Hi! I’m Jamie, I study PBS at Corpus Christi and I am the Access Officer on the JCR. When I applied to Cambridge, I didn’t actually apply to Corpus as I saw it as out of my reach. However, I am very grateful that I was pooled as I definitely misjudged the college initially and I have never felt more at home.
The classic description of Corpus is a ‘small and close-knit community’ which is definitely accurate. This makes college life and events feel much more comfortable and enjoyable. Corpus feels like a family, and we even have a dog that you can walk. Our community is very inclusive and our welfare team and liberation officers (BME, LGBT+, Gender Equalities and Disabled Students Officer) work hard to settle any student concerns. Although Corpus is small, it is filled with many unique individuals, who you can very easily get to know. The chapel is open to anyone – it holds services which you are welcome to attend and can also be used as a space for quiet reflection. Our chaplain also offers welfare support to all students, making Corpus a very supportive bubble.
However, there’s more to Corpus than our cosy community. Firstly, the actual college is quite small. We only have two courts (quality over quantity), but this means it is easy to navigate. Moreover, Corpus is old and gorgeous! This has its downsides though as it means there are quite a lot of stairs (because it’s old) and quite a lot of tourists (because it’s gorgeous). However, there are more modern facilities too. There are some modern accommodations (such as Bene’t street and Beldam) and we also have Leckhampton, our college sports site. Leckhampton has accommodation, mostly for post-grads, but also has a college gym, playing fields, tennis courts, outdoor pool and many other sporting facilities.
One thing that struck me about Corpus was that it is affordable to live and eat in college. Not only is it affordable, but the food in hall and the bar is delicious (our senior sous chef was on master chef). At Corpus, formal hall happens twice a week (if you’re up for wearing your gown and being waited on) and have been given a five-star rating by The Tab. Corpus formals are of a very high quality, but only cost around £10 a ticket (which is probably the equivalent of a takeaway).
Also, I would say Corpus is ideal from a widening participation perspective. Firstly, because it is the only college founded by the townspeople (which is always a good start). Another strength Corpus has is that it offers the Bridging Course to eligible students. This is a free pre-term course for freshers designed to increase academic confidence and allows students to adjust to Cambridge’s fast-paced life. Additionally, Corpus is a very wealthy college considering the number of students it has, meaning there are additional bursaries and hardship grants that you can be awarded if finances are something that you’re concerned about.
Aside from the standard advantages, Corpus is also quite unique. Firstly, we have our own clock – it’s not easy to read or accurate most of the time, but it is quite the tourist attraction. It features a chronophage (time eater) that is mistaken for an ‘ugly bug’ a lot of the time. Corpus also has a sister college at Oxford and to celebrate this, we participate in the Corpus Challenge. This is essentially a cross-college sports day which is fun to participate in or watch. We also have our own Corpus Playroom, which shows the college drama society’s performances (the Fletcher Players) – P.S. Stephen Fry learned his trade here. And to top it all off, as well as our Taylor library (the functional student library), we have the Parker Library. The Parker Library is home to a large collection of medieval and renaissance manuscripts, which you have access to as a Corpus Student.
Student’s least favourite thing about Corpus is probably the lack of en-suite and full kitchens provided. En-suites are like fairy dust for undergraduates, unless you have a reasonable request (but you end up not caring as much as you thought you would). Also, many students only have ‘gyps’ which are small kitchens consisting of a microwave, kettle, toaster and fridge. This is rarely a problem as most people eat in hall and can select accommodation with a better equipped kitchen from second year through the room ballot. Also, because of its centrality, there is often quite a bit of noise from tourists in the day, and students in the night. I personally think these equate to a very small price to pay for such a lovely college.
In summary, Corpus has homely and supportive vibes all round. If you want to find out more about Corpus, you can do so here: https://www.corpus.cam.ac.uk