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University of Aberdeen
From The Student RoomTSR Wiki > University > Choosing a University > University Guides > University of Aberdeen
 The University of Aberdeen is an ancient Scottish university located in the city of Aberdeen in the far north of Scotland. Not only is it one of the oldest universities in the UK, but also in the world having originally been founded way back in 1495. FacilitiesLibrariesThe University of Aberdeen library services are currently on four sites. There is the Taylor library, the Medical library at Foresterhill, the special archives and the Queen Mother Library (QML) which is the main one. The QML is a large library with five storeys and has a lot of books to choose from. It was first built in 1978 and opened by the Queen Mother. The heavy demand section in the QML has multiple copies of the most often required text books. Books must be returned by 10am the day after you borrow them (unless you borrow on a Friday, in which case they are due back at 10am on the Monday) so you usually find that a copy is available. You may also renew these if they have not been requested. Other books are either standard loan or three day loan. The standard loan entitles you to keep the book until someone else wants it or until the end of Spring term. The three day loan books can be renewed over the phone or online as often as you like. New LibraryThe University of Aberdeen has plans for a new library. It is set to be a fantastic modern building, eight or nine storeys high and with plans to make it as environmentally friendly as possible. The structure of the new library will be a huge glass cube, making most use of natural light as possible and eliminating the need for air conditioning. The ground floor will be a meeting area to allow students to meet up, have a coffee and a chat and work on projects, etc. The budget available for the new library is £57 million. IT and ComputingWith the introduction of RESNET and EDUROAM, the university now has a wireless campus. All areas in halls of residence, and all university buildings now have wireless connectivity, allowing you to connect to the internet, send documents to classroom print stations and access your files via ftp. Files belonging to you, stored on the university system can be access from any computer in the world, with a simple ftp (file transfer protocol) session. Full instructions are available. Proxy settings allow lecture notes, ebooks and various course material to be downloaded from anywhere. There are various computing rooms around campus, including at halls of residence and in the library. Many of these rooms have 24 hour access. New computing science and engineering students are supplied with a new laptop, pre-configured for use with the wireless service, and with course software, MS Office and course materials installed. A computing helpdesk is available on the phone, on email or by popping in to see them at various locations. SportsThe University of Aberdeen compete against RGU every year in the Granite City Challenge. The university has plans for a brand new sports centre. Due to be complete by 2009 and with a budget of £23 Million. Plans are to include a state of the art gym, very large games hall, an Olympic standard swimming pool and a lot more.
Sports ClubsHuge selection of sports clubs available. The fencing club at university operates on a Monday evening for beginners and on a Wednesday evening for more experienced fencers. The club regularly travels to competitions around the UK. They compete in the BUSA fencing tournaments and continue to do well. The Lairig Mountaineering Club is ideal if you are an active hillwalker, just want to get out and about more or like the more adventurous side of mountaineering. Or why not try out the unusual sport of underwater hockey? The full list of sports clubs includes:
WelfareThe student association's advice and support offer students help with anything from giving free condoms to homesickness. Niteline is an anonymous, voluntary service which gives students someone to talk to from 8pm to 8am. You can call them up about anything, including pizza numbers, bus times or more serious issues you may be having. You can even call them up just for a chat. If (01224) 272829 is too hard to remember, you will find the number printed on the back of your student card. HealthcareShopsThe Hub is the main source of on-campus shopping. You will find the Union shop, selling university branded clothing, snacks and drinks, student bus tickets, and loads more. Also in the hub, there is a hairdressers, insurance office, Subway and a large food court. The high street has a baker shop and newspaper shop who give discount to student subscriptions. At Hillhead halls, you will find a shop with long opening hours, selling pretty much everything at decent prices. RestaurantsBanksThere are two banks on the University campus located on High Street. There are branches of most major UK banks within the city centre TransportNumber 20 From Hillhead to Littlejohn Street in Town, which is 2 minutes walk from Union Street and Morrisons. Every 15 minutes during the day, and every 30 minutes at night time (After ~8pm) - There's also a nightbus at weekends every half hour up until after the clubs finish kicking out. Cheapest night bus in town at £1.30. Taxis at weekend are expensive (around £8-10 back to Hillhead) and have huge queues at the taxi ranks.
Major bus routes all over the city, including the airport. The colour-coded "overground" makes it easy to navigate, but the most used will be the red line numbers 1 and 2 (covers King Street into town) and the number 20 (from Hillhead Halls, through campus and into town, dropping you outside the union). Careers servicePart-time jobsThe University of Aberdeen's Student Association runs a fantastic service called 'Job Link' which helps put students and local employers in contact. They track down the jobs and email them to you weekly. Religious facilitiesThe historic 15th Century King's College in Old Aberdeen is also home to King's College Chapel, with the University Chaplaincy Service just a few yards up the High Street. Sunday morning service is held in King's College Chapel and is open to all. The Chapel is one of the most intact examples of medieval architecture anywhere in Britain. Alumni Annual FundThe university employs student fund raisers to raise funds for the Alumni Annual Fund. Work involves calling graduates to update their details, chat to them about various projects and things going on in the university and asking if they would like to give to the fund. Money raised goes to fund various projects, such as student scholarships, the new library, medical research, sports clubs and facilities, and many more. Over £226,000 was raised during the 2006-2007 campaign, which makes the AAF one of the most successful campaigns in the UK. SocialBars, Pubs and clubsHillheadHillhead halls sees 'The Watering Hole' (or more commonly known among students as 'The Hole') fill up with students all through the academic year. Cheap pints, great atmosphere and loads of entertainment within a 2 minute walk of your room. What more could you ask for? Main CampusThe Bobbin (Scream bar) is the unofficial student hang-out near to the university. Fantastic bar with loads of banter and cheap booze (with a yellow card). Bulmers cider is also available in draft form, with large glasses to allow room for ice. In TownThe Union is conveniently placed at one end of the Number 20 bus route. Great place to hang out for food, cheap drink, great entertainment and loads of laughs. Monday, Wednesday and Friday has all drinks priced at £1.50 while Tuesday and Thursday gives you all spirits for £1, and that includes your mixer too (yes, even Red Bull). On A Saturday night expect a mixture of the two promotions. A full price pint is £2. With over 10% of the population as students, Aberdeen's night life is very much based on what students want and need. You will find many great clubs, pubs and bars with great entertainment and promos. Most of the nightclubs in town have low prices for student nights through the week, with Wednesday being the main night of the week. Careful though, these prices and dress codes do shoot up at the weekend. EventsGranite City ChallengeEach year in Spring the University of Aberdeen and The Robert Gordon University compete against each other in a variety of different sports. The University of Aberdeen has successfully held on to the title since it began. Fresher's FayreOne of the largest events of its kind in Scotland. Housed within two very large marquee tents, over the two days you will find various stalls from all the sports clubs and societies, dishing out information on what they do. Most of the local business (bars, clubs, cinemas, shops, etc.) will be there for both days giving out vouchers, discount cards, T-Shirts, and various other freebies in the hope to lure you into their establishments. This year saw Rustlers cooking and handing out free products, Pizza Hut turning up with a huge pile of free pizza and bags-full of freebies to be grabbed from all over the place. With all that free food there was almost no need to visit the BBQ and bar! During the two days, the SA set up various free activities, including bouncy castle, climbing wall and some trippy space training thing. STV also joined us and showed a spot on the evening news. Torcher ParadeThe largest student, torch-lit parade in Europe hits Aberdeen once a year in April. Students from The University of Aberdeen, Robert_Gordon_University and Aberdeen College all clamber on board decorated lorries (the event originally used horses and carts due to the age of it), while dressed up and playing loud music. The parade earns loads of cash for the Students' Charities Campaign. The event has backing from huge local organisations, such as Unite and also Northsound radio who bring out a float of their own. Various lorry companies get involved, donating lorries for the night and drivers give up their times, a lot of whom bring their kids along for the ride. Thousands of local people line the streets to watch the parade go by, and throw their unwanted change at willing students. SuperteamsThousands of students get together in teams of six and compete in various events for the title of superteam. Events can include things like rock climbing, go-kart racing, paintballing and loads more. Accommodation FayreEvery year around March, Unite, Aberdeen City Council, and various other groups get together in the university. You can book viewings, find out about accommodation and pick up loads of freebies. Clubs and societiesAccommodationUniversityAccommodation is situated on three main sites (Hillhead, Crombie/Johnston, Elphinstone Road). All sites have 24 hour porter/security staff nearby, wireless internet access and laundry facilities. Catered and self-catered accommodation are provided. Check out the Aberdeen accommodation page for details of accommodation available at the university. Private sectorStudent unionPrices
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EnvironmentArchitectureLocal areaTeaching qualityIn 2007 the university jumped up the world workings, to be placed 137th overall Top Universities Guardian Score = 66.02/100 The Times 2007 = Rank 32 - Total score 648/1000 Applying to AberdeenThinking of applying to Aberdeen? Why not read some Personal Statements which were used for applying here? Other Aberdeen ArticlesWhy not read these other Aberdeen University article? Links
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