English Literature: King's College London vs. Exeter

I've received offers from both KCL and Exeter to study English, however i'm really struggling to choose which uni I should go to and was wondering if anyone would be able to offer any advice or anything about their own experiences, though I appreciate it is very subjective!

I live in the Cambridge area so Exeter is much further away than London, which is something to consider, and the distance had been an issue in the past as it had worried me being so far from home. I feel that living in London would also offer so many more opportunities, and there is so much more going on which really appeals to me, and I have always said that living in London is what I want to do, so based on this I would choose London in an instant, especially for English as it is such a cultural hub.

However, in terms of the course I much prefer Exeter and the modules they offer, and they have 10 hours of contact a week, compared to Kings' 8. Exeter is 5/6th on the league table for english, compared to Kings (14th) and from what I understand student satisfaction is also much higher at Exeter. So in terms of the academic side, I think Exeter is a lot stronger, although both are amazing universities and a degree from either will take me far.

Basically, my concern about Kings is the lack of a community feel as students will be scattered all over London and I have heard that some people feel like they're not really at a university because of this, and from when I started looking at university options I always thought I wanted more of a community. I also don't really like the course as much, though I still do like it and when I went to the applicant day it did sound really good, but I'm just less enthusiastic about it. My concern with Exeter is the lack of things to be doing, especially when I compare it with London; I'm not from a big city like London and Cambridge is probably more similar to what Exeter will be like, however maybe its time to push myself beyond this 'bubble'? Kings will offer more connections which will be far more useful for career prospects, which I hope to pursue in something like publishing.

I've pretty much gone around in circles with this decision but I obviously need to make my mind up relatively soon, i'm just finding it really difficult! Thank you in advance for any responses.

Reply 1

starshine909

kcl

King's College London

London

Reply 2

efemel

I personally think your experience at KCL depends heavily on what accommodation you get. You won't feel much of the 'community' aspect if you live out in Stratford, though if you end up getting on really well with the people you live with, maybe this won't matter to you as much.
If it's still the same system as last year then there is no preference and allocation is completely random - so maybe that is a thing to keep in mind.

In terms of wanting to push yourself beyond the 'bubble', going to uni anywhere probably counts as pushing yourself! Exeter may be smaller but it's still a well-known uni with like 20,000 people.

Good luck whichever one you decide :smile:

Reply 3

JustPadz

If you join a sports team at KCL there will be plenty of community feel don't worry about that.

Best thing about London is the opportunities in terms of careers fairs, internships jobs. Think if you got an interview you gotta pay to commute to and from Exeter, as well as give up precious time.

There's also loads to do in London and its really fun

Student Satisfaction and student life is what you make it, generally at all the London Unis student satisfaction is rock bottom, don't ask me why.

In my opinion

Exeter Pros: You like the module choices, more contact hours, more of a community feel to the campus nature of the uni, much cheaper rent
Cons: you live in a boring village lel, less in terms of job opportunities

KCL Pros: Better known uni esp in a global context, way more in terms of careers fairs, interviews insight days etc, much more to do in spare time.
Cons: Less of a community feel unless in sports, mad high rent esp in halls in first year,

English Literature: King's College London vs. Exeter

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