|
|
|
Keele University
From The Student Room WikiTSR Wiki > University > Choosing a University > University Guides > Keele University
 Keele University is a research-intensive campus university located near Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as an experimental college dedicated to a broad curriculum and interdisciplinary study, Keele is most notable for pioneering the dual honours degree in Britain. The University occupies a 617 acre (2.5 km²) rural campus close to the village of Keele and houses a Science Park and a conference centre. The University's School of Medicine and School of Nursing and Midwifery operate clinical courses from a separate campus at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire in Hartshill, Stoke-on-Trent. Keele Student Union Website for information about the union and forthcoing events Keele University Website for general uni information
FacilitiesLibrariesThere is one main library on campus. Rumour has it that the library is actually sinking because when the architects were planning it, they didn't take into account how heavy the books would be. There are several different sections in the library. There are a number of computer suites all with internet access. There is a dedicated law library and the university subscribes to 1000s of journals and periodicals which can be found on the ground floor. Keele University offers four different types of loan. There is a regular three week loan but also shorter week, three day and one day loans for the harder to get books. The fines for the shorter loans can mount up as they are charged at 30p for every hour they are overdue. Keele also has a Health Library set up but this is found in the University Hospital of North Staffordshire and not on campus. IT and ComputingThere are numerous computer rooms scattered around the university buildings. Students on campus can log onto the Hallsnet network from their room. You need to install software which you receive once you move into your room. Internet access in the room is limited to a 500MB download limit every day, while filesharing and P2P software isn't allowed. The connection speed on campus is on average about 10.0 Mbps. SportsKeele has a tradition of participation in many different sports, ranging from rugby to lacrosse, to dodgeball, as well as the elusive hockey-skating society. The Leisure Centre is one of the largest dry leisure complexes in Staffordshire. The centre boasts two national standard sports halls, a single court gymnasium, a fitness centre, dance studio and climbing wall. Outside there is an all weather floodlit astroturf pitch, tennis courts and extensive playing fields. Every year the university holds a friendly sport-orientated tournament with their arch-rivals Staffordshire university. The Athletic Union also holds an annual ball at the end of the second term which includes a three-course meal and a dance in formal dress. Team awards are also handed out at this time, and it is considered a very good time for everyone to get far too drunk. Individual societies also provide socials and tournaments for their clubs. Ranging from going to the pub after sessions (nearly everyone), and travelling away to enter various events. WelfareHealthcareThere is both a Dispensing Doctor and a Dentist on campus at the Keele Health Clinic, which is located in Horwood Hall. If you are over 19 you will have to pay for any dental treatment although you can apply for a HC2 form. There is however no pharmacy on campus. The nearest hospital is in Newcastle-Under-Lyme. Barely three miles down the road. ShopsOn the main part of campus there are four shops. A Newsagent (with very unfriendly staff), a Waterstones, the union shop which is located inside the Student Union and also houses the Post Office, and a small supermarket called Select and Save. There are also smaller Select and Save shops located at the Lindsay and Hawthorns halls of residence. They're ironically named as you neither have a great selection or save any money, but do for small shops and insatiable desires for sugar. Most students do their grocery shopping in near by Newcastle with several supermarkets such as Morrisons and a decent sized Tesco. As well as a fairly large assortment of high street shops and non-chain shops providing for most things. There is also a Tesco Express near to Hanley, which is also a viable option, and offers even more range than the Newcastle shops.
RestaurantsThere are many different places to get food on Keele campus.
BanksThere is a Natwest bank on campus and there are more bank machines than you can shake your stick at, located near the Union. TransportBuses run regularly from Keele campus. The main bus company in the area is First. The 25 bus runs through Newcastle-Under-Lyme, past the hospital, into Stoke upon Trent, past the train station and into Hanley. There is one every 10 minutes from the University, although it's more like three every half hour. There is also a direct bus to Crewe run by Arriva (the 85) which goes right past the Crewe train station. The 85a also goes direct from Keele to Newcastle and the 24 (also First) goes via Silverdale into Newcastle. Trains run every hour/half hour or so to Birmingham and Manchester, taking about an hour in each direction. Taxis in the area are also pretty cheap, about £3/£4 to Newcastle, and about £6/£7 to Stoke station. Careers serviceThere is a careers room in the Walter Moberley Building. There are regular careers drop-in sessions, but it is advisable to get there early or you may have to wait a while. There is also a small careers library with both subject-specific and general booklets. Part-time jobsThe Student Union has a 'JobShop' where you can search for a job. It is situated on the top floor of the Student Union. You can also search for jobs on the Student Union website. There are usually a few jobs for students on campus if you act quickly, but it is also worth having a look in shop windows in Newcastle, since this seems to be the preferred method of recruitment. Religious facilitiesThe interdenominational University Chapel provides a focus for Christian worship in a variety of styles and traditions. Other religions are also catered for: in particular there is a mosque with facilities for Muslim worship. The chaplains will be happy to give you information about provision in the local area for other faiths. SocialBars, Pubs and clubsEach Halls of Residence has its own bar apart from Hollycross . Barnes has the Pig and Rat, Lindsay Court the Lindsay bar, Hawthorns the The Templar, Horwood Hall the Horwood Bar (famous for alcoholic milkshakes) and in the Student Union there are various bars hidden away in the corners. Horwood Bar is known to host many socials each week. Most known to the university are the KRAP socials (Keele Rock Appreciation Posse) which are held on Tuesday nights. This consists of live DJ slots from 8pm-1/2am. The DJs are members of the university and they change every week due to demand etc. All the pubs cycle through a routine of events. E.g. Horwood Bar's 'Pound a pint' nights on Monday. EventsMost events happen at the Student Union, these mostly include regular club nights called Manic Mondays (bit of everything music wise with cheap drinks), Rewind (70s/80s Disco and Cheese in the Ballroom with rock and indie in K2) and Reloaded on Fridays (Modern Dance and Chart with either techno or RnB in K2). The University also gets quite a lot of external gig for the size of the university. Recently, Keele have had CSS, The Twang, Chicane, The Enemy, The Darkness, The Pigeon Detectives, Funeral for a Friend, Reel Big Fish and so many more! If you like live music and are into indie music, this is the place for you! Other notable events of the year is the AU Christmas Ball, which is a formal event where sports teams dress up in their favourite tuxedo and get very drunk! Other events such as the Xmas party, Summer Party and Graduation Ball all held down the Student Union. The Summer Party in particular always draws in huge crowds and is an amazing end to the year! Keele is never quiet when it comes to nights out or events going on at Keele or in the surrounding area. Although it is in the middle of nowhere, it gets some of the best bands in Staffordshire. Clubs and societiesAccommodationAccommodation policyFirst year applicants are given priority to accommodation on campus and are pretty much assured of accommodation if Keele is down as the CF or UF choice. Students who enter through clearing have less guarantees but usually find a place to live on campus. The Student Accommodation Services team will find local accommodation for those who do not get into halls. Second year students are traditionally expected to live off campus. Although they are still able to apply for a place to live on campus. Priority is given to those students with disabilities or overseas students. Third year students are allowed to live on campus if they choose to do so. Many third year students live in four person flats which are found in Hawthorns or Barnes. ResidencesThere are five halls of residence on the Keele campus. Barnes Barnes is located close to the main campus entrance. It has flats, en-suite rooms and single study bedrooms. There is a laundrette on site and a halls bar called the Pig and Rat. Lindsay Lindsay is located to west of the campus with views across the countryside. It is made up of single study bedrooms and en-suite rooms. The Lindsay bar doubles up as a cafe and has a shop too. While there is also a laundrette on site. Horwood Horwood is located quite close to the Library and also houses the Health Center. It is made up of single study bedrooms. There is a laundrette, a student bar and also a postgraduate bar. This is known as possibly the cheapest accomidation. There are 29 blocks in total, ranging through out the alphabet. There are also the blocks known as the Z sheds. Horwood is home to the infamous O block which is also known as Suicide Block. However, contrary to the name, no one has sucsessfully managed to commit suicide in this 6 story block. Hawthorns Hawthorns is the furthest of the halls from the main campus. Its located in Keele village which is 15 minutes walk away. It is made up of flats and single study bedrooms. There is a laundrette, large general block, shop, restaurant and student pub. It can take 30-35 minutes to walk onto campus. Holly Cross and The Oaks These two blocks are located close to Lindsay, all rooms are en-suite. They are the most expensive out of the Halls of residence. Holly Cross is also known as Holly Posh- given to it's nice atomosphere and it being generally nicer than all other student accomidation on campus Types of RoomThere are four types of accommodation on campus: Standard rooms – shared kitchen and bathroom facilities and numbers sharing these are variable. Cost of room is £53 per week. Standard rooms plus washbasin – shared kitchen and bathroom facilities and number sharing are variable. Cost of room is £61 per week. En-Suite rooms – shared kitchen facilities, generally between 4-6 students. Cost of room is £86 per week. Flats - Usually only allocated to groups of four students who are in their third year. These have four bedrooms and a shared kitchen, dining/sitting area and bathroom. Cost of room is £56 per week. FacilitiesAll students get shared kitchen facilities. Including cooking facilities; the number of students sharing each kitchen will vary. Telephones. Almost all student rooms are fitted with telephones operated by KeyCom. There is no connection or rental charge. Calls to campus phone numbers are free whilst external calls cost less than the standard BT payphone charges. There are also public telephones in each Hall of Residence. HallsNet. Almost all student rooms in Halls of Residence have network sockets that give you internet access via the University’s wired network from your own PC, without having to pay a line rental and cost of an Internet service provider. Cars on campusThe University reserves the right to restrict the number of vehicles on campus. First year students, with the exception of those resident in Hawthorns Halls of Residence, are not allowed to bring and use a vehicle on campus. The only exception would be a First Year student who, through disability, needed a car to maintain mobility. All vehicles must be registered with the University Security Department and are issued against an annual fee, currently £50. Private sectorStudent Accommodation Services maintain a register of private flats, houses and lodgings available in the local area. Rents will obviously vary depending on the facilities available, but typical costs for 2006/07 are £35-£45 per week with utilities bills on top. There isn't as many places to live in Newcastle-under-lyme as there should be. Many students live in Stoke-upon-trent or Shelton which is around 6 miles away. There is a very indirect 40 minute bus ride. College Court, a unite property, is located in Shelton and houses many Keele students. Student unionPricesPrices for the Student Union vary on the night and are always changing. However in general the general cost of admission is between £3-4.50 depending on the night rising to about £12 for bands/special events. EnvironmentArchitectureThe buildings at Keele university are a motley old bunch. Ranging from the impressive new med-labs facilities to the rather cute little parcel office behind the Chancellor's building. At present there is a fair amount of construction going on at Keele on new buildings. The Halls of Residences vary quite widely from each other. From the neatly arranged Hollycross buildings to the widely strewn and mismatched Horwood and hawthorns blocks. Local areaKeele University is situated close to the small town of Newcastle-Under-Lyme and also the city of Stoke-On-Trent. Both of these can be easily reached via excellent bus links, which students can take advantage of at a reduced fair. The campus itself boasts excellent facilities for students, but for those wishing to explore the local area a littlle more, there is plenty to do. Newcastle is approximately 10-15 minutes away from Keele by bus, and offers a modern cinema complex, diverse restaurants, cafes, a museum, parks and a theatre (The New Vic- The Theatre in the round!) There are also plenty of bars and clubs, which are particularly popular amongst Keele students due to the location. The main shopping centre in the area (The Potteries Shopping Centre) is situated in Hanley. A bus runs from Keele to Hanley via Newcastle and Stoke-on-Trent Railway Station, approximately every ten minutes. The shopping centre features the usual mix of clothes shops, sports shops, card shops, stationary shops etc, and is also home to PRIMARK for those on a bit of a budget! Hanley is much larger than Newcastle and therefore is much preferred for shopping etc. For those wishing to travel a little further afield, areas such as Chester, Macclesfield and Stafford are fairly close to look around. Perhaps one of the nicest things about Keele is its semi-rural location. Situated in the county of Staffordshire, there are plenty of green areas and you are never more than a few miles away from the countryside. Due to the relatively small size of nearby towns and cities, Keele can seem to be quite quiet and peaceful, but by no means isolated due to excellent transport links and a central location. Cities such as Birmingham and Manchester are only a short train ride away. Teaching qualityThe Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) last conducted an institution-wide audit of Keele's teaching between 10 and 14 May 2004. The Agency reported "broad confidence" in the management of the University's teaching quality. The QAA discontinued the "graded profile" method of individual subject review in 2001,[40] At that time, the highest-graded areas of teaching at Keele were: American studies, education, philosophy, politics and international relations (scoring 24 out of a possible 24); economics and psychology (scoring 23); maths and statistics, physics and astrophysics, organismal biosciences, sociology (scoring 22); and management, nursing and midwifery, biochemistry and biomedical sciences (scoring 21) Applying to KeeleThinking of applying to Keele University? Why not read some Personal Statements which were used for applying here? Other Keele ArticlesWhy not read these other Keele University Articles? Links | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The Student Room and Acumen PI are trading names of Acumen Professional Intelligence Ltd. Register Number: 04666380 (England and Wales). VAT No. 806 8067 22.
|
|
|
Registered Office: 33 Bond Street, Brighton, East Sussex. BN1 1RD
|
|