I can imagine that some people apply because they think they’ll have a greater chance of getting in, although the stats don’t really bear that out.

As for vibe, I’m not sure how different it is from any other college. DD has a great group of friends and they hang out and party together (much like she used to do with her gang at school, which did include boys). Lots of them have friends and boyfriends in other colleges.

Thankyou @BiancaBlank for that insight - very helpful.

I went to Newnham - I didn't apply there but was pooled. I absolutely loved it, really nice supportive atmosphere, lovely people, gorgeous grounds but no tourists as it's just a bit out of the centre. You still mix with everyone else on your course every day so it's not like you only meet women. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it! Though that's not me saying it's any better than any other Cambridge college - just that I enjoyed my time there very much 😊

I really loved Newnham when I looked around and almost applied there (but this was over 10 years ago now). It’s beautiful and the accommodation has better facilities than a lot of other colleges (including the one I actually went to) and I thought the vibe was quite relaxed. Very convenient for the Sidgwick site too.

I had a very Christian friend at Newnham who’d applied directly so people definitely do, but they do take a much larger cohort from the pool than most colleges. I was pooled and was surprised that I didn’t end up at a female college. I think Medwards probably gets even fewer applications than Newnham as it’s ugly and further from town, but it seemed to have a pretty tight knit community plus it’s better for the budget-conscious I think (cheaper accommodation and near Aldi).

I was there long enough ago that Murray Edwards was called New Hall but that aside. A couple of people in my subject applied to Newnham because they wanted a particular Director of Studies who was inspirational. I also know people who applied there directly because they thought it would be easier to get in. I was at a mixed college and wouldn't have really cared if I'd been at a single sex college but most of my friends were outside my college either through my subject or through clubs and societies.

I also went to Newnham, it was my third choice. I think we socialised more out of college. The bar in my day (late 80s) was pretty dead. I think corridors are more friendly than staircases. Suspect less pressure to always look presentable.

(I had been at all girls prep followed by all girls boarding so wasn't aiming for single sex college, but also didn't wildly object.)

My dd is in mixed accommodation, different part of the country. She is lucky enough to have 7 girls in her 8 person flat, but I know if she could choose she would have all girls. It's an all gal pals together type thing. For one, the only boy is showing a serious personal hygiene issue so far - they are practicality following him around with an air freshener!

Haha was it Mary Beard by any chance? She was the reason I looked at Newnham!

@Fudgetheparrot Bingo 😂

When I applied to uni (also dark ages) I'd been to a mainly boys' school (my year was 2/3 boys as they were going mixed slowly) so I applied to Newnham.
I ended up at Edinburgh in an all women's hall of residence. I was really glad of the change and still have at least one good friend from hall.

DD applied to Newnham and it was one of the most competitive for her subject across the whole of Cambridge which we were surprised at. She loves the vibe, the location is great, all three years on the same site, bar is a bit naff. She hadn’t come across it until she entered an essay writing comp and when she went to get her award fell in love with it. She went to an all girls grammar with co-Ed sixth form. Just about to go into Y2.

Newnham is lovely and the accomodation is good too.

SiL is a Newnham alumae and loved it

Edit; alumna

Another pooled Newnham person, and Mary was my DoS. I had a fab time there. Don't know why I didn't put it as my first choice to be honest. I had friends from all over and from all kinds of courses. It was hardly a nunnery....

I went to Medwards when it was called New Hall and was pooled there. I had an absolutely amazing few years. My Director of Studies was awesome, I honestly couldn't tell you how much he was loved across the student body. I met a fantastic group of friends there, and mostly socialised with them. I would say the bar was pretty dead and we used to spend a lot of time at Churchill which is just out the back entrance. I rowed with the boat club which was fab.

I had a lot of friends from Churchill, we used to wait for them sitting on the Hepworth statue....

Another Newnhamite here. I loved Newnham, for all the reasons others have listed - brilliant female director of studies and inspiring female fellowship, beautiful gardens, rooms, and library, and out of town enough to not be swarmed by tourists, but only a quick walk in. Run by women, for women. It's a really special place. A few students who perhaps preferred a single-sex colleague for religious reasons (Muslim women students generally), a lot of lesbians, and a lot not.
I met plenty of men in my lectures and societies.

Easier yo get into the unpopular colleges

I went to a women's college at Oxford in its final years of single-sexdom, when it was known as the Virgin Megastore. I didn't apply there, I got pooled, but I thanked the universe my whole time that I ended up there and not at the college I applied to with very little knowledge of it! Women at single-sex colleges do still do better when they're not having to share tutes with men.

I’m not sure the women’s colleges would be deemed suitable by conservative, religious parents. DD had a look at a woman’s college at the open day last year. DH remarked upon their return that the girl who showed them around was clearly a young man dressed as a young man using the pronouns they/them.

While this is perfectly normal for gen Z, DD didn’t even remark upon it, I cannot imagine devout Catholic, fundamentalist Christian, or practicing Muslim parents being okay with this. From a traditionalist point of view, the women’s colleges aren’t actually women’s colleges anymore, so there is no unique advantage. They are just less conveniently located.

Not really, because they will use the pool system to redistribute candidates from the more popular colleges. The undersubscribed colleges will take more people from the pool.

Also, even small differences in admissions statistics tend to even out very quickly. If one college is that much "easier" than others, then more people apply there and the admission percentage drops again. You see this happening every few years in the stats!

I went to Newnham - applied there rather than being pooled. My university years weren’t always very happy so I look back on that time with mixed emotions but Newnham is a beautiful college and was a very lovely place to live for three years.

Exactly, a friend of mine applied to Newnham for the same subject as I did, she was rejected, I was picked up from the pool having applied elsewhere. I did feel bad about that.