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Join The Student Room TodayBe part of the UK's largest and fastest growing student community. It's free to join and a lot of fun - Get inspired, express your ideas, interact and share Loughborough UniversityFrom The Student RoomTSR Wiki > University > Choosing a University > University Guides > Loughborough University
 1. Loughborough University is a mid-sized campus University located in the market town of Loughborough within 10 miles of Nottingham and Leicester. Loughborough is a ‘plateglass’ University meaning it was given University charter in 1966 along with the University of Bath, York & Warwick to name but a few. Loughborough as an institution was formed back in 1909 as Loughborough Institute of Technology, and this year is celebrating its 100 year Centenary. It was awarded the coveted Sunday Times University of the Year 2008-09 title, and is consistently ranked in the top fifteen of UK universities in national newspaper league tables. Loughborough's recognition for teaching excellence was confirmed by a strong performance in the QAA teaching exercise which placed Loughborough joint 2nd with York, and only better by Cambridge. In the 2008 National Student Survey, Loughborough was voted one of the top five universities in the UK, with 22 out of 30 of its subject areas being ranked in the top ten for overall satisfaction. It was named winner of the 2006, 2007 and 2008 Times Higher award for the UK’s Best Student Experience and winner of the 2007 award for Outstanding Support for Overseas Students. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, the University has been awarded six Queen's Anniversary Prizes – an achievement bettered by no other institution. Loughborough also performed well in the recent RAE 2009 research exercise beating Exeter, SOAS, and three Russell Group institutions in research quality, and was named as a ‘rising star’ in research by The Sunday Times. Competition for places at Loughborough are increasing, and many courses at Loughborough now ask for AAB+ at A-level. The number of students applying to study full-time courses at Loughborough University has increased by 19% this year alone according to the latest statistics released by UCAS, which is more than double the national average. Loughborough is also the UK’s premier university for sport. It has perhaps the best integrated sports development environment in the world and is home to some of the country’s leading coaches, sports scientists and support staff. It also has the country’s largest concentration of world-class training facilities across a wide range of sports. The University has won the BUSA league every year since the league was first launched 23 years ago. FacilitiesLibrariesGeneral InfoLoughborough University has one main library located towards the west end of campus. The Pilkington Library was opened in 1980 and comprises four floors in an upside down pyramid shape (the top floor is the Information Science department and used for teaching and office space). The library has several computer areas over a number of floors as well as rooms and space for group/private study, some of which can be booked in advance through the library website. On level 3 (entrance level) there is also a newsagent style shop and a large cafe. Fire alarms are tested weekly at midday on Mondays and fire drills are carried out at random times throughout the year. Since 2007, the library has stayed open 24 hours a day during exam periods. LoansMost items in the library can be borrowed but loan periods vary from one month to one day although staff and researchers can borrow some materials for longer. Undergraduate students can borrow 12 long/one week loan books and 2 short loan books at a time. Undergraduate finalists and taught postgraduates can borrow 17 long/one week loan books. Postgraduate research students and staff can borrow up to 25 long loan books for whole semesters and the summer break. Of course, books can be renewed many times using the library's online system to keep books for a long period - including over holidays. Fines are payable on overdue materials and are an easily avoidable expense! TriviaOn open days and in the first year many students are told that the Pilkington Library is slowly sinking into the ground as the weight of books was never taken into account in its design. Unfortunately this is not the case. Other librariesSome other university departments have their own specialist libraries and resource centres (e.g. WEDC) but membership may be restricted to certain members of the university. IT and ComputingThere are various computing labs around campus. Most are for use by a particular department, but there are some that are open to everyone, including the third floor of the Haslegrave Building (N) and the Pilkington Library (X). The Computing Services offices, machine room and help desk are located in the Haslegrave Building (N). Most of the lecture theatres, and communal areas of the campus, including the Students Union have both secured and unsecured wireless internet access. The unsecured connection, "lboro-web", allows only HTTP and secured connections (such as HTTPS, SFTP, SSH, etc.) through. On the other hand, the secured "lboro" connection allows you to do anything, but involves a fair amount of effort to set up, and has been known to crash laptops running Windows XP, and fail to work at all on other Operating Systems.
SportsNaturally being a sport university means the university has a vast amount of sport facilities. Including, the new athletics stadium, a number of rugby pitches, an indoor badminton centre and others. The university has 2 open access gyms, LUFS and PowerBase, alongside a myriad of gyms attached to dedicated sports facilities. For example the Athletics centre and swimming pool both have their own gyms. Student rates for all facilities are heavily subsidised. WelfareThe Student's Union provides many welfare related services. For example, dedicated maths help service. HealthcareDoctors SurgeriesLoughborough University has its own doctors surgery on the campus and there are usually 3 GPs and several nurses available during opening hours. The medical centre also has several beds for in patients. The practise is often busy (although appointments can usually be made within 2 days) and is used by many non students from the surrounding area. PharmaciesA new pharmacy opened at Loughborough Students' Union in 2006. Other pharmacies are available in the town centre and in the Hermitage Road area. Minor InjuriesA minor injuries unit (or walk in centre) is located in Loughborough on Pinfold Gate. The centre is open 24 hours a day and the nurses are able to treat injuries such as broken limbs and flesh wounds. Accident and EmergencyThe nearest accident and emergency hospital for serious injuries is located in Leicester. General HospitalLoughborough General Hospital is located on Epinal Way and was completed in 2002 to replace the old hospital which was opposite Beacon Bingo in the town centre. It is the place to go for routine X rays and outpatient services. ShopsFollowing the re-opening of the Purple Onion shop in 2008. There are now three on-campus stores: one being the Students' Union shop in the union building, another being the fuelbox (run by imago at the EHB) and Purple Onion. The union itself has its own bookshop, chemist, beauty salon, custom clothes store, smoothie bar, opticians and a taxi company. It also has frequent stalls and poster sales inside. Because Loughborough is only a market town, the range of shops available is nothing like that of Leicester or Nottingham. On the other hand, there is everything you should ever need to get by, and plenty of luxury goods as well. There is a market which runs every week on Thursday and Saturday and sells a wide range of goods (there is also a fancy dress stall which is ideal for nights at the union). Other shops in town worth noting are:
Restaurants
Post OfficesThere are a number of post offices in Loughborough, the main one of which is on Nottingham Road as you head towards the train station. There is one on the high street next to Argos, one on Forest Road just before the town centre, and another on forest road as you head up towards Nanpantan. The Herbert Manzoni print room also offers a wide range of postal services at the same price. BanksLoughborough Students' Union is currently home to Natwest and Barclays with its latest addition in 2008 - Abbey. Previously there was an HSBC bank at the student's union and a Lloyds bank at the Purple Onion. Most major banks and building societies have branches in the town centre. Free cash machines are mostly located in and around the students' union with one at the Purple Onion. Another machine is located in Elvyn Bar but charges for cash withdrawals. In town, there are several highstreet bank branches including: LloydsTSB, NatWest, Abbey and Halifax. TransportBusThe university campus is served by the 'Sprint' bus which runs from the railway station via the town centre to the engineering end of campus, stopping at various places on campus along the way. During term time, buses run every 10 minutes Monday to Friday but less frequently at the weekend. The bus costs £1.20 to the town centre, and £1.50 to the train station. Return tickets are not available, although you can get a card for 10 journeys which gives you a saving. The journey is timetabled to take 10 minutes between campus and town and 20 minutes to the station although the bus can often get delayed in traffic. Bus stops on this route are located at Mechanical Engineering, Pilkington Library, The Food Box (estates services yard), Haslegrave building, Students' Union, Loughborough College. Other bus routes which run near the university include the number 4 "Shepshed Sprinter" which stops on Ashby Road near the Students' Union and Engineering and Arriva's 127 service which stops on Blackbrook Road. CarAccess to campus by car is limited especially for students and usually during the day only permit holders are allowed to drive onto campus (due to very limited space for parking). Each road entrace to the campus is swipecard or security guard box protected, to open barriers. CyclingCycling is a good way to get around campus and although facilities are much better than most places, cycle parking space is also in short supply. WalkingWalking is probably the most popular and easiest way to get around although it takes about 15 minutes to walk between either end of campus. Careers serviceThe Loughborough careers service provides extensive help to undergraduates and postgraduates in the search for part time work as well as graduate level jobs. Its value is recognized by industry, the Association of Graduate Recruiters/Barkers survey of leading graduate recruiters ranked the careers center as the 9th best in the country. Careers fairs are hosted throughout the year, attracting major companies from many different industries. Other services provided include appointments to check and improve your CV, and to carry out mock interviews, as well as plenty of free literature offering advice on a wide range of issues. Part-time jobsReligious facilitiesLoughborough Discussions
SocialBars, Pubs and clubsThere are 4 Bars on campus:
There are 4 clubs in the union, on most nights only one or two will be open, but on Wednesday and Friday nights all are open. These are: Cognito, Piazza, Room 1 and Fusion.
EventsClubs and societiesAccommodationAccommodation policy
FacilitiesMost halls have a common room/games room area. Laundry is done in laundrettes located near halls. The new halls (Rigg-Rut, Elvyn and Robert Bakewell) feature wired and wireless internet connections. ResidencesThere are 16 Loughborough University halls of residence, with a further 4 being built and one being closed at the end of this year. these are:
Private sectorStudent unionPricesEnvironmentArchitectureLike Loughborough town centre, buildings on the university campus are built in different styles reflecting their age and original purpose. The original concrete framed engineering buildings, designed by Ove Arup and Partners in the 1960s to reflect the hierarchy of roads and paths around the campus, have been extended in recent years by more modern and hi-tech buildings. Buildings in the centre of campus are more traditional and institutional whereas many of the modern sports buildings are steel framed with brick/block walls. The new sports hall and aerofoil shaped swimming pool are separated by a large lagoon used to attenuate the vast amounts of rain which drains from their roofs. Several buildings have won awards for their design over the years, from the daring Civil Engineering extension to the more conventional Admin 1 building. Local areaTeaching qualityApplying to LoughboroughThinking of applying to Loughborough? Why not read some Personal Statements which were used for applying here? Other Loughborough ArticlesWhy not read these other Loughborough Articles? Links |
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