Selwyn College Cambridge

Selwyn College Cambridge Academic excellence and a strong community. Selwyn is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.

It is home to students of all backgrounds from the UK and across the world. We are proud of our diversity, and we welcome everyone whatever their race, gender, sexuality, disability or religious belief. The college takes its name from George Augustus Selwyn, who was the first Bishop of New Zealand (1841-68) and later Bishop of Lichfield (1868-78), and in whose memory the college was founded. The college opened at the start of the academic year in 1882. At the time it was seen as being away from the Cambridge mainstream, despite only being a short walk from King’s College and the centre of the city. However, the Sidgwick site – which includes such major faculty buildings as Classics, Economics, English, History, Law, and Modern Languages – was later created right next to Selwyn; and due to the steady growth of the University and its development of the West Cambridge site, Selwyn now stands at its geographical heart.

A piece by our Director of Music, Sarah MacDonald, was sung at the papal Mass in Paris on Saturday 26 September.Her sett...
28/09/2026

A piece by our Director of Music, Sarah MacDonald, was sung at the papal Mass in Paris on Saturday 26 September.

Her setting of verses from Psalm 116, Quid retribuam Domino, was performed as the offering was brought to the altar.

Sarah also features in the Church Times, in a report on new research into the music sung at choral evensong in cathedrals. She is the third most performed woman composer across the 13 English cathedrals studied, with eight of her works sung 37 times in 2024.

Congratulations Sarah.

Thank you for an incredible turnout for our very own super Saturday, 26 September. The Master, Suzanne Raine, and our ne...
27/09/2026

Thank you for an incredible turnout for our very own super Saturday, 26 September. The Master, Suzanne Raine, and our new Development Director, Erin Charles, were delighted to welcome you back to Selwyn.

Many of you toured the libraries, and some climbed up to take in the views from the lantern.

In the evening we held Evensong and the Commemoration of Benefactors in Chapel, where our choir did a fantastic job at their first service of the year. The day ended with a ten-year reunion dinner for our 2016 year group.

It was a pleasure to see you all.

Pictures: Elizabeth Bam

Meet new Selwyn Fellow Dr Samuel McDermott.Samuel thrives on bringing different disciplines together to solve complex pr...
24/09/2026

Meet new Selwyn Fellow Dr Samuel McDermott.

Samuel thrives on bringing different disciplines together to solve complex problems. As Programme Manager of the Sensor CDT, he brings graduate students from the sciences, engineering and maths together for a year of Masters of Research before they begin a PhD.

"That gap between disciplines is really exciting," he said.

This summer his students built a sensor system for a device designed to reduce the risk of aflatoxins developing on sun-dried maize in Kenya. He also runs workshops in Kenya teaching students and researchers to build their own low-cost scientific equipment, helping them move from Master's level into PhD programmes.

After a year as Bye-Fellow and Director of Studies in Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Samuel is now a Fellow of the College.

"It's really nice to watch students broaden their skills and understanding."

Read more on our website.

Thank you to the more than 300 generous alumni who have together given £2.5m to the Ann's Court North project. Added to ...
22/09/2026

Thank you to the more than 300 generous alumni who have together given £2.5m to the Ann's Court North project.

Added to £1.5m from Selwyn College reserves, that's taken us to our £4m target — and we've just been given planning permission too.

The renovation of the hostels at 21 and 23 West Road will bring a major upgrade to 20 student rooms, a new accessible room, and a stylish new entrance pavilion linking the two buildings into Ann's Court.

Master Suzanne Raine said: "It will be wonderful to restore these two villas, tying them together with an accessible entrance facing into Ann's Court. Thank you to everyone who has supported this project."

Work is expected to begin in summer 2027.

Read more on our website

A Sanskrit manuscript that could reveal how a major South Indian musical and religious tradition began has been discover...
17/09/2026

A Sanskrit manuscript that could reveal how a major South Indian musical and religious tradition began has been discovered in a small monastery in the Kaveri delta.

Nearly a year into a five-year study of Sanskrit scholarship, Selwyn Bye-Fellow Dr Jonathan Duquette and his team found what may be the earliest known work of Nāmasiddhānta in South India, a movement holding that reciting the name of a god is enough to achieve spiritual liberation.

The manuscript has been kept for over two centuries in this monastery in Marudanallur, founded by Sadguru Swami, pictured here alongside the shrine to him where it was worshipped daily.

More on the discovery here: https://www.sel.cam.ac.uk/news/lost-sanskrit-text-rediscovered and more on the project can be found here https://www.kaveri-project.org/

University of Cambridge

Fifty years ago, Professor Philippa Browning arrived at Selwyn as part of the first cohort of women admitted to the Coll...
15/09/2026

Fifty years ago, Professor Philippa Browning arrived at Selwyn as part of the first cohort of women admitted to the College. This year, she retired as one of the world's leading plasma physicists.

In our latest magazine, Philippa (SE 1976) reflects on a career spent investigating plasma physics, from solar storms to fusion reactors.

Read her story: https://www.sel.cam.ac.uk/alumni/publications/magazine/2026/philippa-browning

Picture: University of Manchester

What a day! We welcomed more than 300 prospective students, their parents and guardians to Selwyn today for our open day...
11/09/2026

What a day! We welcomed more than 300 prospective students, their parents and guardians to Selwyn today for our open day.

Thank you to everyone who came to visit to find out what life at Selwyn is really like. Thanks too to our student tour guides and Directors of Studies for their time.

We're already busy welcoming people into Selwyn today 11 September for our Open Day.Head to our main entrance on Grange ...
11/09/2026

We're already busy welcoming people into Selwyn today 11 September for our Open Day.

Head to our main entrance on Grange Road any time before 4pm. There are student-led tours of the college, including accommodation. Current students are leading tours, including a look at student accommodation. Self-guided tours are available if you'd rather explore at your own pace. There are also sessions with Directors of Studies across every subject, plus talks on the admissions process and a dedicated session for parents and guardians.

If you can't make it today, you're welcome to drop into the Porters' Lodge on Grange Road any time, or take our virtual tour (link in bio).There are self-guided tours if you'd rather explore at your own pace, and sessions with Directors of Studies across every subject.

If you can't make it, you are welcome to drop into the Porters' Lodge on Grange Road any time, or take our virtual tour. Find it here https://www.sel.cam.ac.uk/joining-selwyn/undergraduates/discover-selwyn/open-days.

Selwyn Open Day is this Friday, 11 September.Drop in any time, no booking needed. Meet us at the main entrance on Grange...
09/09/2026

Selwyn Open Day is this Friday, 11 September.

Drop in any time, no booking needed. Meet us at the main entrance on Grange Road for a prospectus, a student-led tour, and a look at student accommodation.

Talks on the day: admissions process (10:00-10:30am), parents/guardians (10:00-11:00am), and Directors of Studies sessions (10:30am-12 noon).

Full details: https://www.sel.cam.ac.uk/joining-selwyn/undergraduates/discover-selwyn/open-days

We would love to see you at Selwyn on 11 September for our open day. It's a drop-in event, so no booking is needed.Head ...
04/09/2026

We would love to see you at Selwyn on 11 September for our open day. It's a drop-in event, so no booking is needed.

Head to our main entrance on Grange Road, where you'll be able to pick up a prospectus and join a student-led tour of the college, including a look at student accommodation.

There are also three talks running that day: on the admissions process, for parents and guardians and a chance to meet Directors of Studies to talk about your subject.

For full details: https://www.sel.cam.ac.uk/joining-selwyn/undergraduates/discover-selwyn/open-days

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