Loughborough or Nottingham trent pros and cons

Hiya, nearly decision time for me..
But i can't decide which one I would rather go out of these two unis
I am going to study fine art and I was wondering if anyone of you out there could help me way up the pros and cons of both unis

cons and pros. like based on, student life, course, nightlife, su, just overall enjoyment.
If you have been to either one it will be great to hear if you have enjoyed it :smile:

thank you

Reply 1

lydiahope

I am in the exact same dilemma! I didn't get to go to open days for either course before I applied, but the impression that I got from the interview days was quite different... At trent there was a real buzz of creativity around the building I thought, but I was worried that the course would be too conceptual/installation art for me... I kind of had my hopes set on Loughborough, and seeing as it's scored a lot higher in the league tables I was expecting it to be amazing, but I was really disappointed! The studio space looked great, and the work seemed a bit more traditional, but then when I've been to the applicant visit day this weekend, and it seemed to me that as a university, if you're not doing sport, they don't really care... and the school of the arts seems to me to be quite separated from the rest of the uni? So I am quite stuck, but I think I'm leaning back towards trent, but then that might just be because I already have friends there!
Have you been to look around both art departments?

Reply 2

NatashaL

Original post by sarah.gregory

thank you

I live in nottingham and loughborough
I spend all my time in both towns and nottingham is by far the better uni
lough is really good for sport but nottingham would be much more better for doing fine art..
trent uni is a really nice university
Nightlife.. well nottingham is 10000% more better than lough, there's only 3/4 good clubs and bars in loughborough..
Shopping wise there's literally a new look topshop and dorethy perkins

Don't want to put you off Lough but I would recommend Nottingham Trent!

Reply 3

kate16

I visited Loughborough a couple of weeks ago for an open day, it truly is an amazing campus with lots of sports to get involved in all in one place! If you do do sports outside of education then id definitely go to Loughborough! However if your not interested in sport then i kinda got the feeling that i would be bored all the time because that was literally all there was to do on campus :/ also because loughborough is a town there wasnt that much to do i.e places to go on nights out, shopping etc however the students union was huge! it had loads of bars inside and apparently they put on nights out for students there which are really cheap! just depends if youd get bored of the same night out allll the time! As for nottingham, it is an amazing city with great shopping and the nightlife is sooo good! theres sooo many students around and has such a good atmosphere! Trent is also a really nice uni, very modern and based right in the city centre! If it were my choice id definitely go for Nottingham Trent uni to study fine art but it just depends what your personal preferences are on what you want a uni to offer.

Reply 4

Alxndra

I'm at Loughborough and whilst I don't do fine art, I certainly have no interest in sport whatsoever. Yeah a lot of sport goes on and it's a big part of hall spirit but there isn't a lack of things to do.

The town is ok, not many shops but Leicester is only a 10 minute train away and Derby and Nottingham are quite close too.

The nightlife is pretty good considering it's a small town. There are three big nights on at the union weekly, Tuesdays being really cheap, but no night is expensive (2.50 for spirit doubles). It's also convenient as it's about a 10 minute walk from the student village so you never need to get a taxi back.

There are about 4-5 night clubs and quite a few more bars in the town.. there's definitely enough to do. It may be a town as opposed to a city, but it has won best student experience for multiple years. It can't be bad if they have to please thousands of students each year.

However, saying that, if you really so prefer city nightlife, the convenience of being near shopping centres, better transport links, then Loughborough probably won't meet your expectations. I love it though :smile:

Reply 5

Jamie-mayyy

Original post by sarah.gregory

thank you

Hey

have you decided which uni you are going too? I've just accepted my uncondtional offer for Nottingham Trent to study Fine Art! Hope you chose Nottingham...can't find anyone doing Fine Art yet ahh! :smile:

Reply 6

Imelda

Original post by sarah.gregory

thank you

Hey! I went to LUSAD and the school itself is brilliant, huge studios, access to a lot of gucci workshops and great lecturers. There's a real nice cohesive approach between departments too. The Student Union is also really good and boffins have spent a fortune on it in recent years. The night life in the town is ok but it's a smallish place so choice is limited by it's overall size, there are some nice bars though. Undergrads tend go to the union because they genuinely do a good night out and it kind of makes the experience. I really enjoyed my degree and meet some lovely people.

I've also been to Trent (postgrad/ non arts) and love Nottingham. The SU isn't as good, no where near in fact but frankly there is a whole city to play in so that kind of makes up for. They run comparable courses and I've heard good things about their art school but honestly I'd recommend visiting, they are both great places to be.

Ps. I love Nottingham so much I'm going back in Sept to do my PGCE. I am a little biased.

Good luck with your decision.

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Reply 7

sarah.gregory

Made my decision guys thanks for your help! Chosen Loughborough as my firm and Nottingham Trent as my insurance. Wish me luck! :smile:

Reply 8

rcummins1

Original post by sarah.gregory

Made my decision guys thanks for your help! Chosen Loughborough as my firm and Nottingham Trent as my insurance. Wish me luck! :smile:

You make a wise decision my Young Padawan. Loughborough's awesome.

Reply 9

sarah.gregory

Original post by rcummins1

You make a wise decision my Young Padawan. Loughborough's awesome.

I hope it is :smile:

Are you at Loughborough?

Reply 10

rcummins1

Original post by sarah.gregory

I hope it is :smile:

Are you at Loughborough?

Indeed I am. Some of the locals are a little odd, but you'll get use to them. Once saw a guy in Natwest with an eye-patch on :lolwut:

Reply 11

sarah.gregory

Original post by rcummins1

Indeed I am. Some of the locals are a little odd, but you'll get use to them. Once saw a guy in Natwest with an eye-patch on :lolwut:

Pirate! haha! What are you studying? and what year are you in? :smile:

Reply 12

rcummins1

Original post by sarah.gregory

Pirate! haha! What are you studying? and what year are you in? :smile:

Did a year of chemical engineering, then changed over to sports n exercise science with management. So im in my 2nd year, but also my first at the same time :borat:

Reply 13

sarah.gregory

Original post by rcummins1

Did a year of chemical engineering, then changed over to sports n exercise science with management. So im in my 2nd year, but also my first at the same time :borat:

Awesome! must be enjoying it to do two courses there ;P
Gonna quiz you now anything I should know before I join? Like Halls of residence? :P

Reply 14

rcummins1

Original post by sarah.gregory

Awesome! must be enjoying it to do two courses there ;P
Gonna quiz you now anything I should know before I join? Like Halls of residence? :P

I'd definitely try and get into a self-catered hall if I were you, unless you enjoy eating potatoes three times a day. They're also much better value for money, due to the fact that some of the catered halls only cater Mon-Fri, meaning you still have to buy food for the weekend, and those halls usually have tiny fridges and basic cooking equipment. Unfortunately, when you apply for halls you can't pick a specific hall, rather you fill out a load of preferences like "Location on campus", "En-suite", "Catered" and they'll pick a couple for you based on availability and what course you're doing etc.