Ok, so I've finally decided to apply to Cambridge, even though I have no intentions of going, just to see whether or not I get in ... but I have no idea which college to choose?

Would anyone recommend anywhere? I'm looking at catered, and somewhere with good music facilities ....



Oh, also, does anyone know if you can get any practice admission tests anywhere? I'm sre i've had a look at some before, but I can't seem to find them now ....

Sorry. There was no need to be so rude about it though ...

University lecturers hate dealing with the administrative procedures related to admissions - the last thing they need is people applying as some sort of joke. I believe your signature talks about respect...

Why not concentrate on applying to the universities you are actually interested in going to?!

if you don't have anything nice to say, please Czerny, dont bother.

We get 5 choices. I'm only intending on going to one of them ... Does that mean that i'm wasting the time of the other four universitys that i'm applying to? I was only asking for people to give me their advice on colleges, not for someone who doesn't even know me to call me egotistical. I'm actually quite offended at that!

You can't guarantee you'll get in to your first choice, so, regardless of whether you're wasting the universities' time (and for God's sake learn to spell it before you go there), you're possibly wasting one of your options. Make the most of this opportunity and find some other places where you really want to study! Good luck.

I know I probably won't get into my first choice, but I have three other options aswell. Thank you anyway.

Does anyone else have any recommendations about colleges?

I think all of the colleges have good music facilities, or are close to music facilities in the university buildings, so you wont need to worry about that, but i'm not too sure about which colleges are catered.
I think the only thing you would need to think about if you wanted to study music was the location of the college, as all of the colleges offer music.

Here's a link to the university college page: Cambridge Colleges

As for Practise admission tests, i dont think they offer them. I've only ever seen them offered at the Royal schools of music, and they cost £50ish for a consultation lesson.

I hope this was helpful!

Good luck with applying to universities (plural of university is universities, not universitys, by the way )

Jacob.

Oh, i'm not actually applying to do music, i'm applying for languages, i was meaning if there were any practice rooms etc. in the college. Sorry, I probably didn't make myself very clear.

Yeah, I know the plural of universities Slip of the miind! I'm very tired!

I'm tired too, i'm about to go to bed!

I'm guessing you want to do french, looking at your signature?
You should be able to use the music department practise rooms, but obviously you'd have to give priority to people studying music, and i'm sure most colleges have a music room or a piano around, so i'm sure you'd have access to a piano atleast.

If i dont study music at university, i'd like to study french, maybe with an intense 1 year russian course combined.

Jacob.

As has already been said, most colleges have practise rooms which all students can use and my college also let us play in our rooms. Colleges also have their own music societies although of course these vary.

My college (Clare) has a reputation for being a musical college and has a renowned chapel choir made up of choral scholars - clearly if you are at the standard for a choir of this calibre and wish to put in the commitment, then choose a college which has a choir like this. What it did mean was that all chapel service were sung by the choir and there was no choir for people like me (I like singing but the thought of an audition terrifies me) - so if you are going to want to sing in a choir with a slightly lower commitment level, then maybe choose a college without choral scholars.
The bigger orchestras are run by the university music society, so it doesn't matter which college you choose for that and a lot of people just meet up and form their own chamber music groups.

Out of curiosity, what is your first choice if you think you won't get into it but you might have a chance for Cambridge?

Hi PianoSecrets-x!

All the Cambridge colleges will have music practice rooms, college orchestras, etc. You really can't go wrong. And they are all catered too, at least for the first year. Think about whether you fancy an old, traditional college in the middle of the city or a more modern one slightly further out.

Have a look at some of the college websites for more details and see which one appeals. Languages is one of the easier things to apply for in terms of applicants:places ratio, but Cambridge is very intense and if you don't feel it's for you then, like Czerny, I don't know why you are applying.

As to Admissions tests, these vary from college to college, so I don't think you'd be able to get any past papers. The university prospectus (which you can view online) gives links to acted interviews which give you an idea of how the admissions people will speak to you when you go, but again every college is different. You will almost certainly be called for interview if you apply, so be sure it's what you want to do, and not what your school or parents are pushing.

All of the colleges have catering. That's part of the point of the college system - a college is a community of fellows and students and part of being in this community is eating together. Most colleges have both formal hall and a canteen system.

Cambridge is small enough that (with the exception of Girton) it doesn't matter which college you choose with regards to getting around.

All the best to your applications, PianoSecrets-x. Although I can't help much, not having studied in the UK, I think Czerny was just trying to advise that your choices should be wisely used.

As you were probably really exhausted from dealing with all the application procedures, you did sound (in your first post) as if you were just trying your luck with one of the top schools, just to prove your ability, even though the intention to actually accept the offer in the case of a successful application is not strong. Perhaps you should reconsider your strategy and place colleges that you are interested in first.

Not very sure how the admission/selection process is like in the UK. Have you found out how the selection works? In my country, the order of choices are extremely important. Let me illustrate why:

If the following is the order of your choices:
1) College A
2) College B
3) College C

, your application will reach College A in the first round. If you aren't successful (e.g. College A being very competitive), your application will then be routed to College B for a second round of admissions. By the time College B receives your application, it has already admitted those who placed B as the first choice in the very first round. As a result, there will be fewer places left for the course you applied for, causing a lower probability of admission for you.

If your favourite option were College B, would it not be a real pity that you did not place it as the first choice? You could have easily gotten into B if your application was received in the first round.

Just my two cents' worth. Perhaps the UK admission procedures aren't the same. No matter what, don't forget that you will be the one studying, so your own preferences should be seriously considered. So, no hard feelings against Czerny or anyone else who advises against applying for Cambridge, OK? Good luck!

If you are not doing music you may find access to practice facilities restricted to you, in favour of the students who are doing music. Worth thinking about. Also, be realistic in your choice of universities. No point wasting a choice if you feel you have no realistic chance of making the grades to get there. Good luck!

This was not my experience at all.

It is not unusual to find talented musicians reading subjects other than music and following their Cambridge degree with postgraduate studies at a conservertoire.

Other universities may (and do) differ.

They may indeed, but the poster was asking about Cambridge and I've actually studied there.

As I said, in my college we had practise rooms, although I felt somewhat self-conscious practising there as I knew people who were far better then me might hear. It was also fine to play in our rooms and members of the choir who lived on my staircase used to sing in the loo (good acoustics but rather disturbing).
I had friends at both Trinity and St. John's and know that it was the same there. Facilites for many extra-curricular activites at Cambridge are very good.

OK, have checked at the school where I work and I now realise that the procedures are different this year (son applied last year). There are to be admission tests in most subjects to weed out unsuitable candidates before interview. I doubt anyone will have much idea what is entailed, but good luck if you apply!


This can be a problem in some universities. Though college practice rooms are available to all in collegiate unis like Cambridge, Oxford and Durham, I believe the faculty practice rooms there are restricted to those taking Music. If music is important to you, make sure there will be good facilities for non-music students at the unis you apply to.

Good for you. I was thinking in general terms because the OP started talking more widely about their university choices.

Thanks for all your help. I will have a look at the college website, and I also think that there are a few teachers at my school that went to Cambridge, so I might ask their advice too.



I don't think I have a chance of getting into Cambridge at all! My other choices are St Andrews, Birmingham, Durham and Southampton, to study French, Spanish and Italian, and i'm predictied 3 A's.

I'd suggest going for it, and to enjoy the application process. Don't be put off by the agressive nature people have towards Oxbridge applications, just because you aren't so certain. I suspect most students from state schools apply to Oxbridge somewhat speculatively. I know I was using my Cambridge interview to find out if I liked the Uni, and treated it as a chance for me to interview them too... an experience somewhat novel to the lecturers I think! Seriously though, it is a nice opportunity to pick the brains of an academic, and get into a really good discussion of what interests you within your subject(s). I also enjoyed going shopping, and having a three day break from college.

If you don't get a place, you have gained the experience (which is generally a very positive one, Cambridge write lovely rejection letters... guess they want to avoid suiciding rejects ) and if you do, than you can give it some serious consideration as to whether its really what you want. There is, after all, no requirement to accept the offer, and many who get one don't get the grades they need anyway!

That's what I was planning on doing. I thought it would be a good way of getting interview exerience also, as the other uni's that i'm applying to don't generally interview. However, I go to a private school where Oxbridge applications are taken very seriously, and I feel that if I did apply and get it, i'd be pressured into going, even if I didn't want to ....

Arghhh!! I'm sooo confused!!

You have every chance of getting into Cambridge! Your AS results are very good, and you are doing A2 Latin, which they like. Perhaps English Lit or History would have sat slightly better with the languages than Maths and Music, but they are good academic subjects, and I think you would be considered a strong candidate. I'm not sure they like you to do as many as three languages there, but I could be wrong - I know Durham are very happy for you to do three.

You will know when you've been to interview whether Cambridge is the right place for you, and if it isn't I don't think your school could force you to go. I'd hazard a guess that you'll love it though once you see it - we did! If I were you I'd certainly apply.

Cambridge was lovely yesterday... sunshine, punting on the Cam, sitting by the river at a pub - glass of wine good conversation, Nice company...
Life as it should be lived eh?

Whilst my Stepfather was at Christs he played his Violin widely and sang in a Chamber choir with the now Archbishop of Canterbury. He is a wrangler. He deserverd to be, he was one ohighly respected by his mathematical contemporaries.

Most Choral scholars read anthying but music for their sanities sake. True the standards are exacting, however being the child of an Alumna who remarried an Alumnus and married to a former post-doc research assistant It maybe one of the top two universities in the country and demand academic rigour, but the people who really thrive, are those who are well grounded and have a zest for life.

If you really don't want to go, I'd not bother applying - is there not another uni you can put down instead? ..... can you not go and look around at all first to get a feel for the place before definitely making your choices? I know you only really want to go to one of your choices, but if you don't get into your uni of choice, you need other alternatives that you'd be happy enough going to instead. So if you don't want to go to Cambridge, look around for somewhere else to put down.

For heaven's sake, you lot! I don't care where you've studied or how you spell yooniversitea!

But please remember:

PRACTISE is a verb

PRACTICE is the noun


A PRACTICE ROOM

A ROOM FOR PRACTISING

I PRACTISE

THE PRACTICE

Steve

PS I'm not sure about practice room. The LSE has a practice room, but perhaps Cambridge has practise rooms.

But I do know that the dept of biochemistry has no time to worry about this, cos they're all WORKING!

Calm down, Steve! There's no need to shout.

I'm pretty sure it's practice room, as you wrote initially. This spelling seems to be a problem for many people - we get the same mistakes with license (verb) and licence (noun) - and I think it's best to overlook the occasional slip on the forums. It really annoys me when letters are sent home from school with similar errors though!

I get annoyed when I type practise and a red line appears underneath...

Seeing as this somewhat controversial thread has been resurrected, perhaps I could take the opportunity to ask what PianoSecrets final decision was, and if you did decide to go for it, how you've got on. I have a vague recollection of interviews beginning next month...

Haha, wow, I kind of regret starting this thread! I didn't mean to create an argument!

Anyway, I was talked out of applying by the head of languages at my school, as he knew that the course really wasn't for me. I understand what everyone was saying about not applying to somewhere I didn't want to go, but lots of people had been telling me that I would make a really good candidate, so I felt that I might as well give it a go. I ended up applying to St Andrews, Birmingham, Southampton, Newcastle and Durham, my UCAS form went in a couple of weeks ago, and I have an interview at Southampton in the beginning of November

Thanks for all your advice