Suggestions for Cambridge college - reading law

[Joffy73]

My daughter is intending on applying to Cambridge to read law and she is hoping for some college suggestions as not had chance to visit specific ones. She is at a state grammar school now (comprehensive for GCSEs) and got 99999998887 at GCSE. Can anyone recommend a college please for a sociable, non-nerdy girl? She’s not particularly sporty but into drama and just hanging out with friends. Thank you!

Pembroke? I only say that because of the drama part... they've always been the college with that rep.

Downing

Trinity Hall is traditionally strong for law, is very friendly and has a lot of the advantages of a central college without falling over tourists all the time.

Newnham! There's a thread at the moment on single-sex colleges at Oxford and Cambridge which is filled with people who loved Newham, including me. Plus it's just across the road from the law library. And we have our own playing fields on site.

Agree. A good one to be pooled from, if you're not successful with that college.

Queens. But a lot of the drama stuff is at the university level rather than college level.

Trinity Hall does indeed have a good reputation for Law. In the recent past it had a reputation for a male dominated culture , but there presumably have been efforts to change things for the better since then, eg with awareness of the situation and the appointment of a female master a couple of years ago.

Why not put in an open application?

Id go newnham or pembroke… i cant recall if the both pool x

I was at Trinity (not Trinity Hall) and did law, the Senior Tutor there is Professor Catherine Barnard who is an expert in EU law and is absolutely lovely. I had a very nice chat with her earlier this year at an Alumni event. https://www.law.cam.ac.uk/people/academic/cs-barnard/9

She is very non-stuffy and approachable, very keen on inclusivity. She taught me and was very kind when I had a panic about how the exam had gone. You can probably find clips of her on BBC news commenting on the legal implications of Brexit.

Trinity is big but that can be a good thing, it’s easier to find your tribe. Also has loads of money and you can live in College all 3 years. I was a state comprehensive pupil. Always felt very at home there and still go back.

And it has its own drama society.

Maybe Queens relatively close to law faculty, drama and central. Though if you can visit that might be helpful though college choice is not supposed to affect chances.

Think Newnham is now renamed Murray Edwards and women only. People get pooled to there. But very close to law faculty.

No newnham still newnham. New Hall became Murray edwards

What does pooling mean, please? (My own DC might be applying next year!)

Pooling means your choice rejects you but they think you are good enough so you go into a pool to see if another college wants you. You may be better than applicants who chose that other college as first choice.

trinity hall, Clare, newnham or Pembroke.

I chose Newnham, rather than being pooled there. (And it does still exist - New Hall became Murray Edwards). Go and visit, you might love it.

Thanks Dorothea I am getting my New colleges muddled, it was New Hall, women only that became Murray Edwards which people do get pooled to. Newnham is the good location for law faculty, women only.

I really wouldn’t choose on basis of proximity to the law faculty- most of the colleges in the centre of Cambridge are much of a muchness in terms of how long it takes to get there. Girton is the exception really, but it’s far from everywhere. Murray Edwards maybe a bit further too. But it makes absolutely no difference day to day if you are going there form John’s vs Clare, Trinity vs Queens, Christs vs Downing.

My husband’s best man did law at St Catherine’s (Catz) got a First, he is now a KC. But the academic part is all very central really and if one college doesn’t have enough experts in a particular paper you just get supervised by Fellows from another college. So choosing the college is less about subject and more about environment. But even then they all have very similar qualities. My husband and I have very similar memories of our time at Cambridge (we didn't know each other then) despite my college being about 3 times bigger than his.

Drama and teaching both take place across colleges so the main thing is to choose a college she likes the atmosphere of. Big or small? Old or more modern architecture? Best to visit and wander around lots of colleges and see which one she falls in love with. (For me it was Clare)