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Aberdeen or Dundee?

My course is International Reltions and Politics. Can someone please tell me at which uni the coourse is better, which city is more welcoming, at which uni the campus is better, costs. Well everything you can add will be behelpful to tell the truth :smile:

. If someone has any info, please, I will really appreciate it!

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Reply 1

Lorraine89

I can't speak for Aberdeen, but I just graduated (last year) from Dundee University (studying Philosophy) and the school of Humanities is really good (which includes int. relations and politics). The campus is all centralised so you're always a stone's throw distance from your next lecture and the union is amazing.
The uni is in an excellent location (literally 5 or 10 minutes walking from the city centre) and there are plenty of bars nearby.

This, of course, is just my opinion, and, like I said, I don't know Aberdeen very well. Have you had a chance to visit both unis on an open day or anything? I highly recommend you do before making your final choice :smile:

Best of luck :smile:

Reply 2

saachi

Don't know about Dundee but I researched Aberdeen as it's my insurance choice. It sounds like a lovely university. From what I've heard people are friendly, and the city is really beautiful, described to me twice as 'mini-Edinburgh'. It's one of the Scottish ancients so plenty of old castle-y buildings and such (if you're into those things, I know I am! :smile:

)

Reply 3

Danny.

Original post by saachi

'mini-Edinburgh'.

Reply 4

saachi

Original post by Danny.

Huh? What's so funny?

Two or three people have actually used the words, 'mini- Edinburgh' to describe it... Is it- is it not a nice city?

Reply 5

Ocarinaoftime

I applied to both Aberdeen and Dundee and I was in the same predicament as you had I not received an unconditional for my first choice. I heard the Aberdeen social science applicant day on the 7th was amazing and people really liked lecturers, the look, and the feel of the university. I was gonna go but I went to Edinburgh's post offer day which also happened to fall on the 7th, I would really liked to have gone!

Pros for Dundee

- Closer to home for me
- Cheaper train fares to and from
-Close to Edinburgh, and Glasgow for gigs (which is important to me :P)
-It's all very close-knit, everything is within short walking distance
-The uni looked very nice (I didn't go to an offer day but I went up the previous year to DJCAD when I thought I wanted to do art and absolutely loved it, the students and such were so nice and the tutors in the art college were also lovely, it was such a nice atmosphere and somewhere I could see myself studying)

Pros for Aberdeen

-The university is higher up in the ranks (Whether it's significant to you is a different thing)
-Aberdeen is a bigger city than Dundee, I assume that comes with better nightlife and more stuff to do
-It's an ancient uni and very aesthetic to look at
-Gathering from other people, it seems like a very nice uni and the tutors seems very nice

If I were you i'd look at your course on both uni's and see which one you prefer since that is the reason you're going to uni in the first place, then decide if you'd rather have a city or town feel and just go with what your heart is telling you. Try and visit both if you can, that's always a great eye-opener. :smile:

Oh and in terms of cost, I'm gonna assume Dundee will be cheaper since it's not a big city or anything. I could be wrong though! :P

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 6

ChannieAlana

Original post by koki444

. If someone has any info, please, I will really appreciate it!

I'm currently doing Politics & IR at Dundee and I love the subject.
Most of the lecturers are helpful and the course is really interesting.

As for the city, it's slightly warmer than Aberdeen and you are only an hour/hour and a half away from Glasgow and Edinburgh. Dundee is also the most affordable city to live in the UK as a student.

What is letting Dundee down at the moment is the lack of funding. There are currently only 4 full time members of staff and it's come out that for every life sciences student costs the same as 2 humanities students and the current Dean seems to neglect us humanities lot with regards to resources. HOWEVER this is currently being looked into so by the time you specialise in 3rd year this should all be resolved (especially because my best friend is going to be the Head of Humanities next year and he is seriously going to kick arse on the matter)

Any questions just PM me.x

Reply 7

PW7

It's up to what you like but I would definitely go Aberdeen!

aberdeen!!

Dundee

- Better facilities
- More courses
- More diverse
- Bigger

Aberdeen

- Better known
- Higher ranking
- Ancient university
- Bigger city

Reply 10

saachi

Original post by kaneboy

Dundee

- Better facilities
- More courses
- More diverse
- Bigger

Aberdeen

- Better known
- Higher ranking
- Ancient university
- Bigger city

Does Dundee really have better facilities? :s-smilie:

The 'more courses' also thing doesn't really apply because people would only be considering both Dundee and Aberdeen if both offered their particular course.

Reply 11

AnnB

Original post by saachi

Does Dundee really have better facilities? :s-smilie:

The 'more courses' also thing doesn't really apply because people would only be considering both Dundee and Aberdeen if both offered their particular course.

I think more courses does apply as in first year you will do 6 at Dundee and 8 at Aberdeen of which perhaps only 2 will be from your chosen course. So the number of options available to take is a factor in the decision.

Reply 12

kirsti

Original post by kaneboy

Dundee

- Better facilities
- More courses
- More diverse
- Bigger

Aberdeen

- Better known
- Higher ranking
- Ancient university
- Bigger city

Do you mean Dundee has better facilities overall than Aberdeen or just for their particular subject ? because Aberdeen has far better facilities in regards to the library and sports centre etc

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 13

kirsti

Original post by koki444

. If someone has any info, please, I will really appreciate it!

To be honest, I think Dundee and Aberdeen are really on par with each other. To try and work out which one is better you really have to start splitting hairs. Aberdeen is a lot more expensive than Dundee but then again, it is a nicer city. Aberdeen has better graduate prospects but that is just because there's always jobs there as its a very wealthy city. Each university is brilliant and you really couldn't go wrong with either one. I think you would have to visit each one and see which one you preferred! I was stuck between the two so thats what i did and now i've accepted my place at Aberdeen! :smile:

oh, and the library at Aberdeen is amazing!

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 14

kaneboy

Original post by saachi

Does Dundee really have better facilities? :s-smilie:

The 'more courses' also thing doesn't really apply because people would only be considering both Dundee and Aberdeen if both offered their particular course.

Dundee definitely have better facilities- check out the website.

Reply 15

AnnB

Original post by kaneboy

Dundee definitely have better facilities- check out the website.

Really, the library at Dundee is much smaller than Aberdeens and the gym facilities are also much better at Aberdeen. Dundee does have the better union though. What other facilities are you talking about?

Reply 16

kaneboy

Original post by AnnB

As I previously said, look at the website. Their campus is one of the best in Scotland.

Reply 17

AnnB

Original post by kaneboy

As I previously said, look at the website. Their campus is one of the best in Scotland.

I don't need to look on their website as I have visited both of them!

Reply 18

kirsti

Original post by kaneboy

As I previously said, look at the website. Their campus is one of the best in Scotland.

Dundee does not have better facilities. It has the best student union but that is all i can think of ?

Reply 19

Sir Fox

Original post by koki444

. If someone has any info, please, I will really appreciate it!

Now my 2 cents :wink:

Someone has mentioned that Aberdeen is ranked ahead of Dundee and that Dundee isn't an ancient university. This is actually not totally true. For example the Guardian ranks Dundee ahead of Aberdeen overall. In terms of Politics and IR the difference is even more important, Dundee is 23rd, Aberdeen is 51st! I am going to study Psychology at Dundee and it's ranked 17th in comparison to Aberdeen which is only 40th. Don't always believe what people tell you about prestige, always look for the sources :wink:

It is true that officially Dundee is not an ancient university, but is has been an incorporated college of the University of St. Andrews for decades, therefore shares most features which define ancient universities in Scotland (i.e. the undergrad. MA degree, the broad span of subjects you'll study in year one and two etc.) and is widely considered to actually be an ancient university.

You should also consider that in terms of students satisfaction the Department of Politics and Dundee was ranked first in the whole of the UK with a satisfaction rate of 100%.

I am an international applicant, went to an open day just some days ago and really liked it. The buildings looked very modern (the residences as well) and whilst I cannot compare the Sports Centre and library with those of Aberdeen, they are both very modern and well equipped.

Edit: Sure, neg me for stating statistical data without bashing any of the two universities :wink:

(edited 11 years ago)