[1] Designed by Danish architect Arne Jacobsen, the college was built in an egalitarian architectural style that maximises the number of rooms, for academically qualified students who lacked the financial resources to study at Oxford.

In September 2023, access to areas of the college was restricted due to safety concerns around the use of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

In its first iteration, it was established as a delegacy for Scholares nulli Collegio vel Aulae ascripti ('Scholars enrolled in no college or hall'), by university statute on 11 June 1868.

[11] In its first days, a room in the university's Old Clarendon Building was allocated for the operations of the delegacy, and with gifts of books from several donors, a library for the unattached students was installed there.

[15] After acquiring 8 acres (3.2 ha) from Merton College, Oxford on part of Holywell Great Meadow for £57,690, monies were sought from the University Grants Committee who also agreed to supply £250,000 towards the building, and additional funds up to £400,000 for all facilities.

[16] In keeping with its complete history, including its earliest incarnation, the college celebrated its 150th anniversary in the academic year 2018–2019, coinciding with the 2018 Ball 'Continuum'.

Variations of St Catharine having been used by the students for their sporting teams and various clubs since the 1870s, the name was already strongly associated with the delegacy.

By 1874 they began a more comprehensive association, which they called the St Catharine's [sic] Club, after its headquarters, the hall where they dined and held meetings.

Its buildings in glass, brick, and concrete, by the Danish architect Arne Jacobsen, marry modern materials with a traditional Oxford college layout centred on a quadrangle.

Jacobsen designed everything, including the furniture, cutlery, lampshades, and the college gardens, down to the choice of fish species for the pond.

The St Catherine's Christmas carol concert is now held in Harris Manchester College's chapel.

An extra floor was reputedly planned for most accommodation blocks, but due to regulations concerning safe building on marshland, this was removed from the final design.

[30] St Catherine's also has a library with over 55,000 volumes, which is used mainly by undergraduates in all the disciplines taught at the college, as well as 14 computer terminals.

[32][33] The majority of St Catherine's buildings are in the form of staircases[a] that open directly onto the quad(s) outside; these are filled with student rooms and office space.

There is little indoor space in the college and St Catherine's favours a minimalist, rather austere environment, though still comfortable.

[38] The facilities aimed to resemble Jacobsen's original designs and was built on the college's last available development space.

[39] Purcell consulted with Stephen Hodder, who constructed the additional buildings on site during the 1994 and 2004 extensions, when designing the centre.

[41] This is in addition to 42 single rooms, with shared bathroom and cooking facilities, in St Catherine's House, which is off-site on Bath Street.

The committee fulfills a wide range of duties, aimed at organising events, such as Freshers' week, and providing support to the students.

The College also holds fortnightly social events called 'Entz', which are usually themed and hosted in the JCR and bar, and an annual Catz Artz Week which showcases creative talents.

[50] St Catz has a friendly college rivalry with Magdalen, expressed in sports and in a joke JCR 'declaration of war' in 2013.

The Wallace Watson Scholarship enables undergraduate and graduate students to undertake research fieldwork or remote travel during their time at Oxford.

[60][61] The British spy drama Chokepoint was filmed in locations around the College, such as the SCR and the Bernard Sunley Building.

[62] In Season 4, episode 6 of The Crown, the Hall at St Catherine's serves as the venue of a state reception in Hobart, Tasmania, attended by Prince Charles and Princess Diana in their 1983 tour of Australia.

Throughout their tenure, the holder of this chair usually delivers two public lectures, and one, or sometimes more, smaller more intimate student workshops, which are usually conducted at the College.