Catered - vegetarian options. Ensuite or not ensuite? That is the question.

Right, seen as I am exceedingly close to the accommodation deadline and I have yet to decide anything, any advice would be greatly appreciated from people experienced in Exeter accommodation.

1) Catered food - palatable? I am a vegetarian as well so that narrows down my choices each day. And do a majority of societies etc occur at the same time as dinner, because I'd prefer not to waste money on meals I'm regularly not going to eat.

2) Are there any problems sharing showers/toilets? Everyone who's commented on this has said no on here (I can't find many people who specifically say though) but surely you must have to wait sometimes/frequently to have a shower etc. I like to have showers every morning and I'm assuming that's one of the busiest times for it.

3) If you've gone self catered, can you be bothered to cook most days? Because I think if I go self-catered I'll cook for myself a lot, but I can also see that I could just sink into a daily routine of heated up macaroni cheese and I would like to know what other people's experiences have been. It doesn't have to be specifically related to macaroni cheese though :smile:

thanks.

Reply 1

Angelil

I have never been able to understand why anyone (especially someone with specific dietary requirements such as yours) would want to go catered. Mass catering is only ever going to be of a mediocre standard (and I know that because I have not only stayed in catered accommodation - albeit at another university - but also because I used to work for an organisation that relied on mass catering) to begin with, and as you say, as a vegetarian, your choices are narrowed.

I used to be vegetarian and so know that vegetarian cooking can be time consuming. HOWEVER, as your 'reward' you are able to produce better food, and a wider range of it, than you would get in catered, because vegetarian cooking is not actually difficult regardless of the fact that it can be time consuming. This is all without mentioning what I perceive to be the other benefits of going self-catered, such as cost and flexibility. I was also a member of a lot of societies and I loved being able to just eat what I wanted (knowing what had gone into the food!) when I wanted, without having to worry about dinnertime clashing with what I was doing (plus, if my experience at the other uni is anything to go by, catered dinnertimes as a whole are absurdly early - it's fine if you want to eat on the same schedule as a four-year-old).

I went self-catered for all three of my years in Exeter, with only one of those being ensuite. The ensuite bathroom caused more problems than it solved, with the accommodation block being less social (partly) as a result, and ensuite also = more stuff that can break. I had a lot of random problems with mine, such as hot water clicking off and taking days to be fixed. I had no such problems with non-ensuite accommodation at Exeter. I never had to wait for use of bathroom facilities in non-ensuite accommodation; it sounds difficult to believe, but it's true. People leave at different times, people take different lengths of time to get ready, and all rooms have sinks included, which means many things, such as washing your face and cleaning your teeth, can be done in your room anyway.

Go to uni armed with loads of recipes to begin with, plan your shopping lists, exchange recipes with others, and you should (hopefully) find that it is a pleasure rather than a chore to cook - and you'll save money and keep your freedom into the bargain.

I am very pro self-catered though and others will obviously have other experiences and opinions to offer. I am sure that you will have fun whatever you decide :smile:

University of Exeter

Exeter

Reply 2

MelonEllen

Thanks very much, this is just the sort of answer I was looking for :smile:

Reply 3

kayzy

I went catered but definitely should of gone self catered, food is very limited and pretty rubbish tbh

I would always choose ensuite, depends what you want but it is just so much lovelier to have your own bathroom

Reply 4

MelonEllen

Thanks

The only thing I'm not sure about is the lease length of self catered, because I'm pretty sure I'll be at home for most of the Christmas and easter holidays and so I'll have to pay for an empty room :frown:

but such is life.

Reply 5

Angelil

You're not paying for an empty room, though, you're paying for the storage space...

Reply 6

MelonEllen

I see what you mean, but I could just as easily shove my stuff in the car. I have free storage space in my house for holidays!

Reply 7

Angelil

Moving in and out was something I personally found a big hassle and wouldn't want to do more than the requisite twice a year, but hey, each to their own :p:

Reply 8

MelonEllen

Haha, I don't have that much stuff!

Catered - vegetarian options. Ensuite or not ensuite? That is the question.

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