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Chemistry Research, Durham University
Durham University
Durham

The "Ask a Durham Student" Thread :)

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Was just wondering if many students in their first year have a job ? And is it easy to find one ? :smile:
Chemistry Research, Durham University
Durham University
Durham
Original post by french mouse
Was just wondering if many students in their first year have a job ? And is it easy to find one ? :smile:


Finding a part time job is quite difficult. Durham terms are quite short which makes employers reluctant to hire you. Also, there are a lot of locals who need the job.

Colleges employ people in the bar/shop/snack bar etc. but there never seems to be enough of those jobs for those who want them.
Original post by KayteeKaytee
Finding a part time job is quite difficult. Durham terms are quite short which makes employers reluctant to hire you. Also, there are a lot of locals who need the job.

Colleges employ people in the bar/shop/snack bar etc. but there never seems to be enough of those jobs for those who want them.


Thank you for your answer - even though it's not very reassuring :biggrin:

Another random question I have (sorry) :

I'd really like to join in some theatre (drama ? sorry, I get confused) society, are these specific to colleges, or are some more university related ? (Not sure I'm being very clear...)
Original post by french mouse
Thank you for your answer - even though it's not very reassuring :biggrin:

Another random question I have (sorry) :

I'd really like to join in some theatre (drama ? sorry, I get confused) society, are these specific to colleges, or are some more university related ? (Not sure I'm being very clear...)


I believe there are some theatre companies specific to colleges, and there are also lots of other university-wide societies, for basically whatever type of theatre you're into. There's DST, which is the sort of umbrella society which coordinates a lot of shows put on and is in charge of the assembly rooms (the student theatre), as well as loads of others: see here for more details http://community.dur.ac.uk/student.theatre/page.php?section=about&page=companies
Original post by french mouse
Was just wondering if many students in their first year have a job ? And is it easy to find one ? :smile:


There is also the option to get a job in Newcastle, although it depends how much you want one really. I worked in Newcastle for a year whilst living in Durham in second year, it's quite viable to commute but it depends on where you live in Durham (time to get to station), whether the amount of hours are worth commuting for, etc.
Original post by Antifazian
This means they haven't made a decision yet, and due to it having just been Christmas they may not have looked at it yet. Just make sure you've supplied all the requested documents and be patient :smile:

Thanks. I just hope I get to hear soon. I am an overseas student and I have already missed quite a number of scholarship deadlines.
Original post by Bookler_Natsu
What network are you on?

I'm hoping to be allocated onto a hill college, they're closest to the science site as I'm going to be studying chemistry.
Looks like both of these sites are known for rubbish signals... :cry:

Last time I went there for summer school, I caused a bit of a panic in my family because they couldn't get in touch with me :frown:


Posted from TSR Mobile


I'd agree with everyone else - the location of your college with relation to the science site wont make all that much difference. Apart from Mary's, Grey and Collingwood, the other Hill colleges aren't necessarily that much quicker to get to the science site from anyway. Also until you live out in your second year, pretty much everywhere in Durham will have a travel time (walking) of 'about 15 mins?' as Durham is pretty small and as a first year you wont really have all that much reason to go anywhere outside that radius! :P

With regards to phone signal, I was on T mobile (when it existed) and had a bit of trouble from college (Aidan's), however I'm now on GiffGaff (powered by O2) and haven't had any trouble anywhere in Durham (well apart from in lecture halls, but I do admit lectures aren't really the place to be texting :wink:).
Original post by broog
i'm sure everyone's heard this one before, but I was wondering whether anyone has any regrets about going to Durham because its small? Anyone got a bit bored and wished they'd gone somewhere a bit bigger and more vibrant? thanks


You've had a few replies but I thought I'd add my two cents worth!

I've never regretted coming to Durham. If I had wanted to live in a big city, I wouldn't have lived here. My home town in Hertfordshire is bigger than Durham so I was under no allusions as to its size. However I wanted a University town where I could walk everywhere and really get to know the place. Even in my second year, where I live on the outskirts, with a bike it takes me under 10 minutes to get to lectures. Durham is also incredibly beautiful so the walks are pretty much always enjoyable.

I am the sort of person that enjoys activities that are well catered for by student societies - I take part in orchestras, choirs, St John Ambulance, Archery, Yoga/ Aerobics, swimming and many others when time allows. I prefer pubs to clubs, and Durham has many different kinds of pubs each with their own character, but also has some clubs for other nights out. Newcastle is within such easy reach that if I ever want to go shopping/ clubbing somewhere bigger it's so easy to get to, without having to live in a city in which I tend to feel lost in the crowd. I like the fact that in Durham you can walk anywhere and probably see someone you know on the way. I also know many people who thought they would hate living in such a small place, yet love it. Durham is fairly unusual in being small, yet able to provide such a broad range of activities. :smile:
Hey,

I'm an international applicant, so it's a little hard for me to get a feel of Durham's atmosphere. Which leads me to my question-- what's it like over there?

What political party do most students belong to? Are politics important to many people on campus? What's the normal atmosphere around the school? I imagine that since it's small, there's a kind of homey feel, but I don't know. How do most non-student Durham residents feel about the school?

Thanks for any and all help :smile:
Original post by pianofluteftw
I'd agree with everyone else - the location of your college with relation to the science site wont make all that much difference. Apart from Mary's, Grey and Collingwood, the other Hill colleges aren't necessarily that much quicker to get to the science site from anyway. Also until you live out in your second year, pretty much everywhere in Durham will have a travel time (walking) of 'about 15 mins?' as Durham is pretty small and as a first year you wont really have all that much reason to go anywhere outside that radius! :P

With regards to phone signal, I was on T mobile (when it existed) and had a bit of trouble from college (Aidan's), however I'm now on GiffGaff (powered by O2) and haven't had any trouble anywhere in Durham (well apart from in lecture halls, but I do admit lectures aren't really the place to be texting :wink:).


Ah thanks. I was thinking of moving to t-mobile as well.


Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Tarahia
Hey,

I'm an international applicant, so it's a little hard for me to get a feel of Durham's atmosphere. Which leads me to my question-- what's it like over there?

What political party do most students belong to? Are politics important to many people on campus? What's the normal atmosphere around the school? I imagine that since it's small, there's a kind of homey feel, but I don't know. How do most non-student Durham residents feel about the school?

Thanks for any and all help :smile:


Durham is a fairly unique place. It is very small for a city, and a large proportion of the population are students or employees at the university. This creates what is typically known as the 'Durham Bubble' - it can sometimes feel like living in the university is like living outside of the real world as you spend most of your time interacting with people connected to the university. The atmosphere tends to be very friendly and inclusive - the college system helps people to get to know a wide range of people much quicker than at other universities. And the city is enormously beautiful. I've really loved my time here and love the city a lot.

I have found the local (non university) population to be very friendly (there's a saying that people in the North of England are much more friendly than in the South) and I've got on with everyone I've met just fine. There are stories about when the local population and the university population didn't get on, a 'town and gown' style warfare but for the most part everyone is very nice. There is a bit of a reputation that the university is 'posher' than the surrounding area, but I've been here for 3 years now and have never experienced any difficulties with people.

Durham has a wide variety of political views. It has a bit of a reputation for being filled with people who went to private schools (ie. paid for their education) and thus are often seen as being more Centre Right on the political spectrum or Conservative. However this is not always the case and Durham has very active members of almost all political parties, including Labour, the Green Party and those who believe in socialist or communist reform. The local area is a Labour majority.Some people care about politics a lot, others don't at all and probably wouldn't even want to commit to a party. I've met people from across the political spectrum here. Durham is good in that whatever your level of interest in almost anything, there will be a place for you and like minded people somewhere!

Any other questions feel free to ask.
How easy is it to get to know people from other colleges? What I mean is: do you spend a lot of time within your own college/with the members of your college?


Posted from TSR Mobile
Does anyone here row for their college? It's something I would love to do at uni but worry it would be too much of a commitment?

Also, how is participation in sport in general - do you have to be really good or are there more recreational opportunities?

I've applied to Collingwood which I hear has a pretty sporty reputation so it would be interesting to know whether this is just for the really good sportspeople!
Original post by nomdeplumeX2
Does anyone here row for their college? It's something I would love to do at uni but worry it would be too much of a commitment?

Also, how is participation in sport in general - do you have to be really good or are there more recreational opportunities?

I've applied to Collingwood which I hear has a pretty sporty reputation so it would be interesting to know whether this is just for the really good sportspeople!

Because of the collegiate system, if you are keen and interested you can probably get involved in sport. You don't have to be that good. Durham is quite famous in general for its sports teams - but that applies more at a University level. With perhaps one or two exceptions there are no college teams that are of a consistently very high standard.

Rowing is a big commitment. What degree are you going to be studying? I think it's nice to give rowing a go due to the social aspect and for trying it out, but certainly people who take it seriously really don't do much else at all.
Original post by shaken-pine
How easy is it to get to know people from other colleges? What I mean is: do you spend a lot of time within your own college/with the members of your college?


Posted from TSR Mobile

It depends partially on how sociable you are. But generally your friendship group will be mostly people from your college and then people you run into through your course or through University extra circulars. But I'd say most friendships are intra-collegiate - it's inevitable that you will mostly make friends with people you eat and live near, I think that would be the case at most Universities.
Original post by shaken-pine
How easy is it to get to know people from other colleges? What I mean is: do you spend a lot of time within your own college/with the members of your college?


Posted from TSR Mobile


It depends on how much of an effort you make to do so. If you join some more university-wide societies, talk to people around your lectures, have an active seminar group and things like that, it's very easy. I have some of my closest friends here in other colleges, and next year, I'm living with two of them (each of us from a different college). But it tends to be that people do make most of their friends from within college, particularly with Freshers being held in colleges mostly so the first people you will meet and get close to are those in your college and on your course, because those are who you spend the most time with. In-college societies are also a great way to get to know people from your college too with similar interests. And they're certainly more conveniently placed if you want to see them! But if you want to branch out and have friends other than those in college, it's very easy to do so.
Original post by nomdeplumeX2
Does anyone here row for their college? It's something I would love to do at uni but worry it would be too much of a commitment?

Also, how is participation in sport in general - do you have to be really good or are there more recreational opportunities?

I've applied to Collingwood which I hear has a pretty sporty reputation so it would be interesting to know whether this is just for the really good sportspeople!


Collingwood does have a sporty reputation but that's not just because they win things. They encourage people to do some sport (but not to the point where it's pressure). I knew someone who was the least sporty person I know who played for the 5th netball team. They just kept creating teams until they ran out of people who wanted to play (think it went higher than 5). Most hadn't played for years.
Original post by shaken-pine
How easy is it to get to know people from other colleges? What I mean is: do you spend a lot of time within your own college/with the members of your college?


Posted from TSR Mobile


As already said, most of your friends will be people you meet in your college. You'll get to know the people in your college who are on your course (they may be college "siblings") and may walk to lectures with them. You'll get to know people on your course through tutorials, labs etc. If you're on a course that has trips (Geography etc.) you'll get to know people on your course a lot better because you'll be staying away from home with them. People also make really good friends with people who do the same activities/societies.

The answer is - it varies a lot but your friends will mainly be in your college. People form strong relationships which you may keep for the rest of your life.
Original post by Llewellyn
Because of the collegiate system, if you are keen and interested you can probably get involved in sport. You don't have to be that good. Durham is quite famous in general for its sports teams - but that applies more at a University level. With perhaps one or two exceptions there are no college teams that are of a consistently very high standard.

Rowing is a big commitment. What degree are you going to be studying? I think it's nice to give rowing a go due to the social aspect and for trying it out, but certainly people who take it seriously really don't do much else at


Awesome! I already row about 3 times a week but I don't think I would want to commit to more than that!

Original post by KayteeKaytee
Collingwood does have a sporty reputation but that's not just because they win things. They encourage people to do some sport (but not to the point where it's pressure). I knew someone who was the least sporty person I know who played for the 5th netball team. They just kept creating teams until they ran out of people who wanted to play (think it went higher than 5). Most hadn't played for years.


That's great - just the sort of thing I was hoping haha!!
Is it worth taking a bike to Durham? I've heard it's quite hilly so does anyone here actually cycle about or know anyone that does? Also what is the public transport like? Could you just take a bus if you have to go a long distance?

Thanks! :biggrin:
Original post by paperjar
Is it worth taking a bike to Durham? I've heard it's quite hilly so does anyone here actually cycle about or know anyone that does? Also what is the public transport like? Could you just take a bus if you have to go a long distance?

Thanks! :biggrin:


Lots of people cycle, it's not so hilly that you can't do so. Durham is so small there's no need for public transport, especially if you have a Bike.

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