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Have a huge dilemma with uni choices - opinions please!

I am trying to choose between Queen's University Belfast and University of Surrey for BSc Children's Nursing. There are pros and cons to each university so I am totally stuck, and I'd appreciate some unbiased opinions from total strangers basically :wink:

Queens University Belfast
Pros:
- It is a Russell Group University and the campus and Nursing school seem lovely
- My mum lives 15 mins train ride away and my dad a 10 minute walk so I would be close to home, probably avoid homesickness and save on travel costs. My youngest brother is three and very reliant on me as he is autistic, so staying in NI would mean seeing him more and would be better for him.
- Cost of living is very low
- Familiarity of the area is probably useful for placements

Cons:
- Northern Ireland is a very small place and all I've known for almost eight years and so it almost feels like too "safe" an option
- I'm currently a main carer for my two disabled siblings and have had a difficult past few months and I know that staying in NI would mean not being able to fully concentrate on my studies
- My home address is too close to the university to be able to stay in halls as it's allocated by a distance basis and so I would have to privately rent if I want to move out - not getting the full university experience
- I don't drive and public transport outside of Belfast is rubbish - this is going to prove very difficult for placements as I could be sent to Londonderry which is nearly two hours away with very little transport available
- It's apparently not a brilliant university for Nursing - 33rd (?) on the league table, word of mouth from current student nurses hasn't been great and they've made a shambles of the application process this year which makes me wonder what the organisation of the course would be like!

Surrey University
Pros:
- Obviously a brilliant university - was University of the Year, high on the overall league tables
- The campus is beautiful and feels very safe, atmosphere much like Queens
- The Nursing school is exceptional - 2nd on the league table, was first last year. They have a lot of facilities and resources including an excellent Simulated Suite
- I loved it when I went to interview - I was coming from a long way away and they really did their best to accommodate this - the tutors were lovely and made me feel at ease, as were the interviewers. I got an offer less than 24 hours after my interview so evidently I performed well.
- I'd be able to live in halls for Year One and properly integrate into university life
- It's something totally different - whilst I am originally from Berkshire which isn't far I'm not familiar with the area and so it would be a fresh start and a chance for me to totally concentrate on myself after having a rough time during my A Levels
- Public transport is evidently much better and it's very close to London also

Cons:
- Cost of living is terrifying - whilst I've worked out that it is doable, it's very high and private rents in particular are huge
- Homesickness - I'm very close to my mum and I would miss her terribly - the reduced amount of holidays that Nursing students receive would mean not seeing her and my other family very often. I'm also extremely close to my littlest brother and pretty much his second mummy and it would be really hard not seeing him everyday.
- Cost of travel - I would have to fly from Belfast to Gatwick and then travel to Guildford. If I book in advance this isn't too bad but is still fairly costly. I would also be concerned that during the winter the disruption to flights would mean being stranded or something :biggrin: when I went for my interview in November my flight there ended up being delayed a few hours because of a stupid storm and it was a real hassle.

There's probably other things but I think that's the main points! At the moment my heart and gut is telling me that biting the bullet and going to Surrey is the best thing for me mentally and opportunity wise, but something keeps holding me back.

tl;dr: I'm trying to choose between Queens Belfast and Surrey for Nursing. Surrey would mean more £££ and further away, but QUB isn't a v good uni for my course and maybe too close to home?

I'd especially appreciate opinions from people who go to university in Surrey, the Greater London Area and the South East in general and how they find the cost of living.

Thank you :biggrin:
Reply 1
Original post by Bethaaaaany
...


*Bumps the thread for you.*

It sounds like you really want to go to Surrey. I've also got an offer from there, so I'm probably quite biased.

The main purpose of university is to get the best job that you possibly can, and meet a lot of new people. It sounds like Surrey will give you a lot more opportunity to do this.
Original post by ombtom
*Bumps the thread for you.*

It sounds like you really want to go to Surrey. I've also got an offer from there, so I'm probably quite biased.

The main purpose of university is to get the best job that you possibly can, and meet a lot of new people. It sounds like Surrey will give you a lot more opportunity to do this.


Nursing is very different to other university courses though - employers don't mind so much where you studied as the degree content is standardised and the quality regulated.
Original post by Bethaaaaany
I am trying to choose between Queen's University Belfast and University of Surrey for BSc Children's Nursing. There are pros and cons to each university so I am totally stuck, and I'd appreciate some unbiased opinions from total strangers basically :wink:

Queens University Belfast
Pros:
- It is a Russell Group University and the campus and Nursing school seem lovely
- My mum lives 15 mins train ride away and my dad a 10 minute walk so I would be close to home, probably avoid homesickness and save on travel costs. My youngest brother is three and very reliant on me as he is autistic, so staying in NI would mean seeing him more and would be better for him.
- Cost of living is very low
- Familiarity of the area is probably useful for placements

Cons:
- Northern Ireland is a very small place and all I've known for almost eight years and so it almost feels like too "safe" an option
- I'm currently a main carer for my two disabled siblings and have had a difficult past few months and I know that staying in NI would mean not being able to fully concentrate on my studies
- My home address is too close to the university to be able to stay in halls as it's allocated by a distance basis and so I would have to privately rent if I want to move out - not getting the full university experience
- I don't drive and public transport outside of Belfast is rubbish - this is going to prove very difficult for placements as I could be sent to Londonderry which is nearly two hours away with very little transport available
- It's apparently not a brilliant university for Nursing - 33rd (?) on the league table, word of mouth from current student nurses hasn't been great and they've made a shambles of the application process this year which makes me wonder what the organisation of the course would be like!

Surrey University
Pros:
- Obviously a brilliant university - was University of the Year, high on the overall league tables
- The campus is beautiful and feels very safe, atmosphere much like Queens
- The Nursing school is exceptional - 2nd on the league table, was first last year. They have a lot of facilities and resources including an excellent Simulated Suite
- I loved it when I went to interview - I was coming from a long way away and they really did their best to accommodate this - the tutors were lovely and made me feel at ease, as were the interviewers. I got an offer less than 24 hours after my interview so evidently I performed well.
- I'd be able to live in halls for Year One and properly integrate into university life
- It's something totally different - whilst I am originally from Berkshire which isn't far I'm not familiar with the area and so it would be a fresh start and a chance for me to totally concentrate on myself after having a rough time during my A Levels
- Public transport is evidently much better and it's very close to London also

Cons:
- Cost of living is terrifying - whilst I've worked out that it is doable, it's very high and private rents in particular are huge
- Homesickness - I'm very close to my mum and I would miss her terribly - the reduced amount of holidays that Nursing students receive would mean not seeing her and my other family very often. I'm also extremely close to my littlest brother and pretty much his second mummy and it would be really hard not seeing him everyday.
- Cost of travel - I would have to fly from Belfast to Gatwick and then travel to Guildford. If I book in advance this isn't too bad but is still fairly costly. I would also be concerned that during the winter the disruption to flights would mean being stranded or something :biggrin: when I went for my interview in November my flight there ended up being delayed a few hours because of a stupid storm and it was a real hassle.

There's probably other things but I think that's the main points! At the moment my heart and gut is telling me that biting the bullet and going to Surrey is the best thing for me mentally and opportunity wise, but something keeps holding me back.

tl;dr: I'm trying to choose between Queens Belfast and Surrey for Nursing. Surrey would mean more £££ and further away, but QUB isn't a v good uni for my course and maybe too close to home?

I'd especially appreciate opinions from people who go to university in Surrey, the Greater London Area and the South East in general and how they find the cost of living.

Thank you :biggrin:


Hi,

I'm from the South East, and studied in the South East, although I didn't go to Surrey University.

The pro/con list you have made I'm sure are helpful to you, however there are a few factors that you can discount.

The league tables for nursing courses don't matter so much, as employers don't mind where you studied. I studied at a small university, with not the best reputation/league table standings, and yet I received better placement experiences than a lot of my newly qualified colleagues from other universities and I still managed to obtain a job in a specialist children's hospital. They didn't ask about my degree classification, or where I had studied, at interview. They honestly don't mind.

From all that you are saying, despite the higher cost I would advise going to Surrey. It is lovely that you are close to your family, but it sounds as if caring for your brother and the difficult few months you have had, would distract from your studies. Nursing as you know is a really intense degree, and the less external demands you have while doing it, the better. I am really close to all my family, and I can say that I managed to maintain that during university while living away. I lived about a 3 and a 1/2 hour train journey away. But my family and I set aside a time each week to Skype (For us it was Sunday afternoons) for about an hour. I think if you set aside time, you can still stay close to them.

Moving away from home also gives you a new lease of independence and I think this is really valuable. I did apply to my local uni but didn't get in. My Mum and I have chatted about this since, and said we were glad I didn't as doing placements and uni work while living at home, wouldn't have worked.

As for the cost of the southeast, there are cheaper ways of doing things. Instead of private renting during your second and third years, you could always consider renting a room. Spareroom.co.uk is the best place. There are lots of search options, and some of the rooms are cheap. Often the prices come inclusive of bills so you don't have to worry about that.

I would also advise sensibly managing your money. Friends of mine would buy lunch everyday, learn to drive and then buy a car, when they could of been catching the bus, they'd have the latest iPhone costing £45 a month... But then they'd complain they didn't have any money to buy a textbook or to print their dissertation! I think it's important to get your financial priorities correct, although of course, treats like a night out or meal are of course allowed!

I moved away from home, and benefited a lot from it, so I guess I am biased. I did receive financial help from my parents, otherwise I would not have been able to afford to do the course.

It sounds like your heart wants to go to Surrey, so that is what I would do, if I were you. Sorry for such a rambly message. i hope that helps. Feel free to DM if you would like anymore advice, or I can help in any other way.

Best of luck to you.
Joel :smile:
Reply 4
I think it sounds like a great idea for you to go to Surrey! For me, one of the best parts of the university experience is becoming independent and experiencing new things.

In terms of saving money, I think you can save a lot of money by being more disciplined - I do all of my shopping in the supermarket and never buy my lunch or anything from a cafe etc. (Including meal deals!) Also I would say don't buy any books before you get there, as you can find that people are selling second hand ones, you don't even need to have your own copy or that you can take it out of the library and keep renewing it the entire time you need it.

(I don't know much about the specifics of your dilemma, but I hope this helps a bit)
Original post by pen.knee
I think it sounds like a great idea for you to go to Surrey! For me, one of the best parts of the university experience is becoming independent and experiencing new things.

In terms of saving money, I think you can save a lot of money by being more disciplined - I do all of my shopping in the supermarket and never buy my lunch or anything from a cafe etc. (Including meal deals!) Also I would say don't buy any books before you get there, as you can find that people are selling second hand ones, you don't even need to have your own copy or that you can take it out of the library and keep renewing it the entire time you need it.

(I don't know much about the specifics of your dilemma, but I hope this helps a bit)


This is good advice. Shop bought sandwiches are such a rip off when you can buy enough stuff from the supermarket to make a week's worth of sandwiches for the same price as one cafe sandwich!
Original post by ombtom
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Original post by PaediatricStN
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Original post by pen.knee
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Thank-you all of you, you've all put across some brilliant and really helpful opinions :biggrin: it's really good to know that it's financially plausible - I'm already a bit tight with how I spend my money so I don't think I will have too many problems with budgeting lol!

I know that deep down I really do want to go to Surrey and in fact moving away will be a really good thing for me, so I think that will be the way I will sway. Thank you again!
Reply 7
You've had some great advice already but I thought I'd say that it sounds like you want to go to Surrey and that it would be a really good thing to be away from home so you can focus on your studying and have a bit of independence. :smile:

I understand your worries about finances too as I'm in the same boat trying to budget for my PgDip but it is doable. I found when I did my first degree that my undergrad house share was much cheaper than halls which took some pressure off in my second and third year. Like others have said, if you're sensible you can live pretty cheaply like taking packed lunches and tea in a travel mug etc.

I'd say go for Surrey but ultimately do what is best for you. Your family will always be your family. :smile:

Good luck making your decision!



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Original post by fc93
You've had some great advice already but I thought I'd say that it sounds like you want to go to Surrey and that it would be a really good thing to be away from home so you can focus on your studying and have a bit of independence. :smile:

I understand your worries about finances too as I'm in the same boat trying to budget for my PgDip but it is doable. I found when I did my first degree that my undergrad house share was much cheaper than halls which took some pressure off in my second and third year. Like others have said, if you're sensible you can live pretty cheaply like taking packed lunches and tea in a travel mug etc.

I'd say go for Surrey but ultimately do what is best for you. Your family will always be your family. :smile:

Good luck making your decision!



Posted from TSR Mobile


Brill advice, thank-you! :smile:

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