HUGHES HALL

Life at Hughes Hall is fun, friendly and fascinating. All our students are at least 21 years old. Some are undergraduates, but most study at Masters level or above. That means we have a very different atmosphere from standard-aged Colleges. We are proudly multinational and multi-ethnic, with students and senior members from over 75 countries at any one time. Everyone here has arrived by a different route, and everyone brings their unique experience to their study. That’s what makes life at Hughes Hall so varied, rich and fulfilling.

A SNAPSHOT OF LIFE AT HUGHES HALL

The Hughes Hall community is fun, friendly, interesting and diverse. This gallery gives you a small insight into what life is like at the College.

ACCOMMODATION AND FACILITIES AT HUGHES HALL

Make the college your ‘home from home’ and you’ll find a warm and welcoming place for study and friendship.

Because all our students are 21+, many choose to find their own place to live in Cambridge. However, if you’d prefer to live in our accommodation, we have around 400 student rooms available to rent – 285 on the central college site surrounding the cricket field, and 115 in residential streets around the city or in a College block at Swirles Court near to the University’s West Cambridge and Madingley Rise sites, which are about 2 miles from the College’s main site.

Most of our rooms are for students living on their own, but we have a few flats/studios for those who want to bring their partners with them.

About half our rooms have en-suite bathrooms (normally shower, toilet and hand basin). The others have access to shared bathrooms with a mix of showers and baths.

CLUBS AND SOCIETIES AT HUGHES HALL

Whether you love kicking a ball or clicking a shutter, there’s a club here for you.

We have many different clubs and societies, mostly run by students, where you can meet new people, develop your interests or discover new ones.

Hughes Hall has a particularly strong tradition in rowing and rugby, with many international sportspeople and representatives in the world-famous Oxford v. Cambridge Boat Race and the Varsity Rugby match. Our main buildings look over the University cricket pitch and tennis courts.

If you’re not quite up to that standard, or if you’re just looking for some enjoyable exercise, you won’t have to go far to enjoy great sport. We have a gym on site, where the table tennis and boating clubs meet. Just across the road is the main city sports centre, used by the badminton and climbing teams. The athletics, football (soccer) and athletics clubs use nearby facilities around the city.

Everyone is encouraged to try rowing when at Cambridge. Most of our college rowers had never been in an ‘eight’ before their arrival.

If you prefer something a little more cerebral, we also have clubs devoted to chess, photography, music, film, music, wine, law and enterprise. Some overlap with College subject areas, and others reflect cultural interests and events. However, every club is open to everyone, no matter what they’re studying.

THREE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HUGHES

Founded in 1885, Hughes Hall was the first college for graduate women in the UK. The College was the first of the all-female colleges to admit men, with the first male students arriving in 1973.

In its first year, the college admitted 14 students. We now have around 750!

In 1948, the college changed its name to Hughes Hall in honour of its first president: Elizabeth Phillips Hughes.