Pembroke College Crest

Pembroke College

Pembroke is the “fun college” of Oxford, with extremely friendly students and very active and social JCR + MCR communities. We’re also the pink college. We wear pink, play sport in pink, paint ourselves pink and even have The Pink Panther as our official college mascot.

TODO

Food

At Pembroke, first years are on a meal plan that entitles them to a daily meal token 6 days a week (Sunday-Friday), redeemable at lunch, informal dinner or formal dinner. Subsequent years living on site can stay on this plan or have the option to be on a flexible meal plan – the credits from which can be used in hall as well as the café. Those living offsite usually self-cater or eat in hall on a PAYG basis. A wide range of dietary requirements (e.g. halal, kosher, vegan etc.) can be catered for; Pembroke’s vegetarian/vegan food is particularly high quality compared to other Oxford colleges. Portion sizes are notoriously generous and desserts are especially good. Formals take place 3 times a week in Michaelmas, twice a week in Hilary and once a week in Trinity term. Freshers are required to attend formal at least once a week in order to promote community spirit and integration. In fact, because these formals cost nothing extra (very unusual among Oxford colleges), they are very popular among freshers and returners alike; the prices for inviting guests are also comparatively low so students often bring in friends and family to show off Pembroke’s beautiful dining hall. The college café, Farthings, also serves breakfast, lunch and snacks as well as cheap coffee, and is a very popular hangout site for undergrads. Alternatively, students can also make use of the shared kitchens around college. The JCR also provides free pizza at its fortnightly General meetings and food at other events such as JCR in the JCR.

TODO

Accommodation

College owned accommodation is available for all undergraduates for at least 3 years. Rooms are allocated by students’ preferences of room bands which are expressed before the start of the year. Room allocation is managed by the college using a computer system that optimises preferences, and usually over 90% of students are allocated their first choice band; students then choose themselves who to live with among those also allocated the same band. All freshers live in North Quad and are on term-time only contracts. Over half of the rooms there are ‘Standard’ (Basin rooms) which are priced below the Oxford average; however, students can also express a preference for allocation to the ensuite room bands (which are more expensive). Returners have more choice. There is the option to continue living onsite; most of the returner rooms in college are term-time contracts in ensuite room bands, located in the modern, sleek-looking Rokos quad, however there are some ‘Standard’ rooms available too. There is also the Geoffrey Arthur Building (GAB), an offsite annex less than 10 minutes’ walk from Pembroke; the rooms here are ‘Standard’ band and on 8 month contracts, meaning you can stay through the holidays. Some students opt to move out and live independently in Cowely or other areas of Oxford. There are several kitchens dotted around main site as well as the GAB, equipped with microwaves, kettles, hobs and fridges. Some kitchens, especially all those in the modern Rokos quad, also have ovens and freezers. Personal mini fridges and kettles are allowed to be used in rooms, and mini fridges can be rented from the college with priority given to students living in staircases without kitchens. There are also several laundry rooms with washers and dryers on both sites, operated by contactless payment. At Pembroke, there are several disability-access rooms in both quads onside and they are adapted to suit students’ needs. Step-free access is available to some rooms, teaching rooms, the hall, JCR, Pichette auditorium, and café. For students on term-time contracts, limited vacation storage is provided with priority given to international students. Some rooms have built-in lockable storage which students can use to store some of their belongings in over the vacation period. The college has arrangements with a local storage company which can provide short term storage at a cost; they can pick up and return students’ storage boxes at their staircase in college on a date that is suitable. Accommodation is also available for for all fresher and many returner postgraduates, both onsite and in a new development at the GAB.

Extracurricular

Art: In 1947 Pembroke became the first Oxford College to have an art collection owned by its students. Today students continue to grow the collection and put on exhibitions in our public art gallery, as well as manage the Art Fund, where money generated by the sale of pieces is used to provide hardship and travel grants to current students. Students can also borrow items from the collection to display in their rooms, and there is a yearly art competition. Music+ Drama: The Pichette Auditorium is used by student companies to put on high-standard musicals and plays. There is often an outdoor garden play in the summer term as well. As for music, the JCR organises an active programme of public recitals throughout the year. Singers can get involved with the College Choir, Master’s Recitals, or Pembroke College Music Society. Those who perform at Evensong on Sundays get the chance to sit at High Table at the formal dinner afterwards. Students studying any subject can also apply for a Vocal Scholarship or Instrumental Award. Sport: Pembroke is known to be a sporty college. The football and netball teams are usually very strong. Depending on the year and current cohort, there are many other college sports teams that also may be active, including water polo, badminton, rugby, hockey, lacrosse, cross country, tennis and cricket. If Pembroke doesn’t have a team that you’re interested in, you can start your own with funding from the JCR sports reps. The college sports ground, with various pitches, courts and a pavilion, is located just a 5-minute cycle from College. The boat house is a 10 minutes walk from college, and Pembroke has two of the best rowing crews on the river! Writing & discussion groups: Pembroke publishes a yearly edition of the Pink Times, which includes submissions of everything from photography to poetry to journalistic articles by current students. As for discussion groups, there is Peminists, Pembroke’s intersectional feminist society, which hold relaxed and inclusive sessions on a fortnightly basis. There is also Pembvironment which also runs fortnightly, here students can give presentations on and discuss various aspects of environmentalism from the climate crisis to preserving biodiversity. This group also works to push the college to improve its sustainability credentials. The JCR also runs a Biodiversity project in collaboration with PhD students and Biology fellows on a patch of land owned by the college; the goal is to survey and then to increase biodiversity at this site. This is a wonderful opportunity for anyone keen on Ecology to gain practical experience.

Welfare

Pembroke’s welfare team is particularly strong. The welfare team at the college includes members of staff, students and academics. Staff members include the welfare coordinator, who sends out weekly welfare newsletters, coordinates welfare activity across the college and is always more than happy to go for a walk with and chat to anyone needing advice or to vent. The junior deans are current MCR students who are trained to help with welfare issues (including serious ones) and one of them is always on duty; they too are also always great people to talk to if you need a listening ear. There are also the student welfare reps in both the JCR and MCR. In the JCR, there are 4 welfare reps; they organise JCR (‘Just Chill and Relax’) in the JCR fortnightly where there is free food and often drawing or other de-stressing activities. They also organise the termly welfare week, with events such as cute charity bake sales, open mic nights, oil painting sessions, welfare dogs, massages and more. They too are just a text/email away if you’re feeling a bit stressed or worried about something non-serious and would like a coffee and a chat.

Entertainment

Pembroke is a very social college, and there is always something going on entertainment-wise! Both the Junior Common Room (JCR) and Middle Common Room (MCR) are situated on main site, for the use of undergrads and postgrads respectively. In the JCR, there is a foosball table, pool table, various board games and a TV. JCR members can often bring motions to JCR meetings for the organisation of college-wide viewings of shows such as the Great British Bake Off, Super Bowl etc., complete with snacks and drinks. The MCR is also very active - a variety of events and activities take place on main site each week, such as gust formal dinners, bar nights, tea & cake evenings and more. The GAB has a common room available to use also. Our college bar is situated below the hall and opens 8pm-11pm Monday to Friday. Drinks bought in the college bar are paid for debit/credit cards. Thursday and Friday nights are particularly lively in the bar, as well as before BOPs (big organised parties). Unlike other colleges, Pembroke’s BOPs take place in booked out rooms in clubs on Monday nights which means they can go on till late. They always have fun fancy dress themes with a prize for the best dressed. Other fun events include punting in the summer, giant chess on the grass in Chapel quad, croquet (don’t worry, most people have no idea how to play and we’re all rubbish together) the biennial Pembroke Ball, Three Kings (where we go carolling in town during ‘OxMas’), the Pembroke Darts competition et cetera.

What I love most about Pembroke is its focus on individuality; each student is recognized by their tutors, friends and staff as an individual person with their own talents, interests, aspirations and worries.
Manny, Modern Languages, student from 2014
My favourite thing about Pembroke is the college spirit. Everyone is really friendly and supportive. Everybody celebrates everyone else's achievements.
Conor, Philosophy, Politics and Economics, student from 2014
The minute you walk in the staff and students are so friendly - it felt like home straight away (and a pretty picturesque one too!)
Hannah, English, student from 2014

Find out more

Founded: 1624
Undergraduate students per year: 110
Total number of undergraduate students: 355
Famous alumni: Samuel Johnson, Chris Whitty, Pete Buttigeig, Katharine Viner, King Abdullah II of Jordan

You might also want to take a look at the official college website.