St Andrews - Ask A Current Student Thread [part 2]

Just found out I'm in whitethorn in an ensuite catered room which was like my last choice, and I also wasn't really counting on having to pay for the most expensive accommodation option but oh well. Anyway it looks like it's worth the money as the facilities seem absolutely amazing, but I the most important aspect of where I'm living is the hall culture for me. For this reason I reaaaally wanted to be in Uni hall because I like the competitive nature and they really seem to have a lot of fun. I know that whitethorn shares dining facilities and has shared events and stuff but I was wondering if it's basically the same culture-wise as being in uni hall? do the halls feel really separated from each other? does whitethorn have events of its own? Sorry I know this is a stupid question but because whitethorn is so new I can't really find any info on what it's like to live there/what it's relationship w uni hall is like. Thanks

a valid concern you have but fortunately there is nothing to worry about here. Uni hall is actually made up of 3 wings with a perfect trade off between the pretty but quiet wings and the ordinary but social wing (Lumsden). the great thing is that all wings are basically next to eachother and Lumsden is where all the facilities like the dining hall are so you will find yourself spending most of your time there, but sleeping in the most luxurious new hall st andrews has to offer, so you get the best of both worlds tbh.

ahh awesome, this makes me feel much better, thanks! so whitethorn is pretty much considered part of uni hall then?

you can think of it as the 4th wing if you like as it is just as close as the other 3

Great, I should invest in some black and gold attire then 😆

feel like black and gold is a reference i should get i'm guessing from timezones you are from the states? what subjects are you studying at san andreas?

don't expect toooooooo much from hall life as it really is just a place to sleep, eat and hang out when people are around, the real 'uni' experience is in a rented flat with your best mates in the centre of town in second year, although self-catered is also good for your latter years

It's supposedly the "hall colours". Literally the only times I ever hear about hall colours is when they have clan warfare events at the union in freshers week

I’ve not heard about my accommodation yet, do you think I will hear soon?
Also if I miss my grades (slightly) what are my chances of still being accepted or even offered another course?

I received my accommodation offer today, and I got en-suite self-catered in Agnes Blackadder Hall, which wasn’t my first choice and is quite a bit more expensive than I was hoping for. I was just wondering if any previous residents have any experience of what it’s like living in ABH, particularly for self-catered contracts? I didn’t get to see any of the kitchen facilities at the open day. Also is it still quite easy to socialise with others in the hall even if you’re not dining together like catered students? Thanks!

ABH traditionally had problems with being poorly sociable but that has changed in recent years with the introduction of shared rooms i.e. room mates (which changes the dynamic of the whole hall not just for those people), a better committee and now Powell hall joining. since then i haven't heard one person complain about it so it's all good. the kitchens are reallyyy sociable, and the downstairs is really sociable too, it's just the corridors that are a maze and hotel-like

Thanks so much for replying, that’s really helpful! Do you know roughly how many people share a kitchen?

I received my accommodation offer today, and I got en-suite self-catered in Agnes Blackadder Hall, which wasn’t my first choice and is quite a bit more expensive than I was hoping for. I was just wondering if any previous residents have any experience of what it’s like living in ABH, particularly for self-catered contracts? I didn’t get to see any of the kitchen facilities at the open day. Also is it still quite easy to socialise with others in the hall even if you’re not dining together like catered students? Thanks!

I was self-catered in ABH a couple of years ago, and I worked there over summer. There's a kitchen for every corridor, which is usually 12 people, though I think there are a couple of kitchens with as few as 6 people. None have more than 12 people.

Kitchens are generally quite sociable – I'd compare ABH corridors to DRA flats, although ABH kitchens don't have sofas/televisions. The shared common areas (Forbes bar and the games room, both by reception) are fairly well used. When I was there, the games room had a pool table, sofas, beanbags, table tennis, and a projector, so people would hang out there quite often. Perhaps more so than DRA's shared spaces, since ABH is all under one roof. ABH also has its own study space with computers, printers, etc. but I preferred studying in Forbes.

Usage of common areas depends quite heavily on the hall committee each year. The committee is mostly returning students (i.e. those who also lived there the previous year), and if they're well-organised, there should be regular events.