Warwick or UEA?

Original post by cliffysbiro

Hi, a similar thread was posted last year but it was for the MA Creative Writing course so I didn't find it particularly helpful.

I've applied to do English and/with Creative Writing and would just appreciate some opinions on which university would be best to do this course at? I've received an offer from UEA and an interview from Warwick (obviously I'm aware that this doesn't guarantee me a Warwick offer by any means!) but I'm really unsure about which to choose. For a number of reasons I'm currently considering not attending my Warwick interview and withdrawing from the course to firm UEA , but as I haven't been to UEA in person yet and have been to Warwick, I don't want to make this decision and regret it. I'm hoping to visit East Anglia soon for this reason!

So, if you study at, have previously studied at, or simply have any useful advice, please help me out! Biased opinions are fine :lol:

So.... Having lived in Warwick for 14 years and spent 4 years studying at UEA I can probably help a little bit.

I can't comment on course content, I didn't study creative writing (or any form of English degree) however I do know that UEA is particularly strong for Creative Writing (can't comment for Warwick).

I can comment on location, campus (I've been to warwick campus numerous times as had friends study there), nightlife, the surrounding areas though, so if you have specific questions feel free to ask me.

Original post by returnmigrant

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Not trying to cause a discussion on the value of CW course, however it's worth having a look at the UEA alumni of creative writing, and the people who teach the course, https://lred.uea.ac.uk/web/literature/creative-writing/alumni many many published award winning authors (including the Booker Prize), it is a very well known course, I know offers have been at the AAA level getting onto this course in previous years.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 5

OP

Original post by returnmigrant

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/firm_and_insurance_choices

My only advice is to be careful of having a degree with 'Creative Writing' in the title - it sounds like something you do at Primary School and employers are understandably suspicious of it. Its far better to do a mainstream English degree with CW units within it. That way you wont be explaining what 'Creative Writing' is for the rest of your life and you'll have a degree that might help you get a job.

Do not fall into the trap of thinking a University degree can 'make you into a writer' or that publishers will be queuing at your door - or even that it will help you 'get a job in publishing' (it wont). The only way to learn how you write is to .... write. Or do one of these classes - they are are cheaper than wasting three years on a meaningless degree and are taught be working writers, not pseudo writers who are actually just academics. http://welcome.faberacademy.co.uk/

I appreciate your concern but didn't want this thread to be a place for my choice of course to be questioned, as I've already chosen it after a lot of thought on the matter! English with Creative Writing may be a 'risk' but it's a highly esteemed degree from both universities mentioned and is extremely competitive to get into, so I'm happy with my decision.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 6

OP

Original post by NW86

x

Thank you very much, that would be really helpful! The course is the part I already know most about at each uni really, so what you've listed are the aspects that I'm keen to learn a bit more about. My questions aren't very specific so answer them however you want to but basically: How did you find your general uni experience at UEA? Did you have any regrets about choosing to study there, how was the accommodation and nightlife around Norwich, was there anything you particularly loved or disliked about the place, etc. Any comparisons that you could make between the two cities would be much appreciated, if possible!

Also, if you have any opinions on the arts/music scene at either I'd be interested to hear about that. I've heard that Norwich is a great place if you're looking for a good music scene, and that's kind of important to me. :smile:

Oh, and thanks for sticking up for Creative Writing. It's 75% an English degree anyway, I just have a passion for writing and knew how prestigious the course was at both so thought I'd choose what I know I'll enjoy. I'm so thrilled to have an offer and an interview as it's really competitive :biggrin:

Reply 7

Original post by cliffysbiro

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At work, but will reply over weekend :smile:

Reply 8

OP

Original post by NW86

At work, but will reply over weekend :smile:

That's great, thanks! :smile:

Reply 9

jelly1000

21

Original post by cliffysbiro

Hi, a similar thread was posted last year but it was for the MA Creative Writing course so I didn't find it particularly helpful.

I've applied to do English and/with Creative Writing and would just appreciate some opinions on which university would be best to do this course at? I've received an offer from UEA and an interview from Warwick (obviously I'm aware that this doesn't guarantee me a Warwick offer by any means!) but I'm really unsure about which to choose. For a number of reasons I'm currently considering not attending my Warwick interview and withdrawing from the course to firm UEA , but as I haven't been to UEA in person yet and have been to Warwick, I don't want to make this decision and regret it. I'm hoping to visit East Anglia soon for this reason!

So, if you study at, have previously studied at, or simply have any useful advice, please help me out! Biased opinions are fine :lol:

Hi there, current UEA student here although I don't study English with CW so can't comment on the course specificially other than to say this one of the areas where it excels more than Warwick, but do look at modules. As far as the rest of the university goes, here goes:

-The heart of the actual campus is rather concrete but don't let you put that off. At the end of the day the buildings inside are fine and when its sunny there is a great atmosphere in the square with people sitting outside. There are also a number of shiny new modern buildings.

-On campus we have a range of cafes, an art gallery (the Sainsbury centre), a pub spilt into two halves- the Blue Bar shows live sport and the Red Bar is just for chilling. Both sides have pool tables.

-Accomodation wise there are a range of options. Most of its or near campus, and I think 2/3rds is ensuite. On campus rooms are all a good size, some in the older ensuite blocks very big for a halls room. Certainly when I was in halls a couple of years ago the prices were very reasonable compared with other universities I looked at. Rooms in the village across the road from campus are smaller but still ensuite and cost less.

-Nighlife- for a small city Norwich has a good range of clubs. On campus the LCR has a fancy dress night on Tuesdays and a normal club night Saturdays which many students love going to (myself included), then in town you have Lola Lo's, Wonderland, the Waterfront, Mantra and numerous other smaller clubs and pubs.

-Cities- well Norwich is the perfect size for a student city really- has all the shops, pubs, clubs, restaurants, 3 cinemas and a bowling alley you'd expect but some independents as well and once your in the city you can walk everywhere from there. The university campus is 3 miles from the city centre or a 15-20 mins bus ride but that really isn't an issue. All I know is that Warwick university is in Lemington Spa and that students often go to Birmingham for a good night out.

Only downside has been the Arts hub- the department which deals with administration for arts and humanities courses - they can sometimes be slow to return coursework and aren't always easy to deal with.

Reply 10

OP

Original post by jelly1000

x

Thank you for going into this in so much detail, it's really helped give me a better idea of what UEA is like! It sounds brilliant, Warwick's location is a quite a significant downside for me as I'm not really big on Coventry and Leamington Spa is lovely but a little too... peaceful. I'm making the crazily long journey down to Norwich on Wednesday so hopefully the UEA Visit Day will also help me to make a decision. :smile:

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 11

jelly1000

21

Original post by cliffysbiro

Thank you for going into this in so much detail, it's really helped give me a better idea of what UEA is like! It sounds brilliant, Warwick's location is a quite a significant downside for me as I'm not really big on Coventry and Leamington Spa is lovely but a little too... peaceful. I'm making the crazily long journey down to Norwich on Wednesday so hopefully the UEA Visit Day will also help me to make a decision. :smile:

Glad to have helped. Enjoy the visit day whilst I'm in my seminar :tongue:

Reply 12

Original post by cliffysbiro

Thank you for going into this in so much detail, it's really helped give me a better idea of what UEA is like! It sounds brilliant, Warwick's location is a quite a significant downside for me as I'm not really big on Coventry and Leamington Spa is lovely but a little too... peaceful. I'm making the crazily long journey down to Norwich on Wednesday so hopefully the UEA Visit Day will also help me to make a decision. :smile:

Apologise I never got back to you, sorry about that!

The other poster has covered UEA well, I was there for 4 years and absolutely loved my time there.

You've picked up on the main issue with Warwick Uni, the location, it isn't in warwick and is closer to both Coventry (which frankly is a dump, sorry, but it is) and Leamington Spa which is a nice town and I have a lot of friends there, but there isn;t much variety on nights out. I now live in London and whenever I go back my friends who are still there still go to the same pubs and one half decent club that they went to 5 years ago.

Norwich is quite an arty city, if that makes sense, by that I mean there's a lot of creative schools there and as such a lot of interesting club nights put on, it's a really strong city musically and the venue at UEA has some pretty big gigs there, or at least it used to when I was there (graduated 5 years or so ago)

Reply 13

OP

Original post by NW86

Apologise I never got back to you, sorry about that!

The other poster has covered UEA well, I was there for 4 years and absolutely loved my time there.

You've picked up on the main issue with Warwick Uni, the location, it isn't in warwick and is closer to both Coventry (which frankly is a dump, sorry, but it is) and Leamington Spa which is a nice town and I have a lot of friends there, but there isn;t much variety on nights out. I now live in London and whenever I go back my friends who are still there still go to the same pubs and one half decent club that they went to 5 years ago.

Norwich is quite an arty city, if that makes sense, by that I mean there's a lot of creative schools there and as such a lot of interesting club nights put on, it's a really strong city musically and the venue at UEA has some pretty big gigs there, or at least it used to when I was there (graduated 5 years or so ago)

Thanks a lot! I've withdrawn from Warwick now after the UEA Visit Day, so I'm glad your views are the same as mine :tongue:

I can't wait to go!

Reply 14

jelly1000

21

Original post by NW86

Apologise I never got back to you, sorry about that!

The other poster has covered UEA well, I was there for 4 years and absolutely loved my time there.

You've picked up on the main issue with Warwick Uni, the location, it isn't in warwick and is closer to both Coventry (which frankly is a dump, sorry, but it is) and Leamington Spa which is a nice town and I have a lot of friends there, but there isn;t much variety on nights out. I now live in London and whenever I go back my friends who are still there still go to the same pubs and one half decent club that they went to 5 years ago.

Norwich is quite an arty city, if that makes sense, by that I mean there's a lot of creative schools there and as such a lot of interesting club nights put on, it's a really strong city musically and the venue at UEA has some pretty big gigs there, or at least it used to when I was there (graduated 5 years or so ago)

Definitley still does. In the 3 years I've been here we've had Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, McFly, Bastielle, Bombay Bicycle Club, loads of metal gigs and coming up they have John Newman, Newton Faulkner, Rizzle Kicks, Professor Green e.c.t.

Reply 15

Original post by cliffysbiro

Thanks a lot! I've withdrawn from Warwick now after the UEA Visit Day, so I'm glad your views are the same as mine :tongue:

I can't wait to go!

For what it's worth, after visiting UEA on the open day I changed my options to make UEA my number 1 and 2 choice (2 similar courses).

It was originally intended to be my 6th choice as a bit of a backup because the course sounded fairly interesting, I turned down Durham, Edinburgh and York to go there and regret nothing :smile:

Reply 16

OP