One thing that often confuses people when they come to Cambridge is the relationship between Colleges and the University. As a rough guide, the University is responsible, through your Department or Faculty, for your teaching, research, and everything you need for those. It is also the University which will award you your degree at the end of your course. Your College, on the other hand, is responsible for your well-being, and provides accomodation, catering, and other facilities for your day-to-day life.

Through your Department, you will get to know people who work in the same or similar field as you, and get to know them socially as well as academically. However, more social activities are organised through your College's postgraduate community, commonly called the MCR (Middle Combination Room). Here you will meet a much broader range of individuals, who will be studying a wide range of subjects and topics.