Durham or York....?

I know this is a question that as probably been discussed many times on TSR but I've got two English offers: Durham (AAA) York (AAA) and I don't know where to go!

Durham is a great city and, having just been to the open day I can honestly say, I love the department and the general feel of the whole place. However, I have two main reservations. The college I've got an offer from - Josphine Butler - is really nice (went on open day) but am really unsure about going to a completlely new college and also that the 2nd and 3rd year students who have transferred there may not be that outgoing as they perhaps did not fit in at their current colleges.

York is, imo, a nicer city than Durham, although the campus isn't great. Having been on the open day, I didnt get such a buzzy feel as I did at Durham . However, the department is so renowned and we had a great demonstartion lecture. Another plus about York is it seems less cliquey than Durham and there seems to be loads of famous aumlni from english dept.

Any thoughts?

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Reply 1

digitalparadox

York but thats just my opinion. I went to durham a couple of times and even though i liked it (it actually reminded me of york but with more hills) I didn't get a good feel with it as York.

Reply 2

c0co

Sounds like you'd be happy at either! both are pretty equal in terms of prestige and employers...I am biased towards York tho cos it seems a lot more fun and friendly n doesn't have a silly A* policy!

Reply 3

KerriT

Have a really close look at modules? Go to the one closer to home? Cheaper?

Reply 4

Beelzebub

If you think you'd be equally happy living in either place then it's probably a v good idea to have a close look at the courses themselves. For instance, I don't know about the Durham course, but one of my favourite things about English at York is choosing my own essay titles, and there's loads of flexibility, one of my friends did an essay comparing Titus Andronicus and The Godfather, for example. Things like that that you might not pay attention to at first can make a huge difference to how much you enjoy a course.

Reply 5

Jelkin

Woah, deja vu - I had this exact problem last year!

I went for Durham in the end, though - it's difficult to explain exactly why, but I'll have a go...

I liked that Durham Uni was -in- the city, rather than 20 mins away like York. There are more undergrads at Durham (11,000 as opposed to York's 7,000 - probably the reason for the 'buzzy' feel) and I personally preferred the course (I particularly like the 'Dissertation' part). I've been up for open day twice and the current/prospective students were outgoing, friendly and a lot of fun! I got more of a feel for Durham, though that's obviously a personal thing.

Neither Durham nor York has amazingly diverse nightlife, but I'm not really a club person so I don't mind that Durham's smaller as it has plenty of student bars (one in each college!) and pubs in town. Also, Newcastle is 15 mins away by train, so for a big night out you can go there. Oh, AND - this was quite important for me - at York there is a compulsory Foreign Literature module, for which you have to learn a new language (or carry on one you already know besides English) so that you can study foreign lit in its original language. Having not done any French since GCSE, I didn't really want to do this. At Durham, there is not really the opportunity to do this unless a) you go on the Italy trip (you have to know Italian though) or b) you choose a foreign language module as one of your electives and study literature in that.

An important issue for you will be considering the issue of collegiate vs campus uni. Both departments are very well renowned and have been in the top 3 unis for English in the UK for 2004 and 2005 (I'm not sure of their respective positions before that); in 2004 it went Cambridge, Durham, York and in 2005 it went Oxford, York, Durham. York is slightly higher up overall in the Times league table but there are so many other statistics that put each one above the other that it's a very close call. Thus, look mainly at what YOU want out of uni, and which is right for you.

:biggrin:

Reply 6

LondonSteve181

When I went up for the open days for English I found York to be the better. Yes, it is quiet and the campus is uglyish but the people there were amazing. The students were helpful and friendly and the staff seemed so passionate about English and innovative in how they approached topics. At Durham (forgive me if any people here are from Durham) I went to University College and found the students to be pompous tw*ts. There was a real public school feel and an air of extreme self importance.

This is not to say that these perceptions are true for all, in fact I have a friend doing English at University college Durham and she loves it and adores the people, but when i visited both I knew I would have gone for York.

Reply 7

Stir Crazy

thanks for your comment everyone - they've given me lots to think about.....

Reply 8

sophieD

york is only 10 mins on the bus into town not 20, the course is so flexible and innovative and the staff are inspiring (well most of 'em are!). The students are lovely too, tho i can't vouch for durham.

Durham town centre cannot match york - york is so pretty and quaint with the shambles, the minster, plus a HUUUUUUGE topshop and H&M - the nightlife is OK - so the clubs aren't brilliant - but there is loads of other stuff on offer, like loads of nice bars, pubs, restaurants plus 2 good cinemas.

Reply 9

Amnesia

I would pick York because it has an amazing english department and has more facilities than Durham. As a city Durham is far too small.

Reply 10

Tyler Durden

I had offers from both (although not in the same year!) and I've ended up at York. Both are well-respected universities and both do very well for English (2nd and 3rd respectively according to The Times).

So why did I choose York? Well, I think in terms of innovation and being at the "cutting edge" York wins hands down. Durham offers a very steady and thorough course, but in my opinion it lacks in imagination and seems rather prescriptive. If you look at Durham's three "Introduction to..." modules, they all focus on one area within the vast realms of the novel, poetry and drama. At York the first term is a whirlwind tour through thousands of years of literature which introduces you to the critical techniques necessary for dealing with poetry, drama and the novel and more. The lectures pad out what you study in the seminars and range from Homer to Freud, Shakespeare to Cixous and Dante to Derrida. The second term is about learning to historicise your approaches to literature; you begin to study a particular period (19th century England or America) and again read everything from plays to novels to poetry, not to mention quite a hefty amount of historical "literature" and primary texts from the period in question. I think you're still learning how to scan a poem at this point in Durham!

Anyway, you get my point I hope! I feel the York course is considerably more exciting and challenging (although, of course, I haven't studied at Durham).

A unique factor at York is the foreign literature module. Within each language there is some choice; for example, if you choose French, you can do Classical French Drama, Symbolism or Realism. If you don't fancy doing a foreign language as such you can always study Anglo Saxon. There are plenty of other options. I did French and German A Level so I suppose I don't really appreciate that it might be daunting to do a language, but the dept. takes this side of things seriously and will make sure that you have excellent preparation before you sit any papers.

So yeah, course-wise I would say York wins hands down.

In terms of where I'd rather live I would again give York the edge. The campus isn't full of Renaissance architecture it's true. However, what it might lack in sheer aesthetic beauty it makes up for in practicality. Everything is relatively nearby and the town... well the town is beautiful. 10 minutes on the bus and you're in as lovely a city as England has to offer. Prettier than Durham I reckon (although of course it's rather subjective!) We're also just 20 minutes from Leeds and a couple of hours from London.

Anyway, I'll stop rambling. Just to summarise, I'd give York the edge academically and as a place to live. Durham is lovely, but 2nd best of the two!

York.

I've got the same problem as stir crazy- I had an offer from York for English today, which means I now have to choose between it and Durham... and I'm really torn. I always thought York would be my first choice and was desperate for a place, but I wasn't prepared for how much I would like Durham! (Unlike some people on here, I had a great experience on the Open Day, although I think that did depend on what college people were at- I went to Collingwood...)
So far the general concensus seems to be for York?

Reply 13

c0co

Yep general consensus is for York! Trust your first instincts... :smile:

Reply 14

KerriT

I wouldn't necessarily trust your first instincts, mine said St Andrews but then I visited York and realised that it was better for me. Think about what you liked about York and then about Durham, what you didn't like etc.

Reply 15

fonzievision

I'd totally go to Durham

Reply 16

Tyler Durden

fonzievision

I'd totally go to Durham

Well actually, now you put it like that.... :p:

Reply 17

Knogle

While I love the collegiate system and feel of Durham, I'd pick York. It's english department is one of the top in the country, alongside Oxbridge. And York as a university isn't too bad either. :smile:

Reply 18

Jelkin

Knogle

So is Durham's...?

Reply 19

Knogle

Jelkin

So is Durham's...?

Perhaps. I don't know really.

I've heard great things about York's english department, and nothing (much) about Durham's equivalent. I'm not saying that's bad.. but if York's department is generating some positive speech, then that's a good thing. Especially if the good speech is taking place amongst people overseas. :smile: