[waltzno2]

Hello! I'm an American who plans to study in England for half of next year. Right now I'm caught between University of Exeter and University of Reading, so I have a few questions--

1.) Is Exeter really in the middle of nowhere, as I've heard? Is it difficult to get around? Are there a lot of things to do?

2.) Is it more of a sciencey kind of school (as I've been told also)? I'm studying English right now and I haven't been able to find much about the English department.

3.) Is there much of a music scene? I spend most of my free time going to/playing in shows at my school here and it would be awesome to do that in England.

Hopefully this is in the right place--if not, I apologize.

[ccarter25]

Hi!
Hopefully this will answer your questions;
1. no it isn't really in the middle of no-where; its an average sized city, not massive that you will get lost, but not tiny that you will get bored easily! its also get plenty of transport links to other cities such as London, and its got best of every world being around countryside, close to the sea and beaches but also city life

2. i'm hopefully going to study English at Exeter this september and its meant to have a very strong and large english department- much better than Reading! (Exeter's English Department is the 6th best in the UK, Reading is 38th- if that helps) and depends what you want to find out about the department, have a look on their site online?

3. and yes i believe there is a good music scene! depends what type you like though i suppose

[pbsjohnz]

Exeter is one of the best universities in the UK, obviously the town will be really really small compared to a City in the US.

The city will still have all shops, a few cinemas, restaurants. Exeter also has one of the best looking campuses with brand new buildings and plenty of cafes/restaurants.

One of Exeters best departments are the languages and Arts, especially English! I can't really give you any info on Reading though, so sorry.

Almost all the universities in the UK have a good music scene, so don't worry about that.

[Exeter411]

Hey there. I have been at the University of Exeter for the last two years and you would certainly love the university.
Hope this would help.
1) Exeter is connected to several major cities by road as well as by train. London is about 3 hours by train and if you're interested in the coastal areas then they too are very close to the city. Even though it isn't as spread out as the big cities such as London(obviously), it has a very nice size overall. The high street has all the major brands and there are several top restaurants and cinemas as well. In terms of the University itself, the campus is absolutely massive. If you love the countryside then you will love Exeter.

2) Exeter is one of the best Universities in England and regularly features in the top ten in most Ranking Tables. As far as the English department is concerned, it is quite enviable in terms of repute and is ranked very high as well. Each department is very well equipped, in the two years that I have been here I have never ever felt that it is a "sciencey" University.

3) The University offers a very wide range of societies for students and the music scene surely would not disappoint.

I myself am an international student and I have had an amazing time at Exeter thus far. As far as the comparison with the University of Reading is concerned, Exeter is in an entirely different league altogether. Choose Exeter I say.

[mackemforever]

(Original post by waltzno2)
Hello! I'm an American who plans to study in England for half of next year. Right now I'm caught between University of Exeter and University of Reading, so I have a few questions--

1.) Is Exeter really in the middle of nowhere, as I've heard? Is it difficult to get around? Are there a lot of things to do?

2.) Is it more of a sciencey kind of school (as I've been told also)? I'm studying English right now and I haven't been able to find much about the English department.

3.) Is there much of a music scene? I spend most of my free time going to/playing in shows at my school here and it would be awesome to do that in England.

Hopefully this is in the right place--if not, I apologize.

I can only really help with your first question.

Firstly, Exeter isn't as small a place as you seem to think. It is a small city but still has absolutely everything you need there, plenty of good shops and a good nightlife.
As for it's location it's a bit remote but nothing too bad. You can be down to Plymouth on the coast or inland to Bristol in an hour on the train, or Birmingham and London are between 2:30 and 3 hours away, so while it is a bit remote you can still easily get over to bigger cities without much of a problem at all.

[lattywatty]

Others have answered your questions here (excellent links/city-country balance, great music scene), but I just wanted to comment on it being a "sciencey" university. I'd actually say completely the opposite. The fact that Sports Science and Medicine students are at St. Lukes significantly reduces the amount of science students on the main campus, and I get the impression that most people do arts subjects. But then I guess you could argue the fact that Exeter doesn't do Music or Art degrees makes it a bit more science-based...

But saying that, it really doesn't matter. Exeter is up in the rankings on most subjects, arts or science. It's English department is great and, from what my friends doing English say, it's an interesting course too.

I absolutely love Exeter and challenge anyone not to.

[Fendever]

I've lived near Exeter for years but don't study there. Here goes:

1.) Is Exeter really in the middle of nowhere?
-Well kind of, the South-West in general is a bit out of the way of everything. Exeter St. Davids station has 2 routes to London, one for Ldn Paddington and Ldn Waterloo. Regular trains to Bristol, Plymouth and Cornwall, services to the North (Manchester) and then local lines around Devon. There is enough to keep you occupied here. Crime rate is low, nice sights, decent nightlife.

2.) Is it more of a sciencey kind of school (as I've been told also)?
It has all sorts of departments. Exeter is starting to become a science hub but it is in the top 10 or 15 in the country overall so I wouldn't worry too much.

3.) Is there much of a music scene?
Yep, and you'll more than likely adore it. Lemon Grove (SU bar), The Cavern, Phoenix and Mama Stones all have live music and club nights. Nightclubs are Timepiece, Arena, EX4, Mosaic and a few others that escape me right now. Nifty guitar shops around, if you know or like Muse, they have their guitars made at Mansons Guitar Shop in the city centre.

Hope that's helpful.

[invertedmarko]

In this year's teaching awards, the English department was voted the 'Best Subject' at the University

[NAB]

I've never been to Exeter, but I was looking at both Exeter and Reading too, so I know a fair bit.

Exeter is not a huge city, very green, but it's busy enough for you to find shops and stuff, whereas Reading is a bit more metropolitan and international especially as it's quite close to London.

Exeter generally is more prestigious and high-ranked than Reading. I don't know much about either of their English departments, though.

So I guess if your priority is being in a busy city, Reading, but if you want a place better academically, and don't mind a medium sized city, Exeter. Both are great schools, good luck!

[SpeedwayCJ]

I can only speak to your first question, but as I'm an American, coming to Exeter for postgrad this year, I figured I'd chime in. I did visit Exeter last September, just to get a look at the University and a feel for the city. I've lived my entire life in southern California, so I'm accustomed to living in a large suburban city, surrounded by other suburban cities and within a short drive of Los Angeles. I found Exeter to be a very comfortable size with plenty to do and see. With its easy train connections to other cities, including London, I didn't feel it was remote or isolated at all. Really, it's about the same size as the city I live in now (just over 100,000 population), just without all the other same sized cities around it. Was a terrific, comfortable place to walk around and everything was easily accesible on foot. I'm looking very forward to exploring more when I'm there for school. I think you'll like the place.