So you have a list of universities/colleges that you like the look of - how do you
narrow it down?
Firstly make sure that every institution on your list does the subject that you
want to study.
Read
up on each institution - there are many resources that you can use to obtain
different viewpoints:
For
the 'official view' read the institution's prospectus or go to their website-
here you can get the 'hard-facts' and statistics, but beware that these purely
show what the university/college wants to show - they're hardly likely to tell
you that the food is rubbish or that the central heating in one of the Halls
doesn't work!
For
an independent view try reading an 'unofficial' guide. Books such as the Push
Guide and the Virgin Alternative Guide are readily available.
The
problem with guides however, is that they are other people's opinions. To
make the best decision, you need to see the place for yourself, so try to
visit every institution on your list (you can find out open day information
at www.opendays.com). If you can't make
the open days, contact the institution and see if a private visit is possible
(it usually is). (See the opendays.com guide to visiting universities/colleges
for more information
What
will the place be like?
LOCATION
Find out what sort of location each university/college on your list
is in. There are four major categories that you can put them in to:
Civic Universities - sited within a city centre usually with halls outside of
the city in the suburbs
City-campus Universities - usually within a major city, but sited on parkland
campus(es) outside of the city centre
Campus Universities - all sited on one campus - usually in a rural setting
Collegiate - life and learning based in colleges, usually in a rural setting
(except for Cambridge, Durham, London and Oxford)
-
Do
you like the area and what it has to offer?
SOCIAL LIFE
You will be in the place for at least three years and the
friends you make will be with you for life, so, apart from bars and night-clubs
(which are usually in great abundance anyway) find out the student-mix
(male:female ratio) and what clubs/societies are available.
STUDENT UNIONS operate bars, clubs, shops and societies. Find out what is
available and where it is based - is social life based in the town/city or
within halls of residence or on the main campus?
MUSIC in the form of orchestras, choirs, bands and individual tuition is
usually available. Find out how frequently it is run and how much it costs.
SPORT provision is important. Find out what sports are available, how many
teams there are and what the facilities are like. The BUSA (British
Universities' Sports Association) ranks all institutions. Find out how good the
university team really is!
LEARNING RESOURCES
Learning resources are very important as you will need them for research and
further reading. How good are the libraries? What is the ratio of number of
students to computers? Is internet provided? and is it free?
ACCOMMODATION
Accommodation is generally the most expensive part of going into higher
education. See if you are guaranteed a place in university/college owned
accommodation in your first year. Decide whether you want to be catered for or
cook for yourself and then see what the quality of accommodation is. This is
best done first hand so try to visit a hall of residence when you visit on an
open day. If you do visit a hall of residence, find out if it is for first
years, and if it's nice, ask them if all halls are like it (they may have just
shown you a really expensive hall reserved for post-graduates - not much help!).
You will probably have to find you own accommodation in the second year, so ask
how easy it is to find, and generally how expensive it is. Remember that you
will have to buy food, electricity, water, gas, heating, telephone....
TRANSPORT
How far is it from halls to the main campus - will you need a car
(and if so, where can you park it) or will bicycle do? If you need to use public
transport, find how much it costs. Remember, a few journeys every day over the
period of a year can really add up!
SUPPORT AND LEARNING
Find out what sort of grades students get at the
university/college, especially in the subject that you want to study. See what
the destinations of the graduates in your subject are too.
Also, find out what sort of non-curricular support the university/college offers
(such as health + welfare - counselling etc.). When at the university/college
you will be assigned a personal tutor to look after things as this, so find how
many students there are per tutor and find out how regular tutorials are.
TO SUM UP
You are definitely going to have fun and enjoy yourself, wherever you go. But
remember, the better a place suits you the more fun and more enjoyment you're
going to have. Decide your priorities before you begin and then look for those
institutions which meet them. Make sure you choose a university for the right
reasons for yourself, as you are the one who will spend the time there. They all
seem to have good points, so an open day is the best way to get a gut feeling
about how you would like it; all students will tell you that their university is
the best, simply because everyone has a great time and so will you!
Best
of Luck!
Opendays.com Advice