Year 12s: what will be the first way you research your future options? >>

International Postgrad, Royal Holloway vs. U of Wesminster

Hi All!

I'm an American postgrad student preparing to do my MA in International Relations in London and am trying to decide between two schools. I received unconditional offers from U of Westminster and Royal Holloway, but I would like a little advice. I'm trying to decide which to go to and also info on commuting to RHU (more of that at the bottom). Below are a few of my reasons for attending/ not attending each.

RHU
-I know it has a very strong reputation and the program seems pretty solid, so academically, this is the better choice without question. Plus having a U of London education will go far anywhere, I'm sure
- Love the beautiful campus, but seems like a pain in the neck to get to by public transportation and is pretty far from central London.
- I don't necessarily need to live on campus as a postgrad, the transportation is a concern for me for regular commuting.

U of Wesminster
-It is considerably cheaper than RHU and with the global economy as it is, it will be much easier to get my loan paid off after graduation.
-I don't plan to stay in the UK after I graduate, so just having a degree from a UK university will have more prestige here and give me an edge over American grads. I know postgrad degrees require much more individual work and research so as long as I have good academic support, I'll be fine even if the courses aren't as strong.
-I really love that it is located in the heart of London so there will be a lot of opportunities for networking and things to do.

Finally, my best friend lives in Wembley, and while I am in London, for all intents and purposes, she will be my family. I don't want to alienate myself from the RHU community, should I choose to go there, but traveling from her area or even central London regularly seems like it would be a bit of a chore. It would be nice to be more in the middle of the two, but I'm unsure of leaving myself in the middle of two support systems.

Any advice on either question would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks very much... and sorry for the long post!

Take care!

Reply 1

Mademoiselle33

Hey StinaT!

It's a difficult decision to make... I guess the two key things to weigh up is academic reputation vs. your preferred working/studying environment.

Regarding RH's location I can understand your dilemma - I'm actually starting a postgrad course there this year, and before I chose to go ahead with it something that kept nagging at me was the location :redface:

but it's actually about 35min from Waterloo - and then about a ten-minute brisk walk to the campus from the station, but a relatively nice leafy one! - and after I did that trip a couple of times I realised that when you're playing with your phone, reading etc the train journey goes like a flash! (And after spending a while in London it's really nice to go to work somewhere peaceful - and on the train there are gorgeous views over the river too...) If you live reasonably near to Waterloo you could go door to door in just over an hour, but it all depends what you think you'd feel comfortable with. RH seems have a lovely graduate community, and personally I really like the idea of coming to that everyday even if it does mean coming to terms with forgoing tube travel and a walk through London's streets in the morning :wink:

A while ago someone said to me that working just outside the heart of the capital could actually help you make more of what it had to offer the rest of the time, so there is always that point of view to consider.

But that said, if UoW is better financially and 'feels' better when you're there then by all means go for that (especially if you'd love to be in the heart of a city whilst studying, which I can completely empathise with!) RH is very respectable but it may not necessarily confer you such a distinct advantage beyond what UoW would overseas, so it's really just about what you feel would make you happier for your year in London.

Best of luck! :smile:

Reply 2

StinaT

Hi Mademoiselle33! Thanks very much for your response! I did decide to go with RHU and now have to figure out how to get housing. Your info on the traveling (and scenery!) was *very* helpful. Whereabouts in London are you? What will you be studying?

Thanks again!
~Stina

Reply 3

Mademoiselle33

Hi StinaT - that's great news, congratulations on making your decision! Royal Holloway housing info can be found here http://www.rhulstudentprs.org/, and www.gumtree.com is also useful if you're looking just in the private sector or further afield than Egham. Your best bet may be to call the accommodation office and chat to someone (their number should be on the website) if you're unsure how to go about finding housing! I'm hoping to live around Clapham as there's a direct ~30 minute train to the campus from there, although that commute probably isn't everyone's cup of tea. And I'll be studying cognitive neuroscience :smile:

If there's anything else feel free to ask and I'll do my best to help, otherwise good luck with your preparations!