describe durham uni?

What is Durham university like?

As someone who lives in london, will i find it a boring place? Is there a lot of student drama to get involved with?

Anyone who knows/ currently attends Durham uni please help :smile:

Thankyou x

Reply 1

dring

Jeneewenz

Thankyou x

There is lots of student drama, but I don't know how it compares to other universities.

You will find it boring if you expect hundreds of different clubs within easy travelling distance. Of course, you can go to Newcastle, but this isn't the same as living right nearby. It's perfectly possible though, and some people do.

Durham has loads of societies, which are not boring, but are not enjoyable in the same way as getting so drunk you can't remember the night before (well...I'm told this is enjoyable, anyway).

Durham University

Durham

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Reply 2

angelmxxx

Durham is beautiful. The student drama is amazing - just incredible. Most colleges have a drama society (Hild bede has its own stage and does a musical, freshers' play and usually another play each year. Our musical was in a public theatre this year.)

Google "DST" - durham student theatre to see how varied the opportunities are. From improvised comedy to the durham revue to musicals, operas, short plays, Shakespeare, funny plays, sad plays... DST has a theatre, the Assembly Rooms, which any theatre society (college or uni) can use.

Lots of the groups go to the Edinburgh festival each year too.

I live near London and it's not boring at all. It's actually perfect because for 9 weeks at a time, I'm completely immersed in being a student. I get involved in loads of societies and sports clubs, college activities and even college democracy and getting involved with the JCR equivalent.

Everywhere's within walking distance which is utterly brilliant. There are 14 college bars with really cheap drinks, so I can go on bar crawls with everyone, whether they're using it as a prelash or want to come for a couple of soft drinks before going home to finish writing an essay. You can have a very casual night out or a crazy night.

There are 4 clubs and the student union (which has 3 rooms with different music in each), so you'll see someone you know in each of them. When I go out, I go out for a student night out - with a group of people (friends, a society, sports club social, anything) who I love so I don't care if the club's empty or packed to be honest. Although not completely full means shorter queues :smile:

If you want to go to a huge club for a night, Newcastle's perfectly plausible - but for 9 weeks you won't miss it. It's all about the people you're with and the sitting in a corridor with pizza chatting til 4am in college than being in a club with 2000 of other people. You don't know 1950 of them so what's the point in paying huge amounts to go there instead of going to a club with 1000 people in, who all similar(ish!) to you and which you can walk home from?

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 3

Jeneewenz

angelmxxx

Thanks very much for the help! I'm trying to decide which college to apply to.l Its between collingwood, van mildert and hild and bede. Given id like to go to the one with the best drama opportunities, and things like that, what do you suggest? I've put collingwood but i'm not too sure... thankyou so much you've been a great help and i'm definately going to apply now.

Reply 4

angelmxxx

Jeneewenz

I don't know too much about drama at mildert and collingwood, but you really can't go wrong with hild bede drama.

There's a HBT facebook group here - I'm sure if you messaged them/posted on the wall they'd tell you all about their society :smile:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hild-Bede-Theatre/85415484073

Reply 5

AcademiCheese

I'm from Durham and go to Leeds uni but I had a lot of close friends at Durham uni so I can give you an outsiders run down.

Southerners will fit in perfectly at Durham uni. Half you lot are from London. My three close friends from London or south of there. Having said that, you don't need people from your hometown to enjoy uni.

There's a fair amount going on. Nothing like the nightlife in Leeds so it's going to be even further from the nightlife in London. Durham doesn't have any real clubs (blah blah, Klute and Love Shack aren't clubs), but it makes up for it in its collegiate system. The fact that you get college bars and live in college in your first year, you build up a very wide ranging group of friends. My Durham friends know more mutual people in Durham than I do in Leeds. I know people through my societies but none of my close friends know them. In Durham, everybody knows everybody.

Finally, it's the best looking city in (dare I say) the UK. Summer in Durham is like nothing else. Half country side and half town it's f'ing beaut.

P.S. There can be a lot of friction between locals and students. Don't go in thinking you're better than the locals because I can guarantee it won't get you anywhere. Durham folk are extremely friendly, but if you turn up with the classic durham student attitude of 'holy than thou' you will spend your days avoiding locals. There's a lot of relative poverty up there and people don't take any **** off arse hole students.