Warwick Vs Birmingham

i got offers for Biological sciences C100 from both unis
im really not sure on which one to choose i know birmingham has the better social side but not as great in terms of academia compared to warwick.
coventry is apparently really boring though

ah

help?

Reply 1

Stressworthy

Yeah, Warwick's considered the better university generally, but Birmingham is hardly bad. Plus, Birmingham has the all-round appeal in terms of being in a campus, big city, excellent transport links, etc. Warwick's 'bubble' feel is something that appeals to many, though, and I've noticed that out of the people who visited it's very much divided - they either love it or hate it. So only you know which is right for you.

I wouldn't get too hung up on prestige or social issues, to be honest, when it comes to these two... pick based on where YOU feel most comfortable (you have to spend years there, after all, so visit again if necessary!) And, it might be an idea to look through the different course contents etc. too to see which appeals to you more, if you still can't decide.

Reply 2

orca92

Warwick isn't particularly well known for its biology department. I would actually say that Birmingham is slightly better when it comes to life sciences, im guessing both are BBB.
I wouldn't choose based on rep cause to be honest there isn't really any difference. I guess that if your hoping to get into finance then Warwick would be better but your doing biology so i guess that overall rep doesn't matter if your going into biology careers.

So i would choose based on whether you want to be near coventry or near birmingham. I'd go to Birmingham cause its a bigger city but then Warwick does appeal to me for some reason.

EDIT: if you are interested in league tables, the times one puts Warwick 0.2 ahead of Birmingham; so they are basically exactly the same.

Reply 3

3merge

yeh they are BBB
but warwick...well is warwick...its 6th in UK according to times and bham is like 21 according to biology warwick is 19 bham is 21 i think

but if i come out with a degree from warwick wont there be much better job opportunities, i mean its like getting a degree from a top class uni?

Reply 4

Totally Tom

3merge

yeh but even by warwick standards biology is pretty low.

The only people on campus everyone knows are spakkers are the biology people.

Reply 5

3merge

really?
wont make much difference if i go warwick or bham then i guess?
bham attracts me for most things
i keep thinking warwick will be full of all these boring geeks :s-smilie:

Reply 6

Picnic1

Apart from Maths, generally Warwick is best known for its arts courses. This table suggests that they are very close for that subject: http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/tol_gug/gooduniversityguide.php?AC_sub=Biological+Sciences&sub=9&x=19&y=11

Which course do you prefer and do you want to study on a campus or in a city. You may find very different types of people at each - or they might be broadly the same types of people.

Reply 7

orca92

Warwick is a target uni for investment banks and they seem to mostly target the maths grads (for obvious reasons), economics grads and other very quanitative degrees graduates. I guess that you could be able to use the higher number of career fairs to your advantage to try and get into finance if that is what you want to do but if you're looking to get into biology jobs or say do a masters at say UCL or Cambridge then both Warwick and Birmingham will be seen as being on the same level.

Reply 8

Pseudo Noob

It actually astounds me that people pay such heed to league table 'rankings', it's so arbitrary! If you must know Birmingham is actually targeted just as ferociously as Warwick in the milk-round because of its highly regarded research, prestige and academic prowess. It's a powerhouse! There is absolutely no academic disparity between the two, none! You will be equally as employable, on the contrary, somebody with a 2:1 from Warwick will not get a job over someone with a First from Birmingham and vice-versa. People need to stop being so gullible! Both are world-leaders (Warwick around 55 and Birmingham at 66 according to THES) and as long as you put the effort in and get a great degree you will be rather employable!

Reply 9

benji385

I'm going to do maths and physics combined degree. Which uni is better? Warvick is famous about maths but I don't know anything about its physics, whereas the same course in Birmingham scored very well in student rewievs.

Reply 10

Philbert

Which course appeals to you more? Are there any areas you're especially interested in? And which of the university environments do you prefer?

As people have said, you won't be disadvantaged going to one over the other. I chose Warwick, but I didn't apply to Birmingham in the end, I can't remember why. I can tell you anything you want to know about the course at Warwick, as I'm currently studying it (well, MMV but the first year is common to all degrees except biochem).

I don't know about Coventry being boring. If you're into clubbing, then yes it probably isn't that great for night-life. But Birmingham is only a half hour train journey away, and a lot of second-years live in or around Leamington Spa, which is supposedly better. I wouldn't really know, though, clubbing isn't my thing. I don't think that it's the best criterion to base your choice on, really.

(edited 14 years ago)

Reply 11

orca92

Original post

by benji385

Warwick's got an amazing maths department and that rubs off onto the physics degree as obviously it contains a lot of maths. On an academic level there is clear light between these two, Warwick is definitely better. Obviously take into account where you prefer to live for 3 years etc, but academically, all about Warwick.

Reply 12

rscrsc

Original post

by orca92

The joint degrees are very different.

In Warwick, it is a mixture of Maths and Physics as two largely disjoint subjects.

In Birmingham the course is such that the spread of module choice is narrower so they reinforce each other. It is called Theoretical Physics and Applied Mathematics to indicate the balance.

So, curiously, the rubbing off is more pronounced in Birmingham.

However if you want a mix of, say, pure maths and the experimental end of physics, Warwick is the more suitable course.

Reply 13

Mr. Roxas

I realized Life Sciences (where Biomedical Science is under) at Warwick has the least entry standard, but it's ABB, not BBB -- http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/apply/entry/2011/#lifesci

Reply 14

benji385

Thanks for your help gays! But I'm going to choose birmingham as I heard only good things about its physics dept. and it is only about 30 minutes from where I live

Reply 15

BBakiyev-544

A. Rankings can serve as an indicator of a university’s academic reputation and research impact.
1. Times Higher Education (THE) 2025:

•

University of Birmingham: Ranked 93rd

•

University of Warwick: Ranked 106th

2. QS World University Rankings 2025:

•

University of Birmingham: Ranked 80th

•

University of Warwick: Ranked 69th

The rankings highlight each university's strengths, with Birmingham taking a higher position in THE, while Warwick scores slightly better in the QS rankings.

B. Another factor that reflects a university’s prestige and research power is the number of Nobel laureates associated with it:

•

University of Birmingham: 11 Nobel Prize winners

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University of Warwick: 2 Nobel Prize winners

With a significantly higher number of Nobel laureates, Birmingham has a historical edge in producing world-renowned researchers and contributing to groundbreaking discoveries.

C. Also, lifestyle is a critical part of the university experience, and Birmingham and Warwick offer distinctly different settings:

•

University of Birmingham: Located in Birmingham, the UK’s second-largest city, this university provides an energetic, cosmopolitan atmosphere.

•

University of Warwick: Warwick’s campus is situated near Coventry with more of a town-like feel.

So, if you prefer a dynamic, metropolitan experience, the University of Birmingham, with its vibrant city backdrop, might be the perfect choice. Otherwise, if you lean towards a quieter, campus-centered environment, the University of Warwick’s townlike feel could be more your style.