sussex or Essex for ir studies

applied for international relations and whittled it down to sussex and Essex. however I'm unsure on which I should firm, Sussex offered me BCC, and Essex offered BBC, and my predicted is AAB. they rank pretty much the same for the course, but I had a few issues when applying to Essex which put me off slightly. any advice on which is better, not just academically but socially too, such as nightlife cost of living etc

Reply 1

University of Sussex Official Reps

Original post by Anonymous

Hello,

With regard to social life, there are numerous opportunities to sign up for clubs & societies (over 250 are currently on offer). See this link for more information: Sussex Uni Clubs & Societies. Multiple social events are organised by the Student Union throughout the Year (Student Union Social Calendar), allowing plenty of opportunities for establishing new friendships and connections. Brighton provides easy access to the busy city centre, beach, as well as plenty of green spaces, bars and cafes on and off-campus to visit on your own or with other people.

For nightlife, there's plenty of options in Brighton from pubs, restaurants, independent cinemas to a great live music scene, as well as numerous bars and cafes on campus. See this link for more information: Shops, Bars & Cafe

In terms of living costs, here is a link which talks about the break down of living costs on-campus / off-campus which may be useful: Student living and accommodation costs. To lower accommodation costs, sharing a house is one option that I know many of my friends have done since moving out of their university accommodations.

I have been studying at Sussex since 2017 and have thoroughly enjoyed my time here. Having easy access to a beach is great when you want to relax, and there's always something going on in the city centre and on-campus so it was never boring for me. Academically-speaking, I felt that the university did a great job at teaching my subject as I was Intellectually stinulated and now I am confident in applying for Masters to further pursue my subject. At Sussex, they take student feedback seriously and are always looking to improve teaching practices and our student experience.

Please let me know if you have any further questions, I will be more than happy to answer them.

Kind Regards,
Erica (3rd Year BSc Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence student)