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Why Balliol?
It’s normal to have doubts about starting university and I have to admit that I was more than a little nervous by the thought of coming to Oxford. I asked myself the usual questions: Will I fit in? How will I cope with the work? And how would I cope surrounded by tweed jackets? My fears were unfounded - tweed looks as silly here as the rest of the world. I’ve been here for over two years now, and can’t imagine being anywhere else. In fact, it’s difficult to believe that I was ever worried at all; the atmosphere is so relaxed that it’s impossible not to feel welcome. Fresher’s Week (your first week in Oxford) is designed to make everyone feel as welcome as possible. There are many people to meet and things to do throughout the week from drinks with tutors to break the ice to ‘Oxford Orienteering’ to pub lunches.
Balliol's defining characteristic is that we have a great mix of people from all backgrounds. Yes there are the extremely clever, the extremely sporty, the extremely studious, as well as those who turn laziness into an art form. Some people seem to do 27 hours of work a day whilst also acting in two plays, editing a newspaper and rowing for the first team but some people just sit in the JCR drinking tea all day. The fact that Balliol seems so relaxed is partly due to the lack of formality. We don’t have ’keep off the grass’ signs or formal hall and can pretty much do what we want. Balliol is also one of the bigger colleges (a shade under 400 undergraduates and about the same number of graduates) which means that it is less claustrophobic than some of the small colleges and that gossip doesn’t spread quite so quickly! On the other hand it’s small enough for the community atmosphere to be both diverse and homely. There’s so much to get involved with here on a college and a university level that I often wish there were more hours in the day. Everyone, no matter their background will feel welcome here.
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Simon Wood, 3rd year Chemistry: