Frequently Asked Questions
The Student Recruitment and Admissions Office is responsible for managing the admissions process within Durham University for full and part time undergraduate courses. Academic Departments are responsible for considering each application and making offers and passing successful applications to one of the sixteen colleges for consideration, whilst the Student Recruitment and Admissions Office ensures that this process occurs as fairly and as transparently as possible and that decisions are communicated to UCAS within agreed deadlines.
The questions below have all been asked by our applicants or their parents at one time or another, and are intended to provide further information regarding the application process, some of our requirements, our collegiate system, the University and life as a student.
If you find that your query is not addressed or if you have any specific questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Student Recruitment and Admissions Team directly. Our email address is admissions@durham.ac.uk.
I have recently received an offer to study at Durham. The offer has been followed with confirmation of membership of one of the colleges but I would prefer to join another College. What should I do?
All undergraduate students at Durham must be members of one of the colleges, so your UCAS offer will be quickly followed with details of membership of a Durham college, nearly always specifying a particular college. Very rarely, you might receive an 'open' offer in which the college you would join is unspecified.
Applicants may request a change in college preference up to the point that an offer from the academic department is sent to UCAS. Such requests should be made in writing to the Student Recruitment and Admissions Office. You will need to state the reason for your request.
Once the academic department's decision on an application has been processed to UCAS our policy is not to accept requests for a change to an applicant's college preference except where an applicant has a disability or health issue that cannot reasonably be met by the college to which they are allocated. In such cases applicants should contact the college to which they have been allocated. Making such an enquiry can never put your UCAS offer from Durham at risk and will not affect the warmth of your welcome at any college.
