University Advice.

[Foolg]

Yes i know this wont interest 99% of people, but was looking for a bit of advice from the NSC finest. Its that time of year where As level students are starting to make a descision on university applications, and just wondered if anyone would take the time to help me out.
I have about 10 Universities im interested in, and simply wondered if anyone had attended (recently) or has kids/friends who are currently at or been at any of those im interested in. Simply to allow me to possibly narrow it down a bit, as i cannot afford/dont have time to visit all 10 or 11. I know its a must to visit a few, and i've already visited UEA and have a few more open days booked, but thought it was worth a shot on here aswell to see if there were any where people had a particuarly good/bad experience.
The following are those im interested in amongst others: Leeds, UEA, Nottingham, Exeter, Sheffield, Manchester, Loughborough, Southampton and Leicester.

Cheers

*Cue utter binfest regarding university places/fee's/experiences etc*

 

[Paxton Dazo]

Advice? Yeah, don't go.

 

[Spun Cuppa]

Take a year out and have a crack at GCSE English

 

[patchamalbion]

Yes i know this wont interest 99% of people, but was looking for a bit of advice from the NSC finest. Its that time of year where As level students are starting to make a descision on university applications, and just wondered if anyone would take the time to help me out.
I have about 10 Universities im interested in, and simply wondered if anyone had attended (recently) or has kids/friends who are currently at or been at any of those im interested in. Simply to allow me to possibly narrow it down a bit, as i cannot afford/dont have time to visit all 10 or 11. I know its a must to visit a few, and i've already visited UEA and have a few more open days booked, but thought it was worth a shot on here aswell to see if there were any where people had a particuarly good/bad experience.
The following are those im interested in amongst others: Leeds, UEA, Nottingham, Exeter, Sheffield, Manchester, Loughborough, Southampton and Leicester.

Cheers

*Cue utter binfest regarding university places/fee's/experiences etc*

your aiming for something like AAA-ABB at a guess then? what course? depends whether you care most about league tables/academia or campus/nightlife etc. For example Exeter is a solid uni in a smallish nice town,the campus(imo) i class due to the nightlife in exeter being fairly limited..compare that with Manchester and Leeds which are huge cities with very large student populations. Nightlife/city point of view...f*** soton and leicester right off
its a tough choice,end of the day you'll meet some amazing friends,have some memorable nights out and hopefully love every second of it

 

[BHAFC4EVER]

One of my friends is at Exeter right now and is having the time of their life. I think that they would recommend it to anyone thats interested.

 

[Foolg]

Take a year out and have a crack at GCSE English

your aiming for something like AAA-ABB at a guess then? what course? depends whether you care most about league tables/academia or campus/nightlife etc. For example Exeter is a solid uni in a smallish nice town,the campus(imo) i class due to the nightlife in exeter being fairly limited..compare that with Manchester and Leeds which are huge cities with very large student populations. Nightlife/city point of view...f*** soton and leicester right off
its a tough choice,end of the day you'll meet some amazing friends,have some memorable nights out and hopefully love every second of it

Cheers, well at the moment im looking at AAB/ABB and still cannot narrow down the list of courses which interest me the most. Looking at modern history at UEA, which seems the best course but the nightlife and location of Norwich seems to be a bit quiet for the student population. Whereas at Leeds/Manchester as you say the nightlife and city point of view seems a lot more appealing, yet due to the grades needed for history it seems i'd have to change my course selection. Agree with you now about Southampton and Leicester on second thoughts

 

[jordanseagull]

Loughborough

 

[patchamalbion]

Cheers, well at the moment im looking at AAB/ABB and still cannot narrow down the list of courses which interest me the most. Looking at modern history at UEA, which seems the best course but the nightlife and location of Norwich seems to be a bit quiet for the student population. Whereas at Leeds/Manchester as you say the nightlife and city point of view seems a lot more appealing, yet due to the grades needed for history it seems i'd have to change my course selection. Agree with you now about Southampton and Leicester on second thoughts

The general vibe is that you will have fun anywhere if you make the most of it but some cities have more to them than others(manchester is livlier than Leicester for instance) I have visited mates at Soton,Exeter,Leeds and Manc and loved all but Soton! Ex is a tad too small for my liking but cracking campus life! not considered Bristol.....

 

[Dr Q]

I looked at the quality of the course rather than the place, hence I ended up at Aberystwyth!! (but Aber was (and probably still is) a great place for uni).

Of your choices, Manchester is a great place, spent 4 cracking years there as a postgrad in the early 90's, probably a bit different now, but still a great place to live and study.

 

[Deano's Invisible Pants]

Cheers, well at the moment im looking at AAB/ABB and still cannot narrow down the list of courses which interest me the most. Looking at modern history at UEA, which seems the best course but the nightlife and location of Norwich seems to be a bit quiet for the student population. Whereas at Leeds/Manchester as you say the nightlife and city point of view seems a lot more appealing, yet due to the grades needed for history it seems i'd have to change my course selection. Agree with you now about Southampton and Leicester on second thoughts

Hi Mate, I spent 3 happy years at UEA in the late 90s doing Politics and Modern History. Similar to what one of the posters said about Exeter, it's an excellent campus university with pretty much everything you need on site. The union and LCR etc are second to very few. Partly that's because there are few venues in the region that have an equivalent capacity, so UEA always manages to attract the top-end bands / entertainment.

Norwich itself is of course pretty quiet compared to Manchester et al., but it just depends what you want. It's got some of the best pubs in the country.

Overall it's a decent place to spend 3 years and I found that you meet a very good mix of people from all walks of life. A couple of my mates from school went to Exeter and had a blast there as well - even if it's Sloane Central!

 

[MikeySmall]

Yes i know this wont interest 99% of people, but was looking for a bit of advice from the NSC finest. Its that time of year where As level students are starting to make a descision on university applications, and just wondered if anyone would take the time to help me out.
I have about 10 Universities im interested in, and simply wondered if anyone had attended (recently) or has kids/friends who are currently at or been at any of those im interested in. Simply to allow me to possibly narrow it down a bit, as i cannot afford/dont have time to visit all 10 or 11. I know its a must to visit a few, and i've already visited UEA and have a few more open days booked, but thought it was worth a shot on here aswell to see if there were any where people had a particuarly good/bad experience.
The following are those im interested in amongst others: Leeds, UEA, Nottingham, Exeter, Sheffield, Manchester, Loughborough, Southampton and Leicester.

Cheers

*Cue utter binfest regarding university places/fee's/experiences etc*

All decent enough places (Leicester would probably be bottom of my list) so go for the course that appeals the most. I ended up at Bradford; any of those would be student paradise. I did have a brilliant time mind! (late 90s)

 

[BIG GAY AL]

I've just finished 3 years at Leicester doing Ancient History and History. I absolutely loved my three years, but its all down to what you like.

To wave the flag for my uni i would say:
-2009 Uni of the year and 2010 best support uni (times)
-top 20 in all major tables, if you look at them you can see not many can say that.
-Personally the history department is very good with some excellent lecturers
-Leicester is a medium sized city, incredibly diverse. BUT it works and the whole population is incredibly cohesive. It makes for a very interesting place to live. E.g. been to Dwali fest for past three years and had some great currys!
-Living rates looking at your chooices theyll all be cheaper than brighton area but i paid £55 p/w in rent a mate at Guildford paid double. Makes the loan go a lot further.
- good people, i think Leicester is the most underrated city in the country and undoubtably worth a visit. The university is full of very geniunie people along with the city
- Students make up 10% of the population in Leicester, this means there is one student night out be it union or town each night with incredibly cheap drinks

to be honest i could go on and on. I loved it, and everyone who finished did so too. But its personal, look at the unis go visit Loughborough and Leic in one day. We are in the same county, ring admissions and theyll probs be able to give a tour.

Although I would say visit as many as possible, you would never spend £10k without even seeing a car so dont do the same with uni. As long as your decision is an educated one (as in you've thought about it) you'll have a great time.

(sorry for spelling mistakes im going on hol in the morn and need to go to bed soon, although it you have any questions PM me and i'll get back to you when i get home)

 

[Robdinho]

I was at Sheffield Uni between 2001-2005 and absolutely loved the place, so much so that I stayed there for another 4 years after graduating. I only left last year because of work, and I still go back most weekends. It's got pretty much everything you could want as a student, although obviously on a much smaller scale than Manchester or London. Plus it's pretty cheap and the pubs are second to none.

The quality/reputation of the course is VERY important though, I know for a fact that my employer targets graduates from the same specific universities every year because they trust them to give applicants with the right skills.

 

[clapham_gull]

I went to Manchester and it was cracking in the early 90s.

I know the situation had changed now, back in those days your local council paid you money to get stoned and drunk for three years.

When you woke up, they handed a certificate and you got the train back to Sussex.

University of Kent isn't to be sniffed at either. My brother went there and I had almost as much fun in Canterbury but in a mystical middle ages type way.

 

[james]

I spent 3 very happy years at UEA (1993-96) and would definately recommend it!!

 

[deletebeepbeepbeep]

Just remember that any minute you don't spend messed up on class As or f***ing slags is an utter utter waste of time

 

[brighton_girl87]

I have a couple of friends at Leeds and they love it. I have been up there a few times and it's a brilliant (and cheap) night out.

Plus the student union frequently has pretty decent guests and the summer ball always looks incredible (this year they had Florence & the Machine, Scratch Perverts and many more acts performing).

It is a top University and also very cheap to live up there, I couldn't believe how nice some of the student houses I visited were, compared to the hell holes I lived in throughout my time at Portsmouth Uni.

 

[Greeno]

Leeds was initially my first choice however when i went to look at it I was very overwhelmed by the University... i felt like a small fish in a big pond. Of course that is the situation in any university however i did not quite feel like this when I went to look at Leeds.

I know its not on your list but I am currently at Birmingham and can't recommend it highly enough. If you are based in the South like I am it is within easy reach and train/coach tickets will not cost you an arm and a leg. The campus is beautiful, the teaching is quality and there is constant renovation being done, most recently with the Students Union. The nightlife is fantastic with something going on every night of the week (my bank account proves it ) and the location of the first year halls of residence, The Vale, is quite simply stunning.

More importantly, you are based in the Midlands so not too far from travelling to Albion away games!

Definitely look into Birmingham if you haven't already done so!

I would also highly recommend taking a gap year. I spent 6 months working and another 6 months travelling and have not looked back on it once. So many of my friends regret not taking a gap year before uni; don't let yourself become one of them!

 

[The Brighton Ace]

I really can't understand why Soton is getting bad press. I've just graduated and would advise it to anyone. Aside from being ranked the highest out of the universities you're considering (University Rankings League Table | The Sunday Times University Guide 2010 - Times Online), it has a great social scene, a brilliant careers department and clubs and societies for every interest. If, like myself, you enjoy playing football but aren't very good then there are loads of football teams aside from the official uni team; every subject, department and halls of residence has sports teams which are a good laugh. I would strongly recommend visiting it as it isn't too far away. Going to Soton was the best decision I've made and I've even managed to land a top job after graduating even with a 2:1.

Other important points:
Soton away game
50p a pint on a Monday
£1 for a double vodka and mixer on a Tuesday.

 

[Don Quixote]

Go oxford, I have heard it is good.