A Guide To Choosing the Right University

Whether to go to university is a big question that troubles many young adult’s minds, and once the decision to go to university has been made, it may be even harder to choose which universities to apply for.  I have just finished three years doing Psychology at the University of Birmingham and have had the best time there. I have left with a fantastic degree and even more fantastic memories.  The University of Birmingham was definitely the right choice for me, but it is essential that you make the right choice for you. There are many factors to consider and I hope this hub helps you consider these factors and come to your decision.

Teaching Standards, Methods and Results

Obviously, the thing that is on top of your (and definitely parent’s) minds is where the university is situated on the league tables. The Sunday Times University Guide and the Guardian University Guide are both good sources and certainly worth a look. They give each and every University in the country points for a number of things, and then a total score which gives each University a rating position. For instance, The Guardian University Guide awards points for: overall satisfaction, satisfaction with teaching, satisfaction with feedback, student: staff ratio, spend per student, average entry tariff, value added score and amount of graduates who have a job at 6months after graduating. At the time this was written, (September, 2010), the top 10 universities, as rated by The Guardian University Guide are as following:

1) University of Oxford

2) University of Cambridge

3) University of Warwick

4) University of St Andrews

5) University College London

6) University of Lancaster

7) Imperial College

8) London School of Economics and Political Science

9) Loughborough University

10) University of York.

However, it is important to remember that one university may have a certain ranking overall, but a lower or higher ranking in certain subjects. For instance, Coventry University is ranked number 87 overall in the Guardian Guide, but is in 44^th place on the mechanical engineering list. Ratings aren’t everything, but they certainly mean, and show, a lot.

Look at the way your course is organised at different universities. Degree courses will differ substantially at different universities even though they are the same subject. Class sizes, contact hours, and examination methods all make a huge difference to your satisfaction and happiness on a course. If you don’t work well under exam pressure, look for a course which has more coursework, and vise versa.

Hopefully you will be able to get your first choice university but it is important to apply to universities with a mixture of ratings. Universities similar in ratings will probably have the same entry requirements, so if you don’t get into one top rating university, you will probably not be able to get into another. Say for instance the entry criteria for a certain subject at the top 10 universities is AAA. If a student is predicted AAA they may apply and possibly get conditional offers to a selection of the top 10 universities, but if they drop just one grade (AAA -> AAB) they would fail to be accepted onto a course. Therefore, even if predicted amazing grades, it is sensible to pick universities with a selection of ratings and therefore a selection of entry grades.

Campus University?

The reason I picked the University of Birmingham as my first choice is because I fell in love with the campus. A campus university is a university on one site, where teaching and research blocks, leisure facilities, student union and accommodation are all close to one another and within the same grounds. Examples of universities with a campus are Birmingham, York, Sussex, Keele and Nottingham. I really loved going to a campus university because the campus itself was gorgeous – a leafy and green hidey-hole in a major city. It was also ideal to be living, working and playing in one place; it really felt like our own little village.

Non-campus universities are universities which are made up of individual buildings and separate sites, placed across a town or region. Examples of non-campus universities are Edinburgh University and Coventry University. Non-campus universities may not have such a student village feel, but walking between lectures on different sites would definitely help you loose weight (as long as you don’t via McDonalds, Greggs or KFC!).

Collegiate Universities on the other hand, are based on a number of colleges. These colleges are almost like separate universities; separate hall of residences, libraries, societies and sometimes admission decisions. These colleges are like a mini community or village themselves. Oxford, Cambridge and other traditional Universities like Durham have this set up.

Make sure you do consider the set up of the university you choose to go to. You will be living and studying there for three (or more) years so you need to be sure you would be happy there.

The City

This is another major factor. Even if you are going to a campus university, you will spend a large amount of your free time in the local area. Student Union’s usually have their own bar and clubs but for most nights out, you will definitely venture out to town. Look for what the local area has to offer. Obviously nightlife is important in your student years, but look into for shopping, job opportunities, transport links and safety. Another important factor is how close the university is to a big city. Keele University is situated in the countryside, 35miles from the closest city (Manchester). This would be perfect for somebody who loves the country, but for not for somebody who wants to be hitting the clubs (or shops!) every weekend.

Student Union and Societies

The student union is where students go to hang out, meet people, and join clubs and societies. A good union will have a job centre, a welfare centre, an advice unit and religious centres. I think you can tell a lot about a university by how active their union is; if their union has an active council and lots of societies, it is clear students care about their university and strive to make the best of their time there. It is worth to investigate the student union of the universities you apply for, as a good union will really improve your university experience. Whilst at university, I was in the dance society, going to dance classes 3 or 4 times a week. It gave me a chance to meet so many people – more than I would have met through my course and halls alone. I also used the advice centre (when I was stressing over my dodgy landlord), volunteer centre (when looking to gain work experience) and of course their bar, cafe and nightclub!

Student Accommodation

Make sure you look into the student accommodation options before you choose a university. It’s great if you love your course, campus and student union, but if you are coming home to a dump you will not be happy. End of. Halls are normally owned by the university so are usually at an OK standard, but it is worth checking you are happy with the dorm size, how many people you will be living with, catering options (are you going to cook for yourself, or have catered halls?), bathroom options (en suite or shared?), and location. I was lucky in my first year as my halls were right on the edge of campus but I know friends who had to live in halls a train ride away. Most universities will have a scheme where they guarantee all fresher’s accommodation, look out for this as it could save a lot of hassle; you don’t want to be accepted on a course a hundred miles away when there might be chance you won’t have anywhere to live!

After your first year you are most likely to move out of university owned halls and rent a house from a private landlord with friends. All I can say is BEWARE. Landlords are often untrustworthy and in my experience, treat you like second class citizens just because you are a student. Look into your rights, and make sure you take advantage of the help your university has to offer. Birmingham had an advice centre where volunteers were on hand to check contracts and landlords reliability. If your university has a similar facility, make sure you use it. This will ensure an easier few years. I am guessing that most of you reading this are just applying to university so this may not be your top priority. However, I would say do check out the streets where the local student population live after first year, just to make sure you would be OK there.

So, those are what I think are the most important factors when choosing a University.

Make sure you make the decision for you - you will be the one living, studying and working there for the next few years, so your decision needs to be the right one.

However, I thoroughly believe that if you are willing to work hard, meet people and have a good time, you will finish University just as I did; proud that you got through it, and happy that you have the friends which helped you along the way.

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