I HATE being in London, but would there's a course at Imperial that I'd love to study

Any advice? Is anyone in/has been in a similar situation?

I realise that it is important to like the city and the environment in the university where you choose to study, however, Imperial College offers an amazing Biochemistry course, and also has a great reputation, so I'm really struggling to say either way whether I want to apply or not.

For context: I live in a (very) rural area close to London, and hate having to go anywhere near it. I am almost 100% sure that I couldn't stand being there for more than about a week :'(

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Maybe if you say what it is exactly you don’t like about London, then we can help!

Thanks for your reply. It's a great city, and I know that it offers so many opportunities etc., but being from quite a rural area, I would just prefer somewhere with slightly more green space, fewer tourists (and a smaller population in general) and less air pollution. I am also concerned about the apparent enormous cost of living in London compared to other university cities/towns.

That being said, I know this is a fairly general view of London as a whole, and due to coronavirus, I haven't been able to visit Imperial specifically (other than virtual tours), so I don't know if the area surrounding Imperial is fairly typical of London as a whole, or whether it's more pleasant than the rest - so please correct me if I'm wrong.

What made you choose to study in London rather than somewhere else (I'm assuming you did - again, please correct me if I'm wrong)?

Thanks for your reply. It's a great city, and I know that it offers so many opportunities etc., but being from quite a rural area, I would just prefer somewhere with slightly more green space, fewer tourists (and a smaller population in general) and less air pollution. I am also concerned about the apparent enormous cost of living in London compared to other university cities/towns.

That being said, I know this is a fairly general view of London as a whole, and due to coronavirus, I haven't been able to visit Imperial specifically (other than virtual tours), so I don't know if the area surrounding Imperial is fairly typical of London as a whole, or whether it's more pleasant than the rest - so please correct me if I'm wrong.

What made you choose to study in London rather than somewhere else (I'm assuming you did - again, please correct me if I'm wrong)?

Any advice? Is anyone in/has been in a similar situation?

I realise that it is important to like the city and the environment in the university where you choose to study, however, Imperial College offers an amazing Biochemistry course, and also has a great reputation, so I'm really struggling to say either way whether I want to apply or not.

For context: I live in a (very) rural area close to London, and hate having to go anywhere near it. I am almost 100% sure that I couldn't stand being there for more than about a week :'(

Any advice would be much appreciated.

i graduated with a Biochemistry degree and avoided London like the plague being from the outer suburbs. there are so many better unis out there for undergrad.

There’s lots of green space and remember it’s very big. It’s not all full of tourists

Thanks for your reply. That's true, but I think it being 'very big' as you said is part of what puts me off

However, I do completely understand why it would appeal to most.

Oh I’m sorry. If it helps it’s only Central London that’s extremely urban. The rest of it is very rural. I’m sure you would be able to find a place that suits you

Thank you so much for your reply - good to hear I'm not the only one who feels this way!

If you don't mind me asking, where did you end up studying?

Hi Anon,

I graduated from a London University (QMUL) having grown up in an extremely rural area (very small village, no shops or public transport, only around 80 villagers, in the middle of the countryside) so it was a bit of a shock initially living in London with all the people, noise, being able to walk to a shop, 24 hour shops, takeaways delivering to your door etc (it sounds lame but my mind was blown). I found having all this amazing and great. I did get homesick and sometimes mainly when I was stressed/exam time I just craved silence, nature and to not be around so many people. The key I found was finding little pockets of tiny parks/greens away from all the noise. London is massive but equally you can find little spots of peace and quiet where there are no people, there's very minimal to no traffic noise etc. Or go home and visit.

That being said my brother also went to a London university and absolutely hated it and dropped out. He couldn't cope with the noise, hubbub and the sheer amount of people everywhere. It really affected his mental health. This isn't to say that this wouldn't have happened if he went to university elsewhere (every uni is going to have lots of people) but it definitely contributed.

If you love this course and you can't imagine doing another one elsewhere then go for it. But you've already said that you don't think you could stand living in London. You won't love the course if you hate where you live. Environment is a big factor and Imperial is in a central location. White City campus is next to Westfield. South Kensington is by the museums and touristy. If you aren't walking to campus you may have to get the tube or bus at rush hour so take that into consideration (depending on lecture times /if they even do in person lectures). In London where you live in accommodation may require like a 30 minute commute to get to university for cost reasons if you do live on the outskirts. For me even the parts outside of central London are still busy compared to where I grew up. I don't know how rural you are to be able to compare whether you would still find them busy etc.

I love London, it's great for students, there's so much to do socially and explore and part time job opportunities/internships etc. There are loads of green spaces and parks. I really enjoyed being at uni in London. But that's me. I still live in London and can't imagine leaving. If you feel that it would be better for you to not be in the London environment then there are so many equally prestigious universities outside of London and I'm sure there are equally good courses elsewhere. The worst thing for you to do would be to compromise and hate your university experience.

I hope this helped a little. Sorry it's such a long reply!