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Exeter or Sussex?

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those two are pretty similar if you ask me. doesnt matter which one you pick just get a 2.1 or first and you'll be fine.
Original post by swbp
ARE YOU KIDDING
Sussex is top 20 for Geography, History and English so clearly isn't "weak" for arts and humanities. I'd agree that Exeter is an all rounder, but so is US - they have very few subjects offered that rank outside the top 20.


I didn't say they were "weak" at them, i said it wasn't their strongest department. Sussex is generally better for sciences. FYI, rankings are ****e
Reply 42
My sister went to Exeter and im planning to go to Sussex. I had the same dilemma. I have spent vast amount of times in both unis and cities.

Its all about what kind of person you are. Sussex really does have a Bohemian feel to it, being next to Brighton it has the same liberal quirky feel to it. Staying with my friend in halls and meeting her friends i saw how the uni seems to attract interesting intelligent people who are all different and quirky (in a good way). There was one girl who even turned down a place at Durham for Sussex because she loved Brighton and the uni so much. None of them had a bad word to say about the uni or the city which is unique to allot of my other friends at uni. The night life is also one of the best ive been to better than many big cities (including Exeter). Brighton is also the place to be for a student, shopping is amazing with little vintage and independent stores to grab bargains and also all the usual high street chains.

Exeter is going to look marginally better for its prestige. It also has good nightlife allot better than many other cities. Exeter seems to attract (going from my sisters friends) more conservative upper class people, although im sure thats not the case for everyone but a bigger majority than Sussex. The city is also beautiful lovely buildings and little cafes.

I found what was really helpful in picking my unis is to try and see what kind of person the uni is trying to appeal to and work out if you fit that bill and if you get along with others who also fit that bill. see which one you are going to have the best time at because there is no point worrying about the 'prestige' because there both amazing unis.
Reply 43
Original post by 4RealBlud
I didn't say they were "weak" at them, i said it wasn't their strongest department. Sussex is generally better for sciences. FYI, rankings are ****e


I'll admit they have strong sciences, but to be honest their arts have a good reputation also :smile:
Original post by swbp
I'll admit they have strong sciences, but to be honest their arts have a good reputation also :smile:


I didn't say they didn't. All i said is that they do better in sciences and since noth unis are on par and Exeter is an all-rounder it might indicate that they're slightly better but not really significantly.

Honestly OP, just go the unis and check out the courses at each uni to see which one is best to go to, since academically they are relatively similar.
Reply 45
Original post by Jamie201
My sister went to Exeter and im planning to go to Sussex. I had the same dilemma. I have spent vast amount of times in both unis and cities.

Its all about what kind of person you are. Sussex really does have a Bohemian feel to it, being next to Brighton it has the same liberal quirky feel to it. Staying with my friend in halls and meeting her friends i saw how the uni seems to attract interesting intelligent people who are all different and quirky (in a good way). There was one girl who even turned down a place at Durham for Sussex because she loved Brighton and the uni so much. None of them had a bad word to say about the uni or the city which is unique to allot of my other friends at uni. The night life is also one of the best ive been to better than many big cities (including Exeter). Brighton is also the place to be for a student, shopping is amazing with little vintage and independent stores to grab bargains and also all the usual high street chains.

Exeter is going to look marginally better for its prestige. It also has good nightlife allot better than many other cities. Exeter seems to attract (going from my sisters friends) more conservative upper class people, although im sure thats not the case for everyone but a bigger majority than Sussex. The city is also beautiful lovely buildings and little cafes.

I found what was really helpful in picking my unis is to try and see what kind of person the uni is trying to appeal to and work out if you fit that bill and if you get along with others who also fit that bill. see which one you are going to have the best time at because there is no point worrying about the 'prestige' because there both amazing unis.


Ah thanks so much for the helpful advice. :smile: At the moment I'm veering towards Sussex (I change my mind virtually every minute) because of the chance to live in Brighton and the fact that I did like it a lot when I went to check it out. But I'm going to Exeter tomorrow to see how that measures up. You make a good point about what kind of people it attracts -- Sussex really seems more 'me' at this point.

What are you planning to do at Sussex?
Reply 46
Original post by Jamie201
My sister went to Exeter and im planning to go to Sussex. I had the same dilemma. I have spent vast amount of times in both unis and cities.

Its all about what kind of person you are. Sussex really does have a Bohemian feel to it, being next to Brighton it has the same liberal quirky feel to it. Staying with my friend in halls and meeting her friends i saw how the uni seems to attract interesting intelligent people who are all different and quirky (in a good way). There was one girl who even turned down a place at Durham for Sussex because she loved Brighton and the uni so much. None of them had a bad word to say about the uni or the city which is unique to allot of my other friends at uni. The night life is also one of the best ive been to better than many big cities (including Exeter). Brighton is also the place to be for a student, shopping is amazing with little vintage and independent stores to grab bargains and also all the usual high street chains.

Exeter is going to look marginally better for its prestige. It also has good nightlife allot better than many other cities. Exeter seems to attract (going from my sisters friends) more conservative upper class people, although im sure thats not the case for everyone but a bigger majority than Sussex. The city is also beautiful lovely buildings and little cafes.

I found what was really helpful in picking my unis is to try and see what kind of person the uni is trying to appeal to and work out if you fit that bill and if you get along with others who also fit that bill. see which one you are going to have the best time at because there is no point worrying about the 'prestige' because there both amazing unis.


I'M GOING TO SUSSEX IN SEPTEMBER :biggrin:

To be honest you've pretty much summed up why I want to be at Sussex - the people, the academics, the town all seem perfect in my eyes.

I too had a dilemma between Exeter and Sussex, but in the end I didn't apply to Exeter. I got 4 As at AS level, and my tutors said I had a really good chance of getting an offer, but when I found out about it's right wing tendencies I was really put off. I'm very liberal and the rumours about it being full of snobs settled it for me.

However, i'll be the first to admit it's an ace university with a great reputation :smile:
Reply 47
Original post by pellejema

What are you planning to do at Sussex?


Brighton is the BEST. Every time i visit i love it even more!
Hopefully politics and sociology if i get the AAB :smile:
I hear Sussex has a very good reputation for English whereas I'd say Exeter has a slightly better reputation overall. The differences are negligible, choose the one you prefer.
Reply 49
Went to the Exeter open day today. Makes things even more confusing!!
Reply 50
Original post by pellejema
Went to the Exeter open day today. Makes things even more confusing!!


Ah man! what did you think of it?
I had an open day at bath today and it made my decision between sussex and bath 100x easier. Sussex all the way :smile:
Reply 51
Original post by Jamie201
Ah man! what did you think of it?
I had an open day at bath today and it made my decision between sussex and bath 100x easier. Sussex all the way :smile:


Ahhh Sussex would be SO much better than bath! Exeter is gorgeous as a place, but I'm not sure the atmosphere was very 'me'... Hard though, because the academic side is really good. :/
Reply 52
Original post by pellejema
Ahhh Sussex would be SO much better than bath! Exeter is gorgeous as a place, but I'm not sure the atmosphere was very 'me'... Hard though, because the academic side is really good. :/


I had exactly the same issue, bath has such an amazing course and have a placement year which is something im really interested in. But today i just felt so out of place walking round the city and campus that even if im enjoying the course and doing im not going to be at my best because im not going to be happy. Whereas sussex i felt comfortable instantly and i think its going to suit me more which will hopefully bring the best out of me.
I also have offers from both but having lived just outside of brighton my whole life Exteter is looking a winner for me! Sussex is a lovely uni (if you can make it through Library Square) and Brighton is apparently good for a night out. Both are expensive places to live. Don't let the Rah's of Exeter put you off, by the amount of people worried about it there will be plenty of non-rah's anyway!
Reply 54
Original post by Alexander94
there will be plenty of non-rah's anyway!


I do agree with this, no matter where you go you will find people you will get along with.
Reply 55
I have been trying to make a decision between these universities for weeks so i know exactly how you feel!! Not sure whether being in a big city is too good for me.. i dont want to get too distracted from my studies but on the other hand i dont want to be bored every weekend cause theres nothing to do!
Does anybody know how the unis stand for law??
Sorry for bringing more confusion into this but i CANNOT make up my mind!
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 56
Original post by Flori
I have been trying to make a decision between these universities for weeks so i know exactly how you feel!! Not sure whether being in a big city is too good for me.. i dont want to get too distracted from my studies but on the other hand i dont want to be bored every weekend cause theres nothing to do!
Does anybody know how the unis stand for law??
Sorry for bringing more confusion into this but i CANNOT make up my mind!


Yeah I see what you mean on the big city thing, half of me feels the that it'd benefit me being in a non-crazy city like Exeter but that other half wants to experience the good nightlife of Brighton. Do you have offers from them both? What are you leaning towards? And sorry no idea about law!
Reply 57
Original post by Alexander94
I also have offers from both but having lived just outside of brighton my whole life Exteter is looking a winner for me! Sussex is a lovely uni (if you can make it through Library Square) and Brighton is apparently good for a night out. Both are expensive places to live. Don't let the Rah's of Exeter put you off, by the amount of people worried about it there will be plenty of non-rah's anyway!


Yeah I wasn't really worried about expense when I applied, but having recently applied for my student loan, I'm freaking out a lot! Tbh on my open day yesterday the place was kind of overwhelmed by them, but no you're right, there are gonna be lots of like-minded people too.
Original post by pellejema
Yeah I wasn't really worried about expense when I applied, but having recently applied for my student loan, I'm freaking out a lot! Tbh on my open day yesterday the place was kind of overwhelmed by them, but no you're right, there are gonna be lots of like-minded people too.


I dont know about your financial situation but both have fairly substantial bursary programmes, depending on your parents income (which is a suckish system)
Reply 59
Original post by pellejema
Yeah I see what you mean on the big city thing, half of me feels the that it'd benefit me being in a non-crazy city like Exeter but that other half wants to experience the good nightlife of Brighton. Do you have offers from them both? What are you leaning towards? And sorry no idea about law!


yeah i got offers from both :smile: but it is actually annoying because i cant decide haha
i think im leaning towards sussex because i would be doing law with international relations there but if it wasnt for the course i would be for exeter. But yeah i change my mind about that a lot..

Have you been to visit both places?? Could you tell me what you thought of the areas? I know exeter is supposed to be beautiful but is it boring?

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