Living at Merton

Accommodation

Our accommodation is highly subsidised, cheaper than most colleges and far cheaper than paying private landlords. Nobody here picks their room on the basis of cost as all study rooms cost the same - though sets (rooms with a sitting room and bedroom) cost a little bit more.

All rooms have free internet access and free phone calls across the university. You also have a friendly cleaner who empties your bin, hoovers and cleans your sink. Your room, which is fully furnished, is the responsibility of the college so if anything goes wrong it gets fixed immediately. Lots of the college rooms are en-suite, but all rooms have good access to toilets, baths or showers, and to laundry rooms. There is a JCR kitchen in the college itself for you to use.

Accommodation is undoubtedly one of the great things that Merton has got going for it. Amongst Oxford colleges Merton has outstanding accommodation and will give you a room for the entirety of your degree. That means you get to live with your friends, with all the college facilities on hand, in the centre of Oxford, at college rents, and without any of the hassle of flat-hunting and landlordicide, for every year that you're studying at Merton.

All the freshers live together in houses at the bottom of the stunning Fellows' Gardens, and just the other side of the wall on Merton Street. That means that you're under a minute's walk from Hall and the college facilities. Living in college is a wonderful experience - you live in a very close community of friends, and there really is always someone you know in the bar or the games room.

College Life

Initially there were only around 20 scholars, making the whole thing work like a large household. Over time the college grew; new subjects were offered and the buildings expanded. Today there are about 490 students (300 undergrads, 190 graduates) at Merton, all of whom are members of the self-ruling Junior Common Room; JCR for short.

Oxford University is today made up of over thirty such colleges. Whereas at other universities you get taught by a faculty and may, if you are lucky live in a hall of residence, as a collegiate university, Oxford is different. Each college is an academic community where people live, work, and play together. Colleges can and do mix though! Although you live within a, relatively, small college community you are sat right in the middle of a city of thousands. If you get bored with the company at Merton there are loads of great friends you haven't met yet waiting at the bars, clubs, cinemas, sports clubs, societies, shops and other colleges all across Oxford. This really is a win-win situation.

A major innovation since Walter's time is the Time Ceremony. Once a year, students solemnly put on academic dress (gowns etc.) and walk backwards around Fellows' quad, drinking port, at 2am on the night the clocks go back. There is not room here to fully describe the event's significance, but it essentially involves repairing a hole in the space time continuum and avoiding jet lag... honest.

Merton has exceptional grounds which, unlike many colleges, you can sit and work in the summer months. There is also a wireless network out in the gardens so you can sit outside enjoying the sun and pretend to work, while surfing the internet.

Food

Though rumours about Michelin starred chefs and daily cooked breakfasts aren't exactly true they are a testament to the reputation of Merton's food: good. One fact that certainly does hold true is that Merton has the best food in the university. A sampling of the broad range of other colleges suggests that, while it may not be up to top restaurant standards, Merton's food is generally superior - and, to be honest, rather good.

Merton's food not only has quality on its side, but quantity also - and meals are extraordinarily good value

Good Food
Perhaps its major lapse is the preponderance of courgettes: it is assumed that the college must be a shareholder in some sort of marrow farming business, but it has yet to be proven. You'll find that college food is far better than school food. Merton's food not only has quality on its side, but quantity also - and meals are extraordinarily good value: £7 a day would give you a continental breakfast, lunch (which with main course, soup, salad, pudding, fruit etc. can be stretched out to somewhere in the region of seven courses) and a two or three course dinner.

Traditional Oxford... or just a good meal... it's up to you!
'Formal Hall' happens six times a week, Sunday to Friday, and for under 3 you get a three course meal served to you by the lovely waiters and waitresses that work in hall. It is a great place to start a big night out or a civilised way to break from work (as gowns and jackets and tie, for men, must be worn!). If this doesn't take your fancy, however, there is also the informal early supper an hour before which has a similar menu but you don't have to dress up. Lots of people alternate between the two - or don't go at all - it's completely up to you.

In hall at Merton you only ever pay for the meals that you eat: so if you don't go to any meals you won't be charged for food. Vegetarians are well catered for, and given notice the kitchen will try to provide for those with other dietary requirements also.

More Food!
For those who prefer to cook their own food, there is a well equipped JCR kitchen in college and many of the houses on Holywell Street have kitchens. Merton's food provisions are not exhausted there, however: the bar's toasties are a life-saver and there are vending machines too. Meanwhile, the kebab van on the nearby high street turns up every evening to keep students fed at 3am on their way home...

In short, while food is very much as the forefront of a Mertonian's mind: no worries about malnutrition ever need cross them!

College Facilities

Merton has an excellent range of facilities for its students.

Two Libraries
The main OWL library is up-to-date and stocks most course books; if it doesn't you can ask your tutor to request them (or use your department library instead!) The long opening hours combined with a comfortable environment make it a great place to work. Most of the books can be taken away (with four-week long loans) and there are also photocopier facilities within the library. In addition there is free internet access in the computer rooms - which are open 24 hours a day - with free printing too! Also, there is a second library - the Mob library that has less books but is a great place to work.

The main Fellows Garden is wireless-Internet-enabled

Well Connected
Every room has its own internet (ethernet) port and telephone socket that provides free internet access and free (internal) phonecalls. Merton also has exceptionally gorgeous grounds which unlike some other colleges you can actually sit and work in during the summer months. To make this all the more easy the main Fellows Garden is wireless-enabled meaning you can take your laptop or notebook out with you: so enjoying the sun and pretending to work while actually surfing the internet and chatting to friends on MSN Messenger is a possibility.

Everyone in college has their own pigeon hole (pidge for short!) where your post, chocolate bars from friends, annoying adverts and supply parcels from home end up! Covered bike sheds are provided next to the library and in the Rose Lane area so there is somewhere safe to keep your bike! There are also numerous laundry rooms around college... though no laundry fairies so you have to do your own washing!!

Work

Confronted with the idea of lectures, tutorials, classes and, for scientists, labs it might sound slightly traumatic but really it's simply different to what you are used to and, at Merton especially, you'll find it takes no time to get settled in.

Don't worry though - you won't find yourself locked up in your room all day!

Achieve your best at Merton
Though proud of our achievements, Merton doesn't have a competitive atmosphere as the emphasis is always achieveing your personal best, not to better someone else. Our ability to help each other out, have fun, and essentially enjoy our time here explains our continually strong academic performance; the college has topped the Norrington table, a ranking of Oxford's colleges based on academic performance, four of the last five years. Don't worry though - you won't find yourself locked up in your room all day - other colleges seem to get far more concerned about it than we do.

It may sound clichéd but between work and social life you have to find a balance. You will find a lot more of your time here, especially if you are an arts student, is left up to you to manage, especially compared to sixth-form. It is highly possible though to pursue all the amazing things that there are to do here and get the work done as well.

The tutors at Merton are extremely friendly, just like the students.

The Personal Touch
Guiding you through your studies here will be your tutors. The tutors at Merton are extremely friendly, just like the students, and really do want you to succeed. The college's high tutor-to-student ratio means that you'll find tutorials are in very small groups (including some on your own - don't worry they are actually quite good fun) and, hence, your tutors get to know you very well. One of the most rewarding things about studying at Oxford is that you get to have close interaction with experts in your field of study: the people that, quite literally, write the books.

Great Resources
Merton's academic resources are very strong: with two college libraries including the Mob Library (located in Britain's oldest quad) which many find a great place a write an essay or do some reading. The college has tens of thousands of books and the librarians are always looking for suggestions on new books to buy. There is an excellent range of facilities for all students at Merton, whatever your interests. The library is up-to-date and stocks most course books; if it doesn't, you can always ask your tutor to request them. The long opening hours, combined with the comfortable environment, make it a great place to work; and you can borrow most of the books, or else use the photocopier. you have free internet access in the computer rooms, which are open 24 hours a day and have (free!) printers and a scanner.

Beyond Merton
There is, however, a whole university out there and the University of Oxford has, unsurprisingly, some of the best academic facilities in the country. With over one hundred libraries, including access the the Bodleian's entire collection (over 7 million books), so there is no excuse for not finding something on your reading list - however bizarre it may seem. There are also, of course, the academic departments that are responsible for lectures, official exams, and some of your teaching.