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Student in the Laboratory, Lancaster University
Lancaster University
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Is Lancaster uni too far for me?

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I know tonnes of people from London. I know some people from London who haven't liked it because it is so small compared to London, but I don't really know anyone too bothered by the distance. There is a quick train from Lancaster to London so it doesn't take long to get there. It can be quite expensive if you don't book in advance though (40-50ish).

I wouldn't worry about the salaries thing too much. If you live in London you'll have plenty of opportunities to do interships and get jobs at big companies anyway :P
Student in the Laboratory, Lancaster University
Lancaster University
Lancaster
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Reply 21
I live in Surrey, so when going up to Lancs I have to get the train to London then get the tube to Euston. My whole journey is close to exactly 4 hours. The train from London most the time goes from Euston up to Edinburgh only stopping at a few stations before Lancaster. The train is only roughly 2.5-3 hours which isn't long at all. I book way in advance my cheapest tickets being £11.20 each way, this is with a railcard which is definitely worth the money. I only go home during the holidays anyway so it doesn't bother me that much.
Original post by IntenseSoldier
So I got my offer for Comp sci BSc at Lancaster, I was so sure about firming that I'm having second thoughts now. The major things putting me of are:

- Location (4 hour drive away from me)
Are there are students / future students who are going to Study at Lancaster and live quite a distance away? How do you cope with it and how often do you go home (transport etc)?
- Low graduate salary :frown: (according to unistats.com)
- No year in industry for computer science (Not interested in the MSci as it is not a full year in industry)

Now I'm having to choose between Kent and Lancaster.

Kent has an average graduate salary of £20 - 27k compared to Lancaster's £18k-22k

Lancaster is ranked in the top 10 whilst Kent is around 30th.

Kent is much closer to me.

But then again I'll be living on campus so it shouldn't matter?



Please leave behind any good reasons why I should or shouldn't go to Lancaster / Kent
And correct me if I'm wrong in anything that I've said :O

I'd appreciate any feedback, it will help me allot on making my decision!


I highly recommend train from London Euston to Lancaster can be as little as 2:34 I think and with a railcard shouldn't be too expensive assuming you buy in advance. I'm further away in Suffolk and no I don't go home except at holidays but it means you are very independent and you can use skype etc. Have you looked around both? Definitely do that as I looked around all my places in the end and some I just didn't like the city. Things like the year in industry is an important thing to consider but the stats from things like graduate salary can easily be skewed. Here is a different but similar thing from my department. When working out how many people were in work 6 months on, people who answered they were doing a masters or phd were noted as not in employment. It looked like 30% of people weren't in employment 6 months after.
Original post by k9markiii
I highly recommend train from London Euston to Lancaster can be as little as 2:34 I think and with a railcard shouldn't be too expensive assuming you buy in advance. I'm further away in Suffolk and no I don't go home except at holidays but it means you are very independent and you can use skype etc. Have you looked around both? Definitely do that as I looked around all my places in the end and some I just didn't like the city. Things like the year in industry is an important thing to consider but the stats from things like graduate salary can easily be skewed. Here is a different but similar thing from my department. When working out how many people were in work 6 months on, people who answered they were doing a masters or phd were noted as not in employment. It looked like 30% of people weren't in employment 6 months after.


Thanks allot for the information, I think I've made up my mind after long thoughts and careful consideration, Lancaster here I come...providing I get my grades now haha :smile:
Original post by IntenseSoldier
Thanks allot for the information, I think I've made up my mind after long thoughts and careful consideration, Lancaster here I come...providing I get my grades now haha :smile:


Lancaster is great :h: I moved country to go to uni in the UK, and I'm a 4 hour train journey away from my sister, and even further from the rest of my family. Worth it in my opinion :smile: Good luck with your grades!!

(Also curious about which college/accommodation you are thinking of, if you've looked into that yet :smile:)
Reply 25
Original post by IntenseSoldier
So I got my offer for Comp sci BSc at Lancaster, I was so sure about firming that I'm having second thoughts now. The major things putting me of are:

- Location (4 hour drive away from me)
Are there are students / future students who are going to Study at Lancaster and live quite a distance away? How do you cope with it and how often do you go home (transport etc)?
- Low graduate salary :frown: (according to unistats.com)
- No year in industry for computer science (Not interested in the MSci as it is not a full year in industry)

Now I'm having to choose between Kent and Lancaster.

Kent has an average graduate salary of £20 - 27k compared to Lancaster's £18k-22k

Lancaster is ranked in the top 10 whilst Kent is around 30th.

Kent is much closer to me.

But then again I'll be living on campus so it shouldn't matter?



Please leave behind any good reasons why I should or shouldn't go to Lancaster / Kent
And correct me if I'm wrong in anything that I've said :O

I'd appreciate any feedback, it will help me allot on making my decision!


Hey! I'm from Kent and go to Lancaster, am a first year student here. I absolutely love it and it was definitely the best choice I have ever made!

Don't let the distance put you off- just think, there are loads of international students here- they are in a different country!!! So you will be absolutely fine :smile: People come from all over England too, I have friends from near Lancaster, in Liverpool, Devon, Bournemouth, Kent, Yorkshire etc etc (Getting used to lots of new accents is a new experience haha!) as well as Serbia, Russia, China, America and loads of other places!

I only go home in the term breaks, I know some people visit home down South every few weekends but it gets stupidly expensive so I don't bother. When I book my train tickets in advance it's about £30/40 return depending on how quick I am (I've already bought my tickets home for the holiday we get in March)

Like someone has already said, don't take any notice of the wages, the north in general tends to be poorer aha. After my degree I'll be seeking jobs in London- that's where the money is!!

And without being elitist, Lancaster is a top 10 uni and just the prestige of being a student here is worth the long trip up! :smile:
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by desdemonata
Lancaster is great :h: I moved country to go to uni in the UK, and I'm a 4 hour train journey away from my sister, and even further from the rest of my family. Worth it in my opinion :smile: Good luck with your grades!!

(Also curious about which college/accommodation you are thinking of, if you've looked into that yet :smile:)


Thanks man! :smile:
And for accommodation I was thinking about Lonsdale or Grizedale maybe?
If you don't mind me asking, which college do you live in, and what's it like?
Original post by IntenseSoldier
Thanks man! :smile:
And for accommodation I was thinking about Lonsdale or Grizedale maybe?
If you don't mind me asking, which college do you live in, and what's it like?


You're welcome :smile:

I'm in Furness, with a superior standard en suite. It's really, really nice. It's quite a bit more expensive than the basic standard but I really like my room, and I have 7 flatmates, all of whom I get along with so :smile:

Pretty sure all the rooms like mine are identical regardless of the college they are in. Which type of room are you thinking of (guessing you've seen the Facebook page/matrix with all the different rooms and colleges)?
Original post by Roloo
Hey! I'm from Kent and go to Lancaster, am a first year student here. I absolutely love it and it was definitely the best choice I have ever made!

Don't let the distance put you off- just think, there are loads of international students here- they are in a different country!!! So you will be absolutely fine :smile: People come from all over England too, I have friends from near Lancaster, in Liverpool, Devon, Bournemouth, Kent, Yorkshire etc etc (Getting used to lots of new accents is a new experience haha!) as well as Serbia, Russia, China, America and loads of other places!

I only go home in the term breaks, I know some people visit home down South every few weekends but it gets stupidly expensive so I don't bother. When I book my train tickets in advance it's about £30/40 return depending on how quick I am (I've already bought my tickets home for the holiday we get in March)

Like someone has already said, don't take any notice of the wages, the north in general tends to be poorer aha. After my degree I'll be seeking jobs in London- that's where the money is!!

And without being elitist, Lancaster is a top 10 uni and just the prestige of being a student here is worth the long trip up! :smile:


Good to know there are a few people who live quite some distance away! :bumps: Personally I would have never thought about going Lancaster but the fact that it's a top 10 uni now has made me change my mind and after looking into it I think it's my best option!

Only thing I'm worried about is the housing there for the second year, me being curious I went on google street view at random places in the town and the houses look pretty sh*t :P

Apart from that the campus looks amazing and I've been told there's a friendly atmosphere!
Reply 29
Original post by IntenseSoldier
Good to know there are a few people who live quite some distance away! :bumps: Personally I would have never thought about going Lancaster but the fact that it's a top 10 uni now has made me change my mind and after looking into it I think it's my best option!

Only thing I'm worried about is the housing there for the second year, me being curious I went on google street view at random places in the town and the houses look pretty sh*t :P

Apart from that the campus looks amazing and I've been told there's a friendly atmosphere!


I'm glad your mind has been changed! I am genuinely so happy here. Always remember that it's what you put into uni that makes it enjoyable as well- I think some people expect all these amazing things yet don't bother to go out and socialise, join societies, get involved with the college etc. It's up to you to make sure your experience is amazing!

It may look a little grotty compared to what you're used to (I thought exactly the same haha) but all in all, they're absolutely fine. If they were that bad people would refuse to move in to them! If you look up City Block http://www.cityblock.co.uk/locations-lancaster/ they have loads of nice rooms, albeit apparently quite expensive. I would avoid LUSU Living (the university's accommodation allocator for in town) mainly because loads of people say they are useless. But there's loads of private landlords that are all helpful and friendly and offer good prices and accommodation. You can also live in Chancellors Wharf in second year which is university owned.

I was lucky enough to get back on campus for next year, I know a lot of my friends are moving in to the town. But purely because of convenience I've chose to sacrifice the town living experience!

And yeah the atmosphere is brilliant here. It's made easier by the college system in my opinion. It breaks the student population down. You get to know people in you flat, in your block, in your college, then on your major and minors, as well as within any societies you join and of course from just bumping in to people. Without the college system I think I'd find it harder as there'd just be such a mass of people to have to talk to haha!
Original post by desdemonata
You're welcome :smile:

I'm in Furness, with a superior standard en suite. It's really, really nice. It's quite a bit more expensive than the basic standard but I really like my room, and I have 7 flatmates, all of whom I get along with so :smile:

Pretty sure all the rooms like mine are identical regardless of the college they are in. Which type of room are you thinking of (guessing you've seen the Facebook page/matrix with all the different rooms and colleges)?


I need an en suite at minimum, any fancy words in front of that only makes it better haha :P And I've only seen some pictures on TSR; do you happen to have the link to the facebook pics? I couldn't find any on the Lancaster Uni page -
Original post by IntenseSoldier
I need an en suite at minimum, any fancy words in front of that only makes it better haha :P And I've only seen some pictures on TSR; do you happen to have the link to the facebook pics? I couldn't find any on the Lancaster Uni page -


Yeah, I put up photos of my room a while back :h:
Here's the link :smile: I hope it works! https://www.facebook.com/LUAccommodation/photos_albums

Edit: I've also managed to sort out my accommodation in town for next year too, really nice 4 bedroom house with a brand new kitchen for only £65 a week :ahee: (with another tenner or so for utilities bills) being that cheap, you can do up the inside as nice as you want anyways :biggrin:
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by Roloo
I'm glad your mind has been changed! I am genuinely so happy here. Always remember that it's what you put into uni that makes it enjoyable as well- I think some people expect all these amazing things yet don't bother to go out and socialise, join societies, get involved with the college etc. It's up to you to make sure your experience is amazing!

It may look a little grotty compared to what you're used to (I thought exactly the same haha) but all in all, they're absolutely fine. If they were that bad people would refuse to move in to them! If you look up City Block http://www.cityblock.co.uk/locations-lancaster/ they have loads of nice rooms, albeit apparently quite expensive. I would avoid LUSU Living (the university's accommodation allocator for in town) mainly because loads of people say they are useless. But there's loads of private landlords that are all helpful and friendly and offer good prices and accommodation. You can also live in Chancellors Wharf in second year which is university owned.

I was lucky enough to get back on campus for next year, I know a lot of my friends are moving in to the town. But purely because of convenience I've chose to sacrifice the town living experience!

And yeah the atmosphere is brilliant here. It's made easier by the college system in my opinion. It breaks the student population down. You get to know people in you flat, in your block, in your college, then on your major and minors, as well as within any societies you join and of course from just bumping in to people. Without the college system I think I'd find it harder as there'd just be such a mass of people to have to talk to haha!


I'm getting excited now haha :happy2:
And yeah I haven't heard to many good things about LUSU either (on tsr) and I suppose the college system does make university a much better experience! I totally agree with the fact that people just expect amazing things whilst their just sitting in their room doing nothing! I'll definitely be going to events and join any societies I can :P
And this so called 'city block' looks pretty nice! But then you'd have to wake up pretty early to catch the bus to the campus:L But either way thanks for the info! :smile:
Original post by cambo211
People come from all over. Distance means nothing.

The wages are likely to do with regional effects, wages in the northwest are lower than those in the south. People may come from all over but people will often relocate after uni.

Just check them both out.


This.

I'm at Lancaster right now and come from West London. It was hard at first being so far (but then again I am the sheltered only child:colondollar:) but you can adjust. People come from all over the country and others also.
Reply 34
distance shouldn't matter i just firmed exeter. cornwall campus.
i'm from the north east 520 miles away!!! takes 10 hours on the the train :biggrin:
Original post by muh!
distance shouldn't matter i just firmed exeter. cornwall campus.
i'm from the north east 520 miles away!!! takes 10 hours on the the train :biggrin:


Wow, that's what you call dedication!
Don't worry about how far away you are from home, I'm from Jersey and have to get a plane there and back every holiday! There's even a train that goes direct to London Euston from Lancaster, takes about 2.5 hours.
Reply 37
Original post by desdemonata
You're welcome :smile:

I'm in Furness, with a superior standard en suite. It's really, really nice. It's quite a bit more expensive than the basic standard but I really like my room, and I have 7 flatmates, all of whom I get along with so :smile:

Pretty sure all the rooms like mine are identical regardless of the college they are in. Which type of room are you thinking of (guessing you've seen the Facebook page/matrix with all the different rooms and colleges)?


goooo Lonsdale !!! lol
Original post by didaflam
goooo Lonsdale !!! lol


What's Lonsdale like :smile: ?
Reply 39
Original post by IntenseSoldier
What's Lonsdale like :smile: ?


so far so good, everyone has their own room and own bathroom, unlike other dorms where you have to share your room.
It has a realllly good bar that holds the big parties whenever they happen, and they have alot of good sports teams

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