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Frequently Asked Questions
How does the College allocation process work, and can I change Colleges?
Once College membership has been allocated, it cannot be changed at an applicant’s request other than for exceptional circumstances such as a medical need that cannot be met by your allocated College. You can find out more about the Undergraduate allocation process here and the Postgraduate allocation process here.
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Do all first year students live in College?
New undergraduate students tend to live in College accommodation during their first year of study, as many of our students come from across the UK and world. However, we do have a number of first year students who live out of College who still have access to all of the facilities, opportunities and events on offer. There are a number of rooms in College reserved for postgraduate students. We welcome “returning students” wishing to live in College in subsequent years.
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Do I need to apply for accommodation?
Every student is a member of a College, which are the heart of life at Durham. Our Colleges host a variety of accommodation options, which include rooms within Colleges and at purpose-built student accommodation in the city and catered and self-catered options. Undergraduates, postgraduates, and returning students can apply for University accommodation. For students that do not live in University accommodation, there are also rooms available privately throughout the city and you can find helpful resources for private accommodation on the Housing Hub.
Undergraduates
If you are a new undergraduate student and wish to live in College, you will be contacted by the College Membership and Accommodation Office, to ask you to register your interest to receive an offer of College accommodation. Further information can be found on the CMAO's dedicated undergraduate accommodation page here.
Postgraduates
If you are a new postgraduate Postgraduate accommodation applications are also managed centrally through the College Membership and Accommodation Office. You can express a preference for membership and accommodation or membership only; for more information please see the CMAO postgraduate accommodation webpage here.
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What room types are available?
Undergraduates
Stephenson offer varied room types for undergraduate students in College – single en-suite, paired and standard rooms. Prices can be found here.
Postgraduates
We offer en-suite rooms in College for postgraduates. Prices can be found here.
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Can I select a preference of room type?
Incoming students will have been asked to complete an Accommodation Application Form earlier in the year. We will use the information provided on this form only for the purposes of room allocation. We cannot guarantee to meet all requests and where a particular type of room is oversubscribed, we will allocate firstly by prioritising any medical/disability needs and thereafter by lottery.
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How much is College accommodation?
University residence charges can be found here.
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Do I have to move out during the Christmas and Easter vacation?
Your licence to occupy University accommodation at Stephenson College allows you to stay in College for the duration of the academic year.
Undergraduates
We offer 39 week lets for new undergraduate students.
Postgraduate
We offer 50 week lets only for postgraduate students.
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I have a disability/medical condition which requires special facilities in my accommodation. Who shall I tell?
All undergraduate and postgraduate offer holders will receive an email in March inviting you to complete the Disability Disclosure Form if you would like to do so. This form gives you the opportunity to: tell us about your disability/medical condition; the support you think you’ll need, and any support you’ve had in place before. See below links to all the forms.
Full information on the Disability Disclosure Form process in relation to College accommodation can be found here: How to arrange support - Durham University
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Is accessible accommodation available?
Stephenson College have two accessible flats available, both located on the ground floor. The bedrooms are en-suite and can be fitted with auxiliary aids such as flashing alarms and vibrating pillows for students with sensory impairments. Kitchens within these flats have risers under the sink to allow the benches to be adjusted, if required.
There is also a lift located within one of the residence blocks.
Accessible toilet facilities are located in Wylam, Howlands and Saltwell buildings.
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Facilities in each bedroom include a single bed, wardrobe, chest of drawers, study desk, chair and noticeboard. Standard bedrooms include a wash basin. Wi-Fi connection to the University network is available in all rooms. Bedrooms are arranged around a shared kitchen.
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There are a number of things that you should bring to College. If you are travelling from overseas, you may wish to buy much of this when you arrive.
- Clothes - bring clothes to cater for every eventuality including warm clothes and waterproofs! You’ll also need formal wear for Matriculation, College dinners known as Formals as well as for other events throughout the year.
- Bedding - Beds in College are single sized and you need to provide your own duvets, pillows and sheets. You should also bring your own towels. You may wish to bring some personal items such as photos to personalise your room.
- Crockery - The kitchens are fitted with a fridge/freezer, toaster, kettle and microwave. You'll need to bring all your own crockery i.e. mugs, plates, bowls, as well as pans, baking trays, utensils etc.
- Toiletries – You need to provide your own toiletries such as toilet paper, shampoo, soap etc.
- Food – You may wish to bring a small amount of food with you for the first few days. You can go shopping or arrange a supermarket delivery shortly after arrival.
- Electrical items from outside the UK.
- Please note: for safety reasons, electric appliance adaptors are not allowed in University residences. Please do not use your electrical equipment in the residences unless you have an undamaged British cable with a 3 pin plug, this must be stamped BS1363 to connect to the electrical supply.
- Electrical equipment can only be used in university residences if connected by a UK cable. Some electrical equipment, such as computer laptops, mobile phones etc. have separate cables for connecting to the electrical supply. It is possible to buy separate cables in the UK in order to use your electric equipment safely in your college.
- Kitchen items, including rice cookers can be bought locally at reasonable prices.
- The electricity supply in the UK has a much higher voltage than in some countries outside Europe. It is therefore very important that electrical appliances are used safely - an electric shock can be fatal!
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What’s the internet like at Stephenson?
A Wi-Fi connection to the University network is available in all rooms and communal areas in College. Students are advised to have anti-virus software on their laptop.
Students can connect their phones/tablets/devices such as Playstations, Xboxs etc to University Wi-Fi. More information can be found here.
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If I bring a TV, do I need a Licence?
Yes. More information is available on the TV Licensing website.
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Is Stephenson a self-catered College?
Yes, Stephenson is a self-catered College, but we dine together often; informally with food from Stephenson Central bar, at College events such as our “Locomotion Dinners” (semi-formal dinners) and also, formally, at our Formal Dinners.
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Does Stephenson have Formal Dinners?
Yes, Stephenson College hold Formal Dinners throughout the academic year. We also offer semi-formal Locomotion and Connections dinners where we dine together in a smaller, more informal setting every other week. And there are the special events which are real highlights in our College calendar such as the JCR Winter and Summer Balls and Stevo Day!
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Durham is a collegiate university, with 17 Colleges across Durham City. All students at Durham are a member of a College and ‘live in’ during their first year. Colleges are diverse communities, welcoming students from around the world and studying across all disciplines within the University. Whilst no teaching takes place within the Colleges, they provide opportunities for personal development, extracurricular activities and a range of events for students to enjoy. Each College has common rooms representing its student body and designated social spaces and facilities such as a café-bar, study space and areas for arts and sports.
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What is the history of Stephenson College?
Stephenson College is one of the youngest of Durham University's Colleges, founded in September 2001 and named after the railway pioneer, George Stephenson. We are a modern, progressive, values-led college. Information on our namesake and our College history can be found here.
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JCR stands for Junior Common Room; the representative body of undergraduate students at Stephenson. The JCR is headed by a President; a student elected to the position by fellow students to lead the JCR for a year, usually following their graduation. The President runs the JCR with an Exec Committee of current students, also elected, and these are supported in their work by the Non-Exec and their committees. Undergraduate students are asked to pay a membership fee to their JCR when they join the College.
MCR stands for Middle Common Room; the representative body of postgraduate students in Stephenson. The MCR is headed by a President, who with their Exec, runs the MCR. Postgraduate students are asked to pay a membership fee for the MCR when they join the College.
The common rooms facilitate events, activities and opportunities within the College including sports, societies, socials, outreach and development as well as representing the student body in meetings with the College and University.
You can find more about our Common Rooms here.
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The simple answer is absolutely everything! Stephenson has its own Connections Programme with opportunities to get involved in our award winning volunteering and outreach programme, our flagship Stephenson Ideas talk series, our Community Connections trips, our Global Connections programme and much more! The JCR and MCR also facilitate a range of events and activities across performing arts, sports and societies. There is a place for everyone at Stephenson!
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What sports and societies does Stephenson offer?
We currently have 37 sports teams and numerous societies so there is something for everyone at Stephenson! We finished 5th in the College sport league in 2023/2024 and look to build on that success going forward. We are the only College to have a college-level Debating Society and have a very active Feminist Society and Gardening Society, amongst others!
Find out about our sports and societies in our Year in Review 2024/2025 here!
We promote leadership and proactive and creative engagement and each year invite new and existing students to set up and develop new clubs and societies based around their skills and passions. This is promoted by the College and both Common Rooms. With the assistance of the JCR Sports Officer or Societies Officer, opportunities can be underpinned with start-up and development grants.
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How many students are in Stephenson College?
The College has approximately 1300 full time undergraduate and postgraduate students. We typically have 433 students living at our Howlands Farm site, including first year undergraduates, returning students studying in their second, third and fourth years, and postgraduates.
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What faith provisions are there?
Our College Chaplain is in College one day per week. Chaplains are an integral part of the welfare provision and pastoral support that the University offers both to staff and students. Chaplains at Durham are either based in Colleges where their care is for all members of College, or they work across the University where the Chaplain usually represents a particular denomination or faith community (though they are still available to everyone).
Find out more about the different faith communities and provisions in Durham and the surrounding areas at www.dur.ac.uk/faithsupport/
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What local travel provision is there in Durham City?
Most students walk or cycle to and from lectures. Stephenson College is located next to the Howlands Park and Ride site. Resident students can currently benefit from a reduced rate when using the Howlands Park and Ride bus service. The University also currently have an arrangement with Arriva, offering discounted bus travel around Durham City. Find out more: www.durham.ac.uk/greenspace/travel/public/bus.
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What transport links are there to and from Durham?
Durham is easily accessible by rail and road and is about 30 minutes’ drive from Newcastle International Airport or 40 minutes’ drive from Durham Tees Valley Airport. More information about travelling to Durham is available at www.durham.ac.uk/study/location/durham/travel.
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You are strongly advised not to bring a vehicle to College.
The University policy regarding car parking can be found here.
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Where do students do their food shopping?
As a self-catered College, Stephenson students tend to use online shopping facilities for food and other provisions, and there is a supermarket and local market in the city centre which sells produce and groceries.
There is a College shop on-site which is open 7 days a week from 17.00 - 19.00, kindly run by student volunteers. Here you will find a great range of cupboard essentials, toiletries and sweet treats!
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When shall I arrive at Stephenson?
You will receive further guidance about arrivals once your place is confirmed in August of your year of entry.
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