A common room is a group into which students and the academic body are organised in some universities in the United Kingdom and Ireland — particularly collegiate universities such as Oxford and Cambridge, as well as the University of Bristol, King's College London, Dublin University, Durham University, University of York, University of Kent and Lancaster University. At some Cambridge colleges, it is called a combination room. This terminology has, in addition, been taken up in some universities in other English-speaking nations. The terms JCR, MCR, and SCR are used by Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, and the University of Toronto.
These groups exist to represent their members in the organisation of college or residential hall life, to operate certain services within these institutions such as laundry or recreation, and to provide opportunities for socialising. There are variations based on institutional tradition and needs, but typically the following common rooms will exist in a college or hall:
A junior common room (JCR) – for undergraduate junior membersA middle common room (MCR) – for graduate junior membersA senior common room (SCR) – for senior members (fellows, etc.).In addition to this, each of the above terms may also refer to an actual common room designated for the use of these groups. At the University of Cambridge, the term combination room (e.g., "junior combination room") is also used, with the same abbreviations. As a generalisation, JCRs are associations of undergraduates and SCRs an association of tutors and academics associated with a college. Postgraduates are sometimes given their own MCR, or placed in with either of the other groups.
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