Search Open menu Home Colleges and Student Experience Our Colleges Our Colleges Explore Our Colleges Open menu Our Colleges Our colleges are at the heart of life at Durham. From day-to-day activities to special events, there are so many ways to make friends and have fun, while increasing your skills and experience. Colleges are mixed communities of staff and students from all our subject areas. Each college has dedicated student support staff and student welfare volunteers, so there is help available if you have a problem or need advice. Our colleges all have a huge range of student-led activities - so whether you're interested in sports, theatre or music, want to do some volunteering or organise events, college gives you the opportunity to discover new interests and gain skills for life! Explore our colleges College communities A college community is not just the fantastic mix of people who live in the college, it also includes undergraduates and postgraduates who choose to live out in the community, members of staff and alumni. All first year undergraduates are guaranteed and offer of college-managed accommodation, should they choose to live in (as the great majority do). About one third of postgraduate students also live in college-managed accommodation. Second and third year undergraduates often live out but are still fully involved in college life; they participate in societies, use the library and sports facilities, consult college staff for guidance and support, and enjoy formals and events. Even after graduation you remain part of your college community: many of our alumni return to share their skills and experience years after they have left. Your college furthermore provides an informal setting to continue learning outside of your academic course, for the whole time you are studying at Durham. Read our FAQs Contact our College Office Undergraduates Find out more about our College allocation process and choosing your accommodation. Postgraduates Learn more about our postgraduate accommodation offer. Back to Colleges and Student Experience Accommodation and Catering Undergraduate Residence Charges Your accommodation costs for the academic year include either Induction or Congregation week. Postgraduate Residence Charges View our rooms and catering options. All family accommodation and some couples accommodation is based at Dryburn Court, part of Ustinov College. Broader intellectual perspectives Our colleges inspire you to explore your intellectual curiosity by bringing together students from all subjects. You will connect with students from all areas and levels of study to explore and analyse different ideas through guest lectures, talks and exhibitions to expand your learning. Extracurricular Events Personal effectiveness College communities let you develop your self-awareness, leadership and problem-solving skills through participation in societies, teams and representative groups. You will have many opportunities to challenge yourself with support from staff and fellow students. Belonging and responsibility Colleges are safe spaces to try new things, to challenge yourself and to transform. They are the places where lifelong friendships begin and new passions are found. Your College community will shape your university experience and stay with you for life. Tweets by durham_uni Student support and wellbeing Each college has dedicated staff to support and enable your personal development and wellbeing. University Support Services 17 colleges at Durham University 80+ student-led music clubs and societies 27 theatre companies across the university 18 sports to participate in through 700 teams Opportunities to get involved College life gives you the chance to create and deliver a variety of activities and events. 17 colleges means 17 times the opportunities to get involved in student-led and student-run activities. From managing sports teams and organising lectures, to planning social events to music-making and arts groups, there’s something for everyone. What is a Common Room? Student life at Durham is shaped by our students, with every college having representative bodies that are usually known as Common Rooms. Each is made up of elected voluntary student officers, including an Executive Committee. They represent the students from their college and organise many of the events and activities. As an undergraduate you can become a member of the Junior Common Room (JCR) or a Student Representative Council (SRC). Postgraduates may become a member of a Middle Common Room (MCR), Student Representative Council (SRC), Graduate Common Room (GCR) or a Senior Common Room (SCR). I have very fond memories of living in college with the friends I made during Freshers’ week. In 1st year, we would always go down to the Hall for meals together. We’d walk down the corridor knocking on every door before dinner to make sure nobody would be left behind. In my final year we spent most of our evenings in the library preparing for our finals, but we would always schedule study breaks for tea and biscuits in the pantry and we slipped letters of encouragement under each other's doors. Bruno Martin Biological Sciences graduate, St Mary's College College formals All colleges hold 'Formals', an opportunity for staff and students from the college to enjoy dinner together. Formals often have a theme such as Burn's Night, Valentine's Day, or Harry Potter. In some of our college's students wear gowns to Formals and in others wearing black tie or smart evening wear is part of the occasion. As well as Formals, colleges hold other fun events throughout the year such as College Balls and annual College Days held at the end of the academic year (like mini-festivals!). Visit Student Blog Student Pledge We enable you to become the best version of yourself academically and socially. Supporting our Student Pledge encourages good citizenship. Find Out More Map Facilities College locations Our colleges are spread across Durham; take a look at our interactive map for details. Key Blue bed icons = colleges Orange graduation caps = academic departments Other orange icons = places of interest Light green buildings = research institutes Green icons - university buildings Dark green heart = defibrillators Gold icons = sports and leisure facilities Pink P icons = parking Yellow icons = support departments Gold knife and fork = catering View on Google Maps College comparison The table below shows you at a glance some of the factual differences between the colleges. To get an idea of the differences in character and appearance, follow the links to the website for each and maybe even take a virtual tour. View Table College Year founded No. of full time student members No. of (UG&PG) students living in College No. of 1st year UG rooms No. of en-suite 1st year UG rooms No. of shared 1st year UG rooms No. of rooms for new PG students No. of en-suite rooms for new PG students C = Catered S = Self Catered UG C = Catered S = Self Catered PG Collingwood College 1972 1694 555 469 187 0 33 0 C C Grey College 1959 1351 463 320 87 17 60 0 C C / S Hatfield College 1846 1325 409 310 79 51 51 0 C S John Snow College 2001 1242 492 368 332 36 72 0 S S Josephine Butler College 2006 1480 546 420 420 0 46 46 S S South College*** 2020 643 492 360 300 0 77 29 S S St Aidan's College 1947 1046 386 305 43 51 80 50 C C St Chad's College 1904 633 254 130 54* 45** 44 27 C C / S St Cuthbert's Society 1888 1432 468 411 93 32 54 54 C / S S College of St Hild & St Bede 1839 1356 361 350 0 0 10 0 C C St John's College 1909 709 240 163 17 14 30 0 C C St Mary's College 1899 983 312 250 29 0 20 10 C C Stephenson College 2001 1045 433 348 196 0 60 60 S S Trevelyan College 1966 977 320 272 0 20 48 27 C C University College (Castle) 1832 1498 538 324 97** 30* 153 153 C / S S Van Mildert College 1965 1532 524 395 22 0 79 75 C C Ustinov College (PG only) 1965 1310 460 0 0 0 442 442 N/A S Student figures and room numbers provided are for the 2020/21 academic year and are subject to change. * Figure includes shared ensuite and standard rooms. ** Figure includes single and twin ensuite rooms. *** South College opened in 2020 with a reduced number of students with the intention of growing by 2022 to 1200 students. Explore our colleges Find out more about our colleges by following the links below. 1832 first Durham college opened 2021 Durham now has 17 colleges Collingwood College Grey College College of St Hild and St Bede St John's College Contact Durham University Website Feedback Durham University on Twitter Durham University on Facebook Durham University on LinkedIn Durham University on YouTube Durham University on Instagram The University About Us Jobs Contact Us Visit Us Our Colleges Academic Departments Statements and Policies Notices Statement on Modern Slavery Freedom of Expression Covid-19 Information Website Accessibility Student Complaints and Non-Academic Misconduct Business Services Helping Business Analytical Services Global Durham International Consortia Research & Partnerships Useful Links Learn Ultra DUO Banner Self Service Staff Directory Technician Commitment The Palatine Centre Durham University Stockton Road Durham DH1 3LE Charitable Status Disclaimer Trading Name Cookie Policy Privacy Notices ©2021 Durham University