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Did I mess up with Uni?

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Original post by Abstract_Prism
Princepieman is the King of IB 'round these parts.


Yeah, I don't buy into that crap.

Especially when you're asking a guy who dreams to go to Warwick himself.


:facepalm2::facepalm2:
Waterfront bar, King's College
King's College London
London
@Mathlete2198
KCL is a very good university despite what everyone on here says. Just work hard at kcl, join societies and build up your cv and you can apply for the same jobs as people from ucl and the very top unis

Most of all, enjoy your time at kcl!
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by Mathlete2198
I'm starting my first year at King's College London end of this month to study Computer Science, but I've heard so many bad things that other people say about the uni and the people that go there.

Last year I applied to Oxford (I flopped the MAT, so easy rejection there.), Imperial (Interview went quite badly so fair enough), UCL (I kept as firm), KCL (my insurance) and Southampton (Which I loved, but in the end I didn't want to leave London.)

Now I'm not against any of the universities I didn't get into, they're all amazing universities to go to and I just wasn't good enough to go to them. In the end I unfortunately missed my UCL offer of A*AA and got A*AB (damn you chemistry). I don't blame UCL since I missed the entry requirements, but that doesn't make me any less upset.

Since I chose my unis the rankings have changed and KCL has dropped down a little, but it's still a really good inner London uni.

But the question is, did I mess up? And if so, what do I do now? Please could someone help me with my internal dilemma. ::///


I went to Southampton for undergrad (UCL was my firm but I missed one grade so got rejected on results day) and I'm at KCL now for my postgrad. I am torn on what to tell you because there are very good and very bad points about KCL. I'll start with the good:

-reputation is very good; if you tell someone you're at KCL you usually get a response of 'wow' or 'omg that's such a good uni' and I did not ever experience this for Southampton haha
-being in London has its perks. There are definitely opportunities here that I wasn't offered in Southampton
-has a LOT of good societies etc to join
-the Maughan is beautiful :biggrin:

the bad points (this could be course/school specific but I've heard similar from other schools too)

-in my experience of the law school, and most people I know who have been to KCL in other schools, they are extremely disorganised
-Grades are out late, and grading itself is very hit and miss/varies wildly
-Exam and essay feedback is absolutely dire. At Southampton I got a very detailed sheet on the front with scores out of 5 for things like referencing, research, structure etc as well as an annotated script; here you get one paragraph and it's obviously been used for tonnes of people
-In my experience tutors have not turned up to their own office hours which is a waste of my time
-Teaching will either be very good or very poor, some modules I've had to teach myself the entire thing
-Courses in general are quite poorly organised

So, just as an aside, I didn't experience any of the above bad points at Southampton. It's not a uni that has the 'wow' factor when you tell people you went there (not for my course anyway, sounds like it's different for yours but in general I mean it's not a 'top' amazing uni) BUT Southampton was far better. It was well organised, had better student support, grades were very timely and also consistent - at KCL I feel like I'm constantly guessing what I need to do to get a good grade - and you were given a lot of detailed feedback on how to improve, tutors always happy to go through stuff with you in office hours and even not in office hours if you walked past and knocked, teaching on all modules generally really good. It really depends what you're looking for, the strength of the course or the reputation/wow factor of the uni. If you want the wow factor then KCL is a good choice. I can't comment on your course but as much as I am enjoying having KCL on my CV and making use of the beautiful facilities, Southampton was a better student experience on the whole despite not as 'good' a uni.
I'm starting King's this month too, and I feel the exact same way you do. I've been reading loads on tsr about how people don't rate it but that's probably not a good way to form an opinion on a uni, especially since loads of the people on tsr haven't even gone to uni yet, but I still feel uncertain. Also has to do with the fact that my friend who goes to UCL keeps *****ing on KCL so yeah.

Honestly, I think for me (and maybe you too) it's a case of the Groucho Marx/ Annie Hall thing of "I don't want to be a part of any club that would accept me as a member"- once you get in, it's seems suddenly devalued because it's more human and less of a dream.

All in all, it's a great uni but I understand your reservations as I'm having them too, it's a bit annoying to constantly read that the uni you're going to isn't that good. Also if anyone wants to please reassure me that would be much appreciated! haha
Original post by Abstract_Prism
@Princepieman Does Warwick have a roughly equal chance in IB as Oxbridge/LSE?


Yes. There's not much else to say.

Any of Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, Warwick, LSE and UCL all get the same level of employer interest from all investment banks. That is just how it is.
Original post by Mathlete2198
I'm starting my first year at King's College London end of this month to study Computer Science, but I've heard so many bad things that other people say about the uni and the people that go there.

Last year I applied to Oxford (I flopped the MAT, so easy rejection there.), Imperial (Interview went quite badly so fair enough), UCL (I kept as firm), KCL (my insurance) and Southampton (Which I loved, but in the end I didn't want to leave London.)

Now I'm not against any of the universities I didn't get into, they're all amazing universities to go to and I just wasn't good enough to go to them. In the end I unfortunately missed my UCL offer of A*AA and got A*AB (damn you chemistry). I don't blame UCL since I missed the entry requirements, but that doesn't make me any less upset.

Since I chose my unis the rankings have changed and KCL has dropped down a little, but it's still a really good inner London uni.

But the question is, did I mess up? And if so, what do I do now? Please could someone help me with my internal dilemma. ::///


Eh, life moves on mate. Just try to kickass at KCL
Original post by Mathlete2198
I'm starting my first year at King's College London end of this month to study Computer Science, but I've heard so many bad things that other people say about the uni and the people that go there.

Last year I applied to Oxford (I flopped the MAT, so easy rejection there.), Imperial (Interview went quite badly so fair enough), UCL (I kept as firm), KCL (my insurance) and Southampton (Which I loved, but in the end I didn't want to leave London.)

Now I'm not against any of the universities I didn't get into, they're all amazing universities to go to and I just wasn't good enough to go to them. In the end I unfortunately missed my UCL offer of A*AA and got A*AB (damn you chemistry). I don't blame UCL since I missed the entry requirements, but that doesn't make me any less upset.

Since I chose my unis the rankings have changed and KCL has dropped down a little, but it's still a really good inner London uni.

But the question is, did I mess up? And if so, what do I do now? Please could someone help me with my internal dilemma. ::///

Yes you messed up. You are going to be attending the same uni as Vividly clear

Spoiler

Original post by Vividly clear
Yeah, I don't buy into that crap.

Especially when you're asking a guy who dreams to go to Warwick himself.


:facepalm2::facepalm2:


You could also stay in your own sphere of ignorance, that would work too since you love it there so much.
Original post by Princepieman
You could also stay in your own sphere of ignorance, that would work too since you love it there so much.


Cringeworthy reply
I'm about to start my second year at KCL and a year ago I was reading about how bad it seemed to be/how poorly rated it was which scared me a little (I had UCL as insurance but wondered if I'd made the right decision)

It turns out it's not actually that bad, a lot of the negative opinions come from people that don't actually go to the uni so a lot of it is just what they think rather than know. Everytime I tell someone I'm at KCL I still get the whole 'Oh wow' 'that's amazing' 'you must be so clever' etc etc.

At the end of the day your university experience is yours only. What a bunch of people online think is nonsense if you're having fun because you have a great group of friends, are doing well & have joined societies/clubs that you like.

(Worst case scenario if you really hate it, just drop out and reapply somewhere else)
Original post by RandomStudent97
I'm about to start my second year at KCL and a year ago I was reading about how bad it seemed to be/how poorly rated it was which scared me a little (I had UCL as insurance but wondered if I'd made the right decision)

It turns out it's not actually that bad, a lot of the negative opinions come from people that don't actually go to the uni so a lot of it is just what they think rather than know. Everytime I tell someone I'm at KCL I still get the whole 'Oh wow' 'that's amazing' 'you must be so clever' etc etc.

At the end of the day your university experience is yours only. What a bunch of people online think is nonsense if you're having fun because you have a great group of friends, are doing well & have joined societies/clubs that you like.

(Worst case scenario if you really hate it, just drop out and reapply somewhere else)


"Not actually that bad"... doesn't inspire confidence...
King's College is a great, highly reputable university. My brother went there, loved it. You can hear bad things about literally ANY university. You didnt mess up lad.

/thread
Original post by meridian0
Which subject are you going to be studying anyway?


The same as OP
Original post by Hihihi123
"Not actually that bad"... doesn't inspire confidence...


Apologies, I meant in the sense where it's not as bad as some people make out. It's an excellent uni, has lots to offer and is very supportive of its students. Research facilities are amazing and these contribute to the reason that KCL is respected worldwide.

It has to be remotely decent at least for this to happen right?
A lot of the negatives you read on here come from people who haven't even gone to the unis they're knocking. My course leader found out I was transferring to KCL and he was thrilled for me because "it's King's!", my other course leader was happy I had an offer from "such a prestigious university" and told me I'd be "crazy" to reject them, and several of my friends are jealous I'm off to their "dream uni". For every negative view there's a positive, and to be honest I'm more likely to listen to university staff than a bunch of teenagers on a forum. All unis will have good and bad points, but for my course KCL is ranked 4th in the world and that doesn't happen by accident. Of course, the UK league tables and world rankings are different, but they're compiled based on other factors and the world rankings reflect more what I care about.

Also don't knock Greenwich; Imperial students have said they wish they'd had lecturers like I had at Greenwich (and preliminary scores on teaching standards don't reflect league tables). It all depends on what a person wants from their student experience.

Don't just look at the courses; think about what else you'd like to get from a university. Part of the reason I transferred from Greenwich was because I was at Medway and I was so bored. There is a handful of decent societies, very little nightlife and very little to do on your days off. My friend hated his time at Imperial ("it was the worst few years of my life") because it attracts overly competitive students who struggle to loosen up and have fun (his wording was less kind) and for that same reason he rejected Cambridge. Other Imperial students have met me and told me not to be put off by them because "we're not reflective of the Imperial majority". I know a girl who went to Cambridge and it almost literally killed her. Obviously I know Imperial and Cambridge students who have thrived, but my point is that it's a very personal thing for each student.

Side note - It's Imperial students who tend to class themselves as the Cambridge rejects. :wink:
Original post by RachaelBee
A lot of the negatives you read on here come from people who haven't even gone to the unis they're knocking. My course leader found out I was transferring to KCL and he was thrilled for me because "it's King's!", my other course leader was happy I had an offer from "such a prestigious university" and told me I'd be "crazy" to reject them, and several of my friends are jealous I'm off to their "dream uni". For every negative view there's a positive, and to be honest I'm more likely to listen to university staff than a bunch of teenagers on a forum. All unis will have good and bad points, but for my course KCL is ranked 4th in the world and that doesn't happen by accident. Of course, the UK league tables and world rankings are different, but they're compiled based on other factors and the world rankings reflect more what I care about.

Also don't knock Greenwich; Imperial students have said they wish they'd had lecturers like I had at Greenwich (and preliminary scores on teaching standards don't reflect league tables). It all depends on what a person wants from their student experience.

Don't just look at the courses; think about what else you'd like to get from a university. Part of the reason I transferred from Greenwich was because I was at Medway and I was so bored. There is a handful of decent societies, very little nightlife and very little to do on your days off. My friend hated his time at Imperial ("it was the worst few years of my life":wink: because it attracts overly competitive students who struggle to loosen up and have fun (his wording was less kind) and for that same reason he rejected Cambridge. Other Imperial students have met me and told me not to be put off by them because "we're not reflective of the Imperial majority". I know a girl who went to Cambridge and it almost literally killed her. Obviously I know Imperial and Cambridge students who have thrived, but my point is that it's a very personal thing for each student.

Side note - It's Imperial students who tend to class themselves as the Cambridge rejects. :wink:




Hold on,hold on

HOLD ON.


Are you telling me that you transferred from a school like Greenwich University to a School like King's College London, for a course for which they are 4th IN THE WORLD????


What, is your father the principle professor at KCL?
Original post by Vividly clear
Hold on,hold on

HOLD ON.


Are you telling me that you transferred from a school like Greenwich University to a School like King's College London, for a course for which they are 4th IN THE WORLD????


What, is your father the principle professor at KCL?


Can't decide if you're saying you don't believe me or if you want an actual explanation of what happened haha! Short version is I was working full time while I did my A levels which was hard enough, then I got sick and lost about 18 months to ill health and I ended up on a foundation year at Greenwich. I then applied to King's not expecting anything to come of it (spur of the moment, late applicant, friends on course got rejected etc), then I got a conditional offer and then met my conditions. I'm a mature student and I have relevant work experience so I think that might have contributed to me getting an offer, plus once I got better I was actually getting decent grades. It all came as a huge shock to me.
Original post by BabyLadDarren
lol don't be retarded

if you get into imperial, you go. End of.



You're actually telling someone to not be retarded?




Reply 58
Guys, the reality is that education in the UK is basically the same everywhere. They have their UK standards everywhere. Lecturers are messy everywhere - they skip deadlines, sometimes lectures. But that's life isn't it? I think the student satisfaction of Kings, UCS, LSE, etc. is low, because people expect too much. And they should - those are expensive universities. Still, I think your experience there is determined by you and you only. I used to study in a welsh university, pretty low on the rankings, but I rocked it! Had a great time, there weren't many opportunities, but I managed to create a few for myself and all of this for 1/3 of the price, because the welsh government pays part of the loan to keep it low.

You can always change direction later in your life. And King's, or UCL, etc. is a very good starting point. I was accepted at UCL this year (yeah, with my baaaad university degree) and I declined the offer and went for another PG one at King's. I chose the better course, rather than the better name. My friend declined an offer from UCL for the same reason and went to City. :smile:

Plus, I saw an article that graduates from King's have better employment rates that graduates from Oxford. Please don't worry about your choice, make the most of it and if you like it - you can pursue it further somewhere else. And if the King's is really bad for your taste and abilities, well that means it should be a piece of cake for you. :wink:
I just had a look through this thread and what the OP said kind of resonates. People talk about league tables and stuff but people I've heard went to King's seem to be really miserable about it. They always grumble about stuff like not feeling valued etc etc but what does that actually mean? Any specifics?

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