Intercollegiate Halls - University of London

OP

kingslaw

Visited the intercollegiate halls on Sunday, as well as all the Kings accomodation (minus Wolfson House and Kings College Hall).

All the intercollegiate accomodation was nice. However, I think Huges-Parry, Canterbury and Commonwealth were especially nice. The only thing that sways me towards these three is that they are all next to each other in a very nice part of London with their own private park with tennis courts just opposite. The main advantage of having three halls (and a fourth, Connaught about five minutes away) next to each other is that it gave the local environment a slightly more vibrant, studenty edge which the other halls may lack. The area, although still looking very posh and gentrified, had some dirt cheap bookshops and cafe's (full english breakfast for £1.50) to cater for the students that lived their. This is something that other halls such as College and International may lack.

However, all the halls were very nice and I'm sure anyone ending up in any of them would be very happy as they all had a great atmosphere. Then again, maybe the glorious sunshine enjoyed on Sunday when I visited them gave me a tinted image of them all!

The only decision I've got to make is whether I want catered or not. If not, then I'll be going for Great Dover St or Brian Creamer House.

What about the accomodation? Which one had the biggest rooms, best bathrooms ect.? How many ppl to a bathroom in the intercol halls?
If you choose catered, which one is the best?
Oh, and one more thing :smile:

, are Hughes Parry, Canterbury and Commonwealth connected?

Reply 22

OP

And another thing, did you visit Kings College Hall? If so, how would you compare it to the intercols?

Reply 23

Rikku

What about the accomodation? Which one had the biggest rooms, best bathrooms ect.? How many ppl to a bathroom in the intercol halls?
If you choose catered, which one is the best?
Oh, and one more thing :smile:

, are Hughes Parry, Canterbury and Commonwealth connected?

Unfortunately, it's very difficult to get a tour of the residential part of the halls as you have to be lucky enough for a student to come up to you and offer you a tour of their room. For this reason I only saw the rooms in Nutford (which were reasonable sized - bigger than the Stamford St rooms anyhow) where a kind girl (AND HOT! - sorry) gave me a tour. Most of the time I just saw the common areas and dining halls.

With regards to which one is best for catered, I'd say either Hughes Parry, Canterbury or Commonwealth on the basis of their location (bear in mind I'll be at Kings Law School, so I'm gonna need to get to the Strand and Waterloo daily). In the other departments, there really is very little to chose between them, apart from the fact that Nutford seemed a bit quieter than the others. They all looked well looked after and modern on the inside (on the outside, some looked quite old and grand).

Finally, yes, Canterbury, Hughes Parry and Commonwealth are all connected, which I think is a great advantage as those halls seemed to be a bit more lively than the others.

Reply 24

Rikku

And another thing, did you visit Kings College Hall? If so, how would you compare it to the intercols?

I didnt visit Kings College Hall. Sorry.

Reply 25

OP

Thanx a lot..I'm probably choosing one of the three intercols you said..I'll be at the Strand too.. :smile:

Do you have an unconditional offer for law at kings...?

Reply 26

Rikku

Thanx a lot..I'm probably choosing one of the three intercols you said..I'll be at the Strand too.. :smile:

Do you have an unconditional offer for law at kings...?

Pff...I wish! Its AAB or bust for me. On the basis of the practice paper I've just done at home, it looks like it could be bust!

Reply 27

OP

I have BBB for War Studies... (which seems easy, but...)
You guys can at least retake your A-levels, but in the Czech rep. you can't(retake the final exams)...and plus the exams are like a lottery.. :frown:

Reply 28

otnemem

It really depends upon which college u'll be attending with the only exception probably being UCL - most of the IHs are located within 5 mins walking distance of UC.

Intercollegiate hall appears brilliant from the outside: they just remade the entrance - looks quite appealing. The rooms have also been recently refurbished. However, there are several problems - the corridors, laundry rooms and most bathrooms are a disgrace - I keep on hearing horrendous stories from some friends who live there. The rooms, however new and shiny, are quite small, perhaps too small for the 112 quid per week - my friends don't even know where to put their suitcases because of lack of space.
I also hear fascinatingly unpleasant stories about the food..uhm. Oh.. and it's located next to one of the ugliest buildings in central london - the Brusnwick centre - it oozes squalor, though there is a relatively big safeway + few take always. It's close to Russell Square Tube which facilitates movements and it is 2 mins away from leafy Russell and Tavistock squares + a soccer pitch and tennis courses right in front of the hall.

I'm in a UCL hall now - it's brand new and the rooms are probably twice the size of those at IH - however I must say that it lacks the atmosphere you have in intercollegiate halls - so you are doing the right thing applying to IH.

Reply 29

OP

( Did you mean International hall? )
Wow, that's the kind of review I've been waiting for..thanx.. :smile:

Do you know anything about Hughes and Canterbury ????

Reply 30

otnemem

yeah sorry I meant International hall...about canterbury all I know is that it has a wonderful park-like square in front.. adjacent to tavistock square - hence quite close other intercollegiate halls (connaught, international, college, commonwealth etc.). My girlfriend's brother, who is hoping to come to ucl, obviously did some research about his accommodation for next year and concluded that canterbury was the best choice. The rooms appear to be a bit more human-sized than in International - and they have all been recently refurbished. Oh, and unlike international hall where there are no en-suite rooms, canterbury does have a few with their own bathrooms and the rest share a bathroom between two - so even if you don't manage to secure an en-suite room it should be ok.

Oh, you should also consider nutford house - the location is great and the rooms are quite big - definitely bigger than International and plausibly bigger than canterbury/hughes - though not as new.

Ah yeah and in most halls whether collegiate or intercollegiate - you can get broadband internet for the whole year for 60 quid - true bargain - though keep in mind that in intercollegiate halls they tend to be quite fussy about p2p etc...in ucl halls this problem does not arise - I have been downloading a myriad of files since September and no one has told me off yet.

Reply 31

OP

Like why should they have a problem with p2p? Too much traffic on the broadband or what? 60 quid=60 pounds? :confused:

Reply 32

OP

So I'm probably choosing Hughes Parry, Canterbury and International Hall...
Thanx everyone for the help

Reply 33

Rikku

So I'm probably choosing Hughes Parry, Canterbury and International Hall...
Thanx everyone for the help

Good choice! Still havent decided whether I want catered or not yet. If I choose catered, I may be seeing you next year!

Reply 34

OP

Go for catered.. >> get to know more ppl at the cantines AND you don't have to cook :biggrin:

Reply 35

Rikku

Go for catered.. >> get to know more ppl at the cantines AND you don't have to cook :biggrin:

Yeah, but shite food. Then again I aint fussy.

Reply 36

Out of interest, does anyone know what the rules are about having guests round to stay at the intercollegiate halls? My girlfriends planning to make many trips in the year and was wandering whether she'll actually be allowed to stay with me, or whether I'll have to pay extra?

Reply 37

mobbdeeprob

Sneak her in under cover of darkness, :wink:

Reply 38