Inside Uni of York’s colleges: We asked for your honest opinions on first year accom

College rivalry really isn’t that strong at York, but there is definitely a sense of judgement that comes with your accom. You got David Kato? That’s cool, I guess. Alcuin? Where even is that? Goodricke? Boring. Plus, it’s not just the college reputations that students have to deal with – it’s the buildings themselves. Let the horror stories roll in.

We asked current students over on Instagram for their best Uni of York freshers advice, and then asked for any guidance about the college accommodation. Because let’s be honest, the one thing that new students wanna know is where they’re going to be living. The York Tab’s ultimate guide to the colleges does a pretty good job of summing them up, but I’m sure you wanna hear the real and wild truths – straight from the students mouth.

‘Langwith is best 100 per cent’

Starting off strong with Uni of York freshers advice on accommodation. Our messages were filled with pledges to Langwith College, an accom that can seem to do no wrong. You’ll hear a whisper now and then of something mad going on in a Langwith flat, but then it’s never brought up again. That’s the magic of being a little separated from the rest of Campus East, and having a karaoke bar right there in the middle of the buildings. If you get Langwith for your first year accom, congrats. Just know your Freshers’ Week and the whole rest of the year will most likely be amazing.

‘Alcuin is definitely underrated, yes there isn’t a massive party lifestyle but it was incredibly wholesome!’

Someone vouching for Alcuin! I think the real moral of the story with Alcuin College is that people who live there, love it. And then people who have never even been inside like to violate it at every opportunity they get. For example,

‘Worst accom is Alcuin so dead’

Bit of a sharp contrast here, but it really does just depend on your personality I guess…

‘The £99 Halifax college rooms are actually vibes, Vanbrugh is not as nice as you think!!’

Slating one college to big up another, amazing. Halifax is definitely terrored the most for technically being off campus, but the little college village is quite cute and very social. Plus, of course, it is by far the cheapest of all the uni accommodation – so if you like it, bargain!

‘Don’t ever put Halifax high on your preference list, worst year of my life lol’

The “lol” really tells you how serious this one is. Hope you’re okay, genuinely. To be fair, I think you could put Halifax anywhere on your preference list and you would still get it. Sometimes I think they give you your last choice just for a bit of fun x

‘My Halifax house went to war with another house in first year over a stolen sex doll (we threw 100 eggs)’

Classic Halifax. What is going on over there?

‘West colleges are so much better than east colleges, think of a cold bus at 8:30am’

Bit of a unique opinion here, as East colleges are in much better condition than West. However, the trek between the two campuses is really rough, especially in the winter, so you can’t have the best of both worlds. Cold accommodation or cold walk to lectures?

‘Vanbrugh has great vibes but the older accom is a bit run down’

True to campus West accom, Vanbrugh is quite old and generally just filled with cobwebs. The kitchens aren’t great, but being right in the centre of West means it’s pretty easy to take a much needed break from your flat. Anything to keep those great vibes going x

‘My dad saw Vanbrugh Band 2 on an open day and said he’d rather stay in a prison’

Dad’s always speak to brutal truth. He has a point, but I dread to think what he would do if he saw Derwent.

‘Worst is Derwent’

This is kinda similar vibes to Alcuin – if you live there you love it, but if not it’s just plain ugly. Derwent has probably been compared more to a prison than a university accommodation, but we’ll move past that quickly. The charm of Derwent really doesn’t come from its buildings, but the people, who really love a good party. I would personally never miss a pres at Derwent x

‘Flatmate had a harmonica, he played all the time for the whole year’

I can’t decide if this is good or bad, who doesn’t like a bit of music while studying? If he was playing through the night, when did he sleep? Might have just sent me to transfer to YSJ.

‘Best accom is the newest builds, David Kato and Anne Lister’

This is probably true, but also a bit boring. Yeah there’s a communal lounge, pool tables, lockers, outdoor areas, brand new flats, etc – but what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Every student needs something to complain about in their accom, it’s character building. What do people in Kato and Lister even talk about?

‘Constantine, someone shat on the shared sofa in first week’

Well, this has took a bit of a turn. The first week is absolutely lethal, like did we get a new sofa? Have we been sat on the floor for the whole year?

‘Catered accom is worth it if you’re scared about cooking or scared about uni kitchens!’

Catered 100 per cent makes life a lot easier. If you’re worried that you should have gone self-catered to have a bit more freedom, when uni kicks in and you’re getting in past 6pm, you’ll be thanking yourself that you don’t have to cook. If you’re the opposite and wishing you were catered, you’ll soon get into the flow of cooking each night – time spent in the kitchen is often the best of flat life! Plus, the uni does offer certain meal packages to buy so that you can be partially catered whilst in a self-catering accom.

Related articles recommended by this author:

•We asked Uni of York students for their best advice for incoming freshers

•The 14 things no one tells you to prepare for when becoming a York student

•From Halifax to James, here’s how the students of Uni of York colleges spend their summer