Full of posh people

Okay so i am very close to firming St. andrews but i need to know a few things before i do and please be honest!
is St.. Andrews full of yahs and posh people who don't associate with anyone rather than their own kind? Would a working class girl with a normal Scottish accent fit in here? Would i be looked down upon because of my class? Please be honest.

Yes you will fit in. This university is incredibly friendly and there's a really strong sense of community. People will want to be friends with you!

On a more logical note: it is impossible to fill an entire university with just posh people. Places like St Andrews, Durham, Cambridge have around 40-50% privately educated students so obviously they have 50-60% state educated students. Hence there will be plenty of people who don't fit neatly into the posh yah box.

Reply 41

olddad

2

Original post by returnmigrant

Most 'top' Unis (RG and similar) will have a high percentage of those who went to public schools. Some of these people do come over as over-privileged okay-yahs. This can get irritating, especially if you don't come from that sort of background and havn't got a clue what they mean by "Where did you prep?".

However, you will always find some folk you like/get on with/feel comfortable with at ANY University. Just be open about your own attitudes (just because they talk like that doesn't mean they mean to be offensive.... they have just come from a very narrow social background) and think about what you have got in common (that Uni, feeling homesick, your course, St Andrews weather etc) rather than them having rather odd speech patterns. You'll be fine.

This is very true - I know Nottingham has over 40% from private school backgrounds

Reply 42

AnharM

21

Original post by alow

You can get them for £100. That's not much to pay for a jacket that will last years.

£100 on a jacket is actually quite expensive for working class people like us. I've never spent over £55 for a jacket tbh. I'm working part-time, but a lot of the money goes to savings.

Reply 43

nlf

Original post by hotliketea

sorry this is unrelated with the OP's question , but why did you drop out of king's? i have a very good offer for law with hispanic law from UCL and straight law at king's (perhaps also with a £27,000 scholarship) and i was just wondering if you could elaborate?

yeah, of course! there were so many reasons but i think the main issue was that that i wasn't ready for university (no motivation/needed a break from education, wasn't sure about the course and just not really in the best place mentally to move away and have a complete life change even though i thought it was gonna be great). however even though i feel loads more ready now, i'm still content with turning down UCL and would never consider returning to king's.

i'm not sure how familiar you are with the city but i'd say that being a student in london is pretty difficult at first and very different to everywhere else. with the only campus uni being QM, it's harder to socialise and make friends when accommodation is so spread out. i lived in hampstead which was ages away and really strict/boring/quiet. if you want to live close to campus (with both king's and UCL being central) it'll also be very costly.

i made a handful of mates who i'm still really close to but i found most people there to be really boring. out of my flat of around twelve people, i spoke to two and the rest kept themselves to themselves pretty much all the time. i felt really thick when i was sat in my seminars and after visiting friends in other unis i have no shame in stereotyping the majority. you're obviously gonna get different people in oxford vs. swansea met, for example, and as someone who's never been hugely academic (i got AAA and although education is important to me, so is my part-time job/friends/hobbies/living somewhere good etc...) i'd rather go somewhere that isn't regarded as highly and have a balance.

nevertheless, getting offers to study at law at two extremely prestigious universities is a real achievement. if you're tempted to go for one i'd say do it - just make sure you take time to pick the best accommodation and make the most of where you are. i know i'd struggle with such a heavy subject at such a good university but if you're career-focused and really academic i'm sure you'll be fine. king's reeeally wasn't suited to my personality.

good luck! if you have any other Qs about king's feel free to ask, sorry this was a bit rushed.

edit: bottom line is that you can never predict the time you're gonna have at uni! it's so hard to make the 'right' decision. everyone's experiences differ greatly.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 44

hotliketea

20

Original post by nlf

yeah, of course! there were so many reasons but i think the main issue was that that i wasn't ready for university (no motivation/needed a break from education, wasn't sure about the course and just not really in the best place mentally to move away and have a complete life change even though i thought it was gonna be great). however even though i feel loads more ready now, i'm still content with turning down UCL and would never consider returning to king's.

i'm not sure how familiar you are with the city but i'd say that being a student in london is pretty difficult at first and very different to everywhere else. with the only campus uni being QM, it's harder to socialise and make friends when accommodation is so spread out. i lived in hampstead which was ages away and really strict/boring/quiet. if you want to live close to campus (with both king's and UCL being central) it'll also be very costly.

i made a handful of mates who i'm still really close to but i found most people there to be really boring. out of my flat of around twelve people, i spoke to two and the rest kept themselves to themselves pretty much all the time. i felt really thick when i was sat in my seminars and after visiting friends in other unis i have no shame in stereotyping the majority. you're obviously gonna get different people in oxford vs. swansea met, for example, and as someone who's never been hugely academic (i got AAA and although education is important to me, so is my part-time job/friends/hobbies/living somewhere good etc...) i'd rather go somewhere that isn't regarded as highly and have a balance.

nevertheless, getting offers to study at law at two extremely prestigious universities is a real achievement. if you're tempted to go for one i'd say do it - just make sure you take time to pick the best accommodation and make the most of where you are. i know i'd struggle with such a heavy subject at such a good university but if you're career-focused and really academic i'm sure you'll be fine. king's reeeally wasn't suited to my personality.

good luck! if you have any other Qs about king's feel free to ask, sorry this was a bit rushed.

edit: bottom line is that you can never predict the time you're gonna have at uni! it's so hard to make the 'right' decision. everyone's experiences differ greatly.

thank you for replying! i think i'll really enjoy the academic side , and tbh i love london , i live really nearby so it's not a huge jump for me. i think i'll be firming one of them because it's so important to go somewhere respected for law , and because when i went on the open day to UCL everyone on the law course seemed... like me i guess :') they do all their work and then they go out , and that's what i like to do as well

thank you so much :smile:

Reply 45

username941859

18

Original post by Old_Simon

Sadly that may be your choice. You will not be the only one. But please do not think it is all happy families, diversity and equality. It is not. And Rahs can and do make people feel extremely uncomfortable when they are out in large numbers and St Andrews is full of them. Most of them not very bright as well.
It is where the duffers from public school go to do History of Art.

Rahs can and do but they are in a minority. I went to a public (independent) school and don't get involved with the rah culture. It's a small amount of people who are like that. Actually, the thing is with being a top university is that most people are clever to some extent. History of Art is actually quite hard too, the people doing it have more work than I do.

Original post by Pcm1734

Thanks for your honesty! Are u a current student or do you just have knowledge of the place? Yeah I've heard that history of art is where they seem to end up haha! 😂

Don't listen to him, he clearly has no knowledge about the university.

Reply 46

JeMappelleHelen

Hello

I, like you, come from a state school and also have an offer from St Andrews (I've actually firmed it now!) I also felt the same way when I was encouraged to apply but after visiting and speaking to current students, I saw it was a very diverse university and I needn't worry! I actually have a few friends from my school who are already students there and are loving it :smile:

it's really put my mind at rest knowing it's not a problem to come from a working class background! I know more people at Edinburgh uni who have been privately educated than I do at St Andrews but this might just be my situation :smile:

hope to see you there in September, I'm so excited!

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Reply 47

EmergencyBagels

18

i would personally say if you like the place then go. cant let the snobs get away with owning the place. go there and OWN IT

Reply 48

meadsey

2

Original post by Pcm1734

Okay so i am very close to firming St. andrews but i need to know a few things before i do and please be honest!
is St.. Andrews full of yahs and posh people who don't associate with anyone rather than their own kind? Would a working class girl with a normal Scottish accent fit in here? Would i be looked down upon because of my class? Please be honest.

Hey there,

I know St Andrews has a 'rah/yah' reputation, but I honestly don't find it anywhere near like that. Majority of people are completely down to earth and genuine. Of course there are snobby people, just like there are everywhere...

I'm from a very poor family and I've been in normal state-funded education my whole life, and I fit in just fine. Don't worry about 'being looked down upon'. People in St Andrews are smarter than that :redface:

I'm sure you'll be a warmly welcomed part of the student community here.

Reply 49

tushmabut

6

I'm actually at St Andrews studying medicine in first year and it is not like you are worrying about *at all*. I'm from Yorkshire, went to a really 'rough' state school but managed to do well and there are absolutely loads of people in the same position here, especially in my particular hall (Melville). My biggest worry was that there would be an abundance of 'posh arses' but the biggest thing that surprised me when I got here was how normal it is. If anything the student population is so much friendlier compared to other universities due to the small-town nature which attracts those sorts of people. I don't doubt I may have seen the type of people you are worried about (hello to the exclusive Kate Kennedy Club) wearing red chinos but I haven't met any in person not will I have to in the future. Uni will be how you make it and if St A appeals to you then you will have a fantastic time with brilliant people in a beautiful place!

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Reply 50

Oxy

14

Another state-educated student here (in 5th year :O ), and like everyone else who currently studies here and has posted above. I will say the same thing, yes there are a few people who would stereotypically be your "posh" person but at the same time they are the minority, and most people here are nice a laid back. I bet you will meet posh people you didn't even realise were posh :wink:

Reply 51

linden7

2

Not to misdirect, but to slightly, but how does the St Andrews community respond to Americans? There's the stereotype of the obnoxious American tourist, but does any of that translate for international students?

Reply 52

Emily141

11

You're going to be just fine - like any top university in the UK it is true that a large minority of students come form public/private schools. However, after three years at St Andrews I've never felt out of place not being incredibly posh. There are nearly eight thousand students at St Andrews - you're going to be fine!

Full of posh people

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