Study Abroad- UK

[LiveForTheLaunch]

Sooo, I'm looking to study abroad in the UK for my fourth year at university, which is obviously a year away still but the applications are due in just a few months. It's a big thing so I'd like to put a decent amount of research into where I'm going. I could have done this exchange pretty much anywhere, but because I love and want to live in the UK, I thought I'd give it a test run. The choices for schools are as follows:

- Coventry
- Derby
- Keele
- Kingston
- Hertfordshire
- Leicester
- Plymouth
- Southampton Solent
- Swansea

I'm double majoring in history and classical studies, with a minor in German language and culture, so I'd like any information anyone has about the quality of academics, as well as student life, info about the towns, etc. Tuition isn't of any mind because I pay my normal school tuition, but accommodation is also of interest to me since that's probably where I'd have to stay. I know Southampton Solent isn't a great school as far as academics are concerned, but I think the town looks great and it seems to have a pretty good student life, while not being too far away from London either. I was also looking at Hertfordshire, but I can't find much that stands out besides its proximity to London .

So yah, any advice would be appreciated!

EDIT- Also, how do you know how many weeks you need to stay in accommodation? They give you a few options but it's a bit confusing.

 

[furie]

I went out with a girl who was at Keele and spent a lot of time there.

It's a "proper" university, so it has a history and stuff, even though the campus is quite modern. It's got a decent reputation for the courses you're looking at, or it always used to have anyway

The campus is self contained on top of a hill over Newcastle-under-Lyme (which is one of the towns that makes up Stoke on Trent (I think)). It's a friendly, but oddly cliquey place. There's a really nice old village close by and medieval ruins and stuff hidden in woods. I quite liked the time I used to spend up there "socially".

In terms of location it's a ten minute bus ride into Newcastle which is an okay place for food shopping/drinking and there's a decent cinema. You've got Hanley about 20 minutes bus ride away for shopping (it's the kind of city centre).

From Stoke station - half an hour by bus you've got fantastic links to Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Derby and Nottingham. You're about 50 minutes drive from Alton too (if that kind of thing is of interest ). It's even better if you plan to have a car and drive. London is about 3 hours on a cheap train.

The negatives? Newcastle/Stoke is okay, but it's not a thriving city and a lot of it is quite bleak (Newcastle is a pleasant small town though). You'd be on campus most of the time though, so it depends on how you'd get on in that tight knit student environment. That's most of what you'd see I think, but I suspect it's possibly one of the closest things we have to a US style university.

On the plus side, you've got Will 15 minutes one side of it and me 15 minutes the other :lol:

Ciall knows Derby, Will (and others) know Kingston, possibly Slayed and Ploddish could tell you more about Swansea. Stone Cold may know about Hertfordshire Ian/Jordan for Southampton?

All I can tell you about Coventry is that the place is hideous. It's a really unpleasant concrete city. Though on the plus side it's close to Jake and Ben

 

[Ian]

Southampton, from what I can gather, has a decent night life for students - I often get turned away from a lot of places because I'm too old! It also has it's horrible parts but they're easily avoidable, although student digs tend to be in these areas. Jordan is better placed to talk about student life in Southampton. When I was in my late teens/early twenties, there was plenty for me to do - several nightclubs, pubs, casino, cinema, bowling, shopping. It's all there.

Culturally wise, Southampton is a walled maritime city. There are plenty of museums dedicated to the shipping industry and massive cruise liners often bearth in the docks. If you want to be a good, there's even a church that looks like Swarm's station :wink:

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=holyroo ... 6,,0,-6.03

Southampton is undergoing a much needed facelift at the moment. They've recently tarted up the train station, a new "arts quarter" is very smart as is the newish West Quay shopping centre. The arse end of town is also undergoing a makeover. There are plenty of parks (although I'd avoid walking trhough them at night...) and Oxford Street is the upmarket/cosmopoliton area. Beaches, London, the New Forest and Ian From CoasterForce are easily accessible by train. (London is 90mins. Ian From CoasterForce is 15mins.)

1 person in every 10 in Southampton is Polish. There is also a large Indian community in the City. It's a fairly multi-culutral City, but generally speaking, it's full of working/lower-middle class Brits (people like me).

I have visited Plymouth. Didn't like the town. It makes the concrete midlands look like a spring meadow. I have never seen such a grey city. It's also in the arse end of nowehere so commuting to better places in the UK would be a bitch, so I'd give that miss if I were you.

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

Yay, thanks for all the information guys! From looking up things myself (which surprisingly, I have actually done haha) and from my experiences in the UK, they all seem to have their own pros and cons as with any school. Keele looks gorgeous as far as the campus and history goes, but that kind of reminds me of the uni I went to in my first year which was extremely cliquey and the town was kind of far away so most of the time was spent on campus.. It was also a bit elitist, and not being able to leave campus to the town on a whim was a bit bothersome. However, the cost is extremely cheap... The housing is about £2300 for the entire year, which is really appealing considering that housing, apart from spending money, is all I'll have to be paying to study over there. Alton does appeal, but the UK is pretty small where I know I'll be able to get pretty much wherever, whenever I want to.

I've heard bad things about Coventry as far as the town and campus goes, but I don't know enough about it to completely rule it out. The main campus building does look very prison-y though .

I've actually been to Derby as well as the university. The campus and city is quite gross in my opinion but it does seem to have a nice student life and a decent amount to do (including a fab Westfields.. Not that I'm basing my choice on shopping malls aha). It is kind of far away from London though, which sucks.

Kingston is super close to London but that's about all I know as far as that goes . I know the cost of accommodation is a bit more pricey there, but that's obviously due to the location etc.

Southampton seems like the most appealing to me, but I do know it's not well regarded for academics, but that doesn't really bother me because the university I go to now isn't top notch either, but I love it a lot more than the elitist universities like the one I use to go to. It also seems like a great city with a lot to do, and a good student life, within a nice proximity to London. Accommodation is a bit more expensive but it does seem like the best choice at the moment, maybe because I know the most about it.

All the other unis I know nothing about, haha.

 

[davidm]

I went to University in Coventry. Not Coventry University but the university in Coventry that refused to even admit it is in Coventry and instead pretends it is in lovely nice leafy Warwick 'cos that sounds lots posher than Coventry. That should tell you enough about the nation's perception of Coventry.

Lived in Cov (rather than at the Uni) for most of the time, g/f went to the poly (what is now Coventry University) so I saw a bit of that too - was ok I guess. City centre was all rather bland, although there is one nice street that the Germans managed to miss when they bombed the city, and has all that remains on Cov's historic stuff. Fair amount of students/student life in the city ; the Uni students all lived 1/2 way between the City and the Uni (on the outskirts), the Poly students were all over the place (I was near the city centre for 2.5 years).

I've only been back there once since I finished Uni, they had tarted up the city centre a bit by then, but you can't polish a t**d now can you?

Having said all that; Cov is pretty well connected bang in the middle of England, train to London / Birmingham / most places is easy and you can get out of the city into the green belt pretty quickly.

Not too far to Alton either, provided you aren't planning to walk.

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

Yah, the only appeal of Coventry was really the proximity to all the major cities! I'm not too fussed about what the city looks like to be honest, I mean nicer would obviously be better as I don't want to be living in a gross ghetto area, but it doesn't have to be beautiful either; as long as it has a good student life, looks are of less mind.

Thanks for all the info so far guys!!

 

[nadroJ]

I've loved my time at Southampton and have really grown to love the place. It's so student friendly it's ridiculous, so much to do! Do you know what halls you'd be put it? I'm assuming it would be Emily Davies (international halls), which is literally across the road from the coach station and train station (and TGI Fridays lol!).

As far as the uni goes, I chose it particularly because it was free from all the like pretentiousness etc that other unis have (Southampton, for example). Everyone is so laid back and because it's a bit of an underdog Uni everyone really pushes hard to try and maintain a good reputation, which is better in my opinion than just relying on some impressive history.

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

^ That's part of the reason I love my uni now so much more than the other one I went to. The one I went to in my first year has such a snooty reputation for academics and sports, so everyone just thought they were the bees knees . I met so many snobby, rude people who thought they were top stuff just because they were wealthy and went to a good school, whereas where I go now, it doesn't have any sort of reputation so people are a lot more chill and they work a lot harder.

If I go to Solent and am put in halls, it doesn't necessarily have to be the international halls I don't believe, but it could be. I kind of hope not though, because I'm going there to experience student life in England, with English people, not be stuck with a bunch of other International folk .

 

[furie]

Yeah, but why should the English guys have to suffer you?

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

^ Because I am amaze . Is it mostly first year people in halls? I'm kind of scared that I'll be a fourth year while others will probably be first year.

 

[nadroJ]

Well, 4th year doesn't exist so there won't be any 4th years anyway, and yeah, only the weirdos with no friends stay in halls after first year, lol. But I guess that because you'll be international it'll still be like, leaving home for the first time again anyway for you? I would ask to get put in Lucia Foster if you choose Solent, they're a little bit further away from everything but there's free buses everywhere and I had some of the best times of my life in there =].

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

^ Oh yeah that's true, ew I'm gonna be like a gross peado there then </3 And okay, I'll look into those halls I'm not necessarily looking for the cheapest option, but moreso the best cost for value. I think my biggest obstacle right now is getting a good enough relationship with one of my professors this semester so I can get a recommendation, which is gross because profs are kind of scary sometimes </3

EDIT- You know what's weird? They offer things like yacht design at Southampton Solent, but they don't offer history or classical studies :S On my uni's website it says it is open to all subject areas, but obviously if they don't have anything I'm studying, I wouldn't be able to go? So it sort of looks like that's out, which is a shame because I love the looks of the city and the student life there! It doesn't seem like many of the unis offer classical studies though, which is weird because that's a staple program in most of our unis over here. Leicester is the only one I see right now with a joint history/classical studies program, but I haven't looked into all of them yet.

If classical studies aren't offered, it's not too big of a deal because I can just load up on as many as possible for this upcoming school year to finish my requirements, but I need either one or the other and most seem to offer at least history .

 

[Pierre]

I'm glad you kept Teesside of that list. Sam came to Teesside, look at him... haha!

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

^ Well, our uni only gives us those options though. I guess they have like exchange programs with those particular universities. Plymouth is only open for drama students though, so I guess that and Southampton, with its lack of my program, have to be taken off the list </3

 

[WelcomeToOblivion]

It's a shame your uni doesn't offer Chester on the international programme, purely on the basis that my American friend told me it was her favourite place (I think she did 2? I'm not sure though).

Keele seems a quite nice place, even though I've only visited once for a rugby game and the others I unfortunately have no idea about.

One thing I would say is try and find a uni with a nice choice of societies, they're a great place to make friends. I know we have an international studies society at Chester (again through my American friend) and they organised trips to the zoo, Alton Towers and other places, as well as pub quizzes and nights out

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/public/gu ... tAodpWc77g

This helped me when choosing a uni too.

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

^ Yeah, Chester looks really nice, it's kind of a shame! The thing is, I'm not really into extracurriculars, which could be my downfall when it comes to my international studies application, but hopefully not. Again, I don't really want to spend all my time with other international students, I kind of just want to blend in with everyone! Thanks for that link though, it's fab <3

 

[gavin]

Just don't go to Poventry. It's SUCH a hideous dump with no redeeming features. (proximity to Birmingham is NOT a redeeming feature)

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

^ Okay So my list looks like this now:

- Derby
- Keele
- Kingston
- Hertfordshire
- Leicester
- Swansea

Had to take out Plymouth because it was for drama majors, Southampton because it doesn't have a history program, and Coventry because mostly everyone tells me it's a dump! At least I'm getting somewhere!

 

[WelcomeToOblivion]

Haha, don't worry they'll hear your accent and they'll want to be friends! I'm sure you'll easily get a mix of both

 

[tks]

Kingston. Good, if not great location. Not so many great things to say about the university itself.