h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

As someone who got through the Cambridge admission process, I think it's worth noting that Cambridge don't ask for a second choice when you apply. But, if you get rejected from your first choice, you get 'pooled' and other colleges may interview you you fill places. Even the most popular colleges get a few people from the pool, usually if they think their applicants weren't good enough - my college had its second highest number of applicants ever this year, yet some still got in through the pool.

Also, the Prospectus shows the relative popularity of the colleges, but don't take this at face value - we've had the most applicants in the uni for the past two years, yet the table shows the popularity as average.

how you do ?
elimbii

Doesn't the table show the ratio of applicants to places, rather than just the number of applicants?

That's right - if you wanted to know actual applicant numbers you would probably have to look in individual college prospectuses. The main problem is that the table reflects a long term average: application numbers seem to be cyclical, going up when a college is perceived to be easier and then down when it isn't, so the table doesn't reflect current or expected numbers very well.

It's probably best taken with a pinch of salt.