Last year there were six from Knox who got into med. And I doubt it will be much more this year.
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Otago Halls of Residence
- Thread starter Pineapple
- Start date
Bluerock
Regular Member
A lot of Arana kids in my year. Not so many Smags (unless they're incredibly quiet about it) or Knox. You're right in that it definitely relies on the people and not the college. Cumberland got at least 10 in - 7 domestic and quite a few internationals.
Zion
Regular Member
Eight. Not that much of a difference though.
But guys, seriously choose the hall that you like instead of their records of how many med/dent they have. Just ask frootloop, he went to Unicol and he got into med. If you like a quiet place with people who have the same mind and goals as you, go for St Margaret's. If you like extra-curriculum stuff and traditions, go for Knox.
To be honest, even though I live at Knox, but I still have to admit that Arana is one of the best halls to live. Nice food (not as good as Carrington though), ok-sized room (Hayward rooms are way bigger), good hall atmosphere with lots of in-house events (Knox and Selwyn are better at this), close to uni (St Margaret's and Unicol are a little bit closer), party hard (again Knox tops this one) and work hard (lol Carrington and St Margaret's). So Arana is the place if you're looking for some kind of balance, otherwise pick the one that you like most.
Definitely not Knox. Carrington and St Margarets are streaks ahead. I heard rumour they both got 30+ into Med last intake. However, bear in mind that they also have the most Health Science residents per capita (St Mags 85-90%, Carrington around 65-70% last i heard).
Sam
¿umm?
Carrington got 47 med people last year, St. Margs isn't even close. Keep in mind it's not the hall which has any impact on your grades, it's just that carrington and to a lesser extent st margs take really studious people.
That's a pretty big generalization to say those Colleges are the best for those things. Yes they are strengths of those Colleges, I'm not doubting that, but don't make claims they're the best when you haven't lived in all the Colleges and cannot make a fair comparison. The aim of this forum is to give accurate information about all the Colleges whilst being impartial.
It'd actually be great if we could see the results of those surveys we filled out a few months ago!
In my class at least, I'm fairly sure Arana got (proportionate to the number of HSFYs in their hall) the most people in. Carrington got loads as well. St Marg's doesn't really have *that* strong a presence, to be honest.
You either put Carrington #1 or not at all. Hayward is becoming a 1st choice College too so a #2 or #3 for them could also be a waste
Voldemort
Brodemort
Gday mate! Welcome to MSO! It would be a good idea to read around the forum before asking questions, because they may have already been answered. In this case, your question has been answered. Extensively.
https://www.medstudentsonline.com.au/f78/otago-halls-residence-11892/
Good luck for your application!
I'm currently at St Margarets, and I really like it! Yes, it is quiet and there are a few people who study till crazy hours in the mornings, but on the whole its fine! It is a really good place to be if you want a nice quiet environment, but that's not to say everything is silent all the time! I didn't pick St Margarets because I thought it would mean I get into med - its not where you stay, but what you put in that matters! Having said that however, because there are so many health sci's it is nice and quiet the nights before tests and exams, but the downside is you can feel the tension right before a test and for me anyway, i don't like that. According to the second years, this year the first years are waay more rowdy than in the past! People still party here too! My floor gets quite loud on saturday night, but apart from that it is fine. I chose st mags because it was quiet and is so close to uni - which is perfect for me - as i like to get to lectures with a few mins to spare - i can leave at 7.50 and be at the lecture by 7.53 yay! The people are nice, and the second years are very helpful. I haven't really been to many other halls, other than Cumberland and Aquinas, and both of them are much louder, which would annoy me if i was trying to study (I really dislike the library - so I try avoid it as much as possible and so a quiet college is a must). People here are just generally considerate of each other, but we aren't all studying 24/7!!! It is just a good, quiet and focused environment. And yes, there are a lot of smart people here, so you learn pretty quickly that you're a small fish again 
(and they aren't that strict with the noise fines, seriously, you will only get fined if you are being unreasonably loud - like shouting with the door open or something)
what they look for: Well I didn't partake in any music whatsoever, but I did do relatively well academically, and I did quite a few things through school - like school council etc. They mainly look for good people, who will contribute to the College. I can't remember what else I put, but they do like to see that you've done something other than just getting good grades. I think if you get good references from your school etc it would help a lot. I wouldn't consider myself exceptionally involved, but I got in. Just show them you want to and can contribute.
(and they aren't that strict with the noise fines, seriously, you will only get fined if you are being unreasonably loud - like shouting with the door open or something) what they look for: Well I didn't partake in any music whatsoever, but I did do relatively well academically, and I did quite a few things through school - like school council etc. They mainly look for good people, who will contribute to the College. I can't remember what else I put, but they do like to see that you've done something other than just getting good grades. I think if you get good references from your school etc it would help a lot. I wouldn't consider myself exceptionally involved, but I got in. Just show them you want to and can contribute.
Squidward
Member
What are Aquinas, Salmond, Selwyn and Studholme like? I've been searching though all these pages and couldn't find much on them. How are they in terms of loudness and partying etc. I'm looking for a quietish kind of hall and I was thinking of putting them as 2nd/3rd options maybe :S
Zion
Regular Member
If you're looking for quiet halls to put as 2nd and 3rd choice, then put in Salmond and Aquinas. Salmond is fairly quiet, even in a Thursday or Saturday night. Studholme can be very rowdy as they have a lot of PE students, and I don't think putting Selwyn as your 2nd or 3rd choice would get you in.
I'll second this - Selwyn gets around 3-4 applications per bed (warden's words, not mine) and so fills up on first choice. If you do want to come here, put it as your first.
I think it's important to point out that every year is different at every College. I was an RA for 2 consecutive years at the same College - one year was noisy, one year was quiet. One year 7 residents got evicted, the next year no residents got evicted. As you don't know exactly what your combination of residents will be like, you never know what you'll get! The Halls are like a box of chocolates!
Good at Knox, with a lot of people returning. I think the others may have some, but would typically flat in second year.
Basically, all the non-University owned Colleges (Selwyn,Know,SMAGs, Salmond) have higher returner rates than the University owned Colleges. This is because the University caps how many returners their Colleges are allowed so they can get as many new students into the Colleges as possible.
So Carrington/Arana - slim chance
Knox/SMAGs - good chance
hopelesshopeful
Lurker
Hi guys, I was looking at the different halls and was wondering what sort of reputation Knox has? From perhaps a person at knox and someone elsewhere?