Cambridge for a party girl?

[candlewicker]

My DD has decided to apply for Cambridge after encouragement from school. She is bright and is predicted great grades but she is not obsessively academic or studious. What she is, is wildly social. She loves to party and have fun. Before this she wanted to go to Manchester, Leeds or Glasgow partly for the nightlife. Do kids like this fit in at Cambridge?

Absolutely. She’ll fit right in but will also have to study hard to keep up. I think she should definitely apply.

Sounds as if she has lots of energy so totally suited to Cambridge! Will no doubt benefit from the huge range of societies/visiting speakers/opportunities there. (She may be able to do some of the necessary reading in the holidays? Subject dependent.)

Oxford's a much better city for nightlife etc. than Cambridge. Studied at the former and had friends at the latter. No competition.

I think the workload is sometimes overstated btw. Just in terms of hours, I found it broadly comparable to a full-time, but very flexible job (I'd make a point of doing 5-6 hours every day, including weekends; others would make a point of taking one or both weekend days off. Horses for courses).

I was at Oxford and lots of people went to London clubbing all the time as well, though certainly not generally to the exclusion of socialising with other students. And still got firsts, in some cases. People do pull of burning the candle at both ends, whether the non-studying bit is serious sport or serious clubbing!

As pps have said, whether Cambridge social life would suit her is a way down the line question. Apply first. Think about whether the actual degree and the teaching style would suit her.

Yes, a gang of us used to get the Oxford Tube (express coach which runs from the middle of Oxford to Victoria). We'd do this a few times a year. It's super-cheap and runs all night, so you can stay out to whenever, and crash out on the bus on the way home

<<<drifts off into nostalgic haze>>>

there’s loads of opportunities for socialising and partying but it’s if a particular kind. You’d gather in someone’s room, start drinking, go to formal hall at your own or friends college, carrying on drinking in college bar, stagger to someone’s room or to small town club, stagger to kebab joint for late night munchies, stagger home. Lots of friends and lots of drink but not like going to massive club in big city and loads of big bars.

A few times a year? The people I knew did it at least once a week! You were clearly more committed to your studies! 😀

My main memory of doing it is waking up at dawn on the Oxford Tube to see the Headington Shark…

This brought back a lot of happy memories!

Sorry, I had a really busy day and didn’t get back to this thread. Helpful responses thank you. I am glad so many of you know people who lived it.

I just feel the school are pushing her toward a uni for their stats rather than what suits her. she was quite resistant for ages but has now said she will try as the course sounds perfect.

Even Oxford sounds a tiny bit more up her street but they are really pushing Cambridge and I fear she wouldn’t love it. She adores dancing so does like clubs, she is really into fashion, she has loved her whole life in central London so is used to big cities. She’s been state school educated all her life in huge schools with no airs and graces & a wide range of different types of people to be friends with.

i know it’s a fabulous uni, I know if she got an offer it would be a huge opportunity academically and in terms of connections she would make, but I don’t think it’s a given she will actually be happy.

Have you told her this, OP? Esp the bit about why she might prefer Oxford?

Does the school have a valid reason for pushing C over O?

I think the college system lends itself to being more social because you meet more people in the dining hall than you would if you’re in a small flat in halls.

Open day is today!

Oxford has better nightlife and big city feel than Cambridge though. Sounds like she should go for a London uni if into fashion.

I don’t think that’s true - doing an arts subject at Cambridge we had to hand in two essays per week. My school friend, doing the same degree at a respected Russell Group uni, had one essay per term.

My suspicion is that its admission stats for her subject suggest it’s slightly easier to get into, so more chance of boosting their stats, but I am not 100% sure as they claim it’s course fit.

She’s lived in London all her life and loves it. She will probably return here for many more years but she wants to get a bit further away from us & all she knows for uni. The choices of great unis in big cities really narrow if you don’t consider London.

DS did under grad at Kings then Masters at Cambridge. He really enjoyed the switch from party hard London to the more pastoral atmosphere at Cambridge.

There were some of girls going out taking ket and dancing but they’re definitely a minority in Cambridge.

Socialising is more college based. If she wants Oxbridge she really needs to apply for the right college that will suit her. It’s near impossible to change college.

Based on Cambridge both long ago and ds graduating last year, I think you’re right and should steer her to look seriously at Manchester or Bristol, plus it’s fair to look at Oxford. It has to be said that ds was a compsci which is a course with a particular [cough] vibe, but although both ds and I had a brilliant time and great social lives, in neither case was it a ‘party animal’ experience. A decent chunk of my college were in Manchester every weekend (ok it was the late 80s) and another lot in London. I was at friends’ parties, classical concerts and student theatre productions so Cambridge was amazing for me. My impression of ds’s cohort was quite similar - very very social (and the collegiate setup does really foster that) but not ‘party’.

Hmm yes I think the advice "you can go to London from Oxford" will not be helpful then.

IF she gets an offer and decides to go to Cambridge (or Oxford – she should consider that) then she needs to reframe. As others have said, plenty of opp for socialising, but big cities they are not.

Lots of time in your life to live in a big city tho. If she is hoping to replicate London life then she won't unless she stays in London (which she could do?). I know a couple of YP who have found this. They needed to discover something else they enjoyed doing.

Great unis in big cities include Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Sheffield, Leeds … but none of those can compete with the cultural and other offer of London. They offer the chance of city living in a smaller community tho, esp if at uni, and it is more than worthwhile. It's different again IMHO from the uni offer of (for example) L'boro, Warwick, York, St As, Lancaster, Bath. All equally great unis but in different ways.

With the short terms at Cambridge she'll be at home in London most of the year anyway! She might enjoy the contrast.

I’d have thought having a base in London would make her very popular for hosting her friends when they come to London for clubbing during the (very long) holidays and occasional weekends.

The social scene at Cambridge has been described perfectly upthread so won’t repeat. I also did a postgrad in Oxford and smiled at the Oxford Tube memories!

I loved Cambridge so much and made several friends for life. It’s a huge privilege to live in such a beautiful place and it’s not parochial or sleepy. In retrospect there was possibly heavier drinking than was healthy but that was the 90s and I think young people today are wiser in that regard. It makes me sad to think someone would rule it out because there isn’t a clubbing scene, but each to their own.

Neither of mine would even apply. Dd1 came back from the taster visit adamant she didn’t want to go. They knew it wasn’t for them. The short terms /academic intensity / small cities and studious cohort put them off. Friends children who got in were extremely studious and very intense about their topic.

Dh was quite sad as his time there was transformative for him. Strongly believe they have to follow their instincts on this choice though. Be awful if she went and was miserable. It’s not a golden ticket any more friends son and his Cambridge friends struggling to find jobs. .

I really don’t recognise all these hyper-studious stereotypes. Honestly, there was never any shortage of people to hang out with drinking and talking nonsense at all times of the day and night, and the vast vast majority of us graduated with 2:1s.

Provincial universities (so not Oxbridge and London) have bigger clubbing scenes because the cultural and academic life of the city is insufficient to keep students occupied. It's quite important to know what you want IMO.

It's quite important to know what you want IMO.

Yes this from @Ceramiq All of the unis mentioned on this thread (and others!) have much to offer. But it’s not the same much. Your DD needs to look and see if she can imagine herself living somewhere and doing the work for three years.