Part 0800.0005

[Lewis]

Glad you liked Brum - we went on an open day with school and I wasn't amazed, but never wanted to go there anyway, being so close

 

Reading is meant to be nice Sarah, and Warwick

I liked Nottingham, went a few times to look at vet school, again with school and on Vet-Sim/Medlink

[Cinnamon]

Reading was nice,but of is so close that it feels like a bit of a cop out.

The Psychology department had bowls of sweets out, which totally won over the daughter.

 

Exeter was glorious....sunshine, a great journey there and beautiful grounds, but Psychology is housed in a building akin to a 50's mental hospital. Great Rep for the subject, but it was really creepy and totally freaked us both out.

 

University of Kent next,then we are doing another batch in sept (Warwick, Bristol, Southampton, UCL & Bath)

 

Am considering a second mortgage for the train fares.........

[The Dogmother]

Shout when you're coming up to Warwick, Cinnamon; we coudl meet up as it's pretty near us.

 

I have been to the campus - go to the arts centre to see films and it's lovely, great atmosphere and just like a village.

[kitbag]

Oooh Sarah, let me know how Kent goes - i would have loved to go to their open day on Saturday but i'm going up north tomorrow!! I can't wait though, im going to look at Surrey and Lancaster in October!

 

My friend goes to UCL, and she loves it!!

[Lewis]

Am considering a second mortgage for the train fares.........

Go to Aberystwyth ... they paid our travel costs

 

Family & Friends railcard made everything a lot cheaper too

[Cinnamon]

Thanks Lewis,I will look into that card.

Dev already has the 16-25 one,and that has helped a lot

 

Aber is on our to do list too.....how did you get them to cover your costs?

[Lewis]

Aber is on our to do list too.....how did you get them to cover your costs?

Just checked through, it was the more specific Departmental Visiting Days in March time - they just gave everyone expenses forms

[ubereglu]

I'm going to City University tomorrow to have a look around the optometry department.

 

One of my friends went to Exeter on Tuesday to look around the Physics department, I don't think he liked it though. He's going to warwick tomorrow though.

 

I'm hopefully going to York on 7th and Durham at the end of August and then Sheffield. I've nearly decided what to do and where to apply. Still deciding though and need to start my Personal Statement too-that's going to be an interesting one, as I want to apply for 3 different course, (optom, biology and orthoptics). I'll have a better idea about what and where to apply to once I've got my AS results though.

[sadietoo]

We visited Birmingham today with DS and were all very impressed...it wasn't at all what we were expecting. We thought the open day was very well organised, and the uni itself had a really good "feel" to it....

UEA and Leeds still to go....Can't persuade DS to look at Southampton as it's only about 35 miles away.....

[Pipichick]

I've narrowed it down to Optometry, Biology or Orthoptics-depends on grades really, and where I want to live!

 

I'm an Optometrist, studied at Aston for my sins and have been qualified for 10 years now If there are any questions I can answer relating to the job or course PM me

[Cinnamon]

We have decided to give Kent a miss tomorrow - it will be far too hot,its a 3.5 hour train journey & she doesn't really want to go there anyhow

 

Looking forward to the September batch though......................now if only she could decide once & for all what she wants to study!

[ubereglu]

I went to City yesterday, a really good course, brilliant teaching and a partnership with Moorfield's eye hospital. However, ridiculously expensive to live, even for London-£160.72 per week from next academic year, an increase of 24% from last year. Plus they're getting newer accommodation, but can't say what the prices are likely to be, but it'slikely to be at least £130.

 

Their cheapest accommodation this year is £102, which is just about affordable, as if I was studying in London I'd get a larger student loan.

[Cinnamon]

We thought that about the London unis too Liz,but will go & have a look at UCL in September,as they are #1 in the country for Psychology,above Oxford & Cambridge even.

 

I am glad we skipped Kent yesterday - it was so hot here!!!

[ubereglu]

I'm also thinking about Imperial, but from their prospectus their accommodation seems a lot cheaper.

[ISCA]

The league tables can be a useful starting guide but they do vary as they look at different criteria. Some focus on the research output of a department and that is largely irrelevent to undergraduate teaching. The medical school rankings vary from league table to league table and from year to year. It can be difficult to differentiate them as they are all so similar but this may not be the case with some courses that are offered by many institutions eg Law or History).

 

The most important things to consider are whether the prospective student will be happy in the town/institution for 3 + years (that is a long time if you are miserable) and secondly, whether the teaching style suits their learning style. The tutorial sytem used at Oxbridge would not suit many students who prefer group learning. And my experience is that happy students tend to do much better in their studies and get better class degrees, which is very important in todays competitive job market.