What is york university like?

I'm not a student at York so can't comment much but I do know that out of the unis listed York probably has the lowest public school intake (just behind Leeds). Durham, obviously, has the greatest.

This is a few years old, but it gives a general idea

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4268558.stm

Does it bother you whether there's a significant public school intake?

York's a small city, so you aren't going to get the same number of bars and clubs as in large cities. Personally I'd pick heritage and architecture of a uni over clubs but that's just me. Others can let you know about what the city can offer, and what the uni can offer to compensate.

Reply 2

Poica

14

1. The sort of people that go to york university (quite alot of public school/ state school in comparison to Exeter, durham and Leeds?) Few Public school people, though I do know a few. Not noticably "rah" though.
2. What the course is like A friend of mine did economics and really enjoyed it - can't say first hand
3. Accomadation (i.e do you choose a college or are you place in it and what are the rooms like) You don't choose a college, though you can express a preference. This is rarely listened to, but worth a shot. Rooms vary wildly based on which college (and how much you're paying), but all are decent serviceable rooms. Just don't expect perfection from anywhere, these are student rooms after all.
4. Social life Varied; some clubbing but mostly pubbing. No central SU, but lots of campus bars. Look on other threads in the York forum.
5. CampusConcrete, lake and ducks. I love it. You may not. If you haven't already, it's worth visiting; the atmosphere is not something that can be described. Oh, and everywhere's close together, so it doesn't take long to walk across campus.

Hope that helped.

Reply 3

cullmac

Take a chance, find out.

my experiences and perceptions will be different from other peoples, what i will say however is that York uni students are very laid back and friendly. Dont expect to come to York expecting a fantastic nightlife, but i promise you you wont be bored.
Accomadation is fairly random, you will be mixed with people from all walks of life, and unless you have very hard to please standards you will find any of the rooms fine.

One last note, i know lots of people who are both public and private schooled and it doesnt really make a bit of difference anyway.

Reply 4

binarybelle

What is the difference between a state school and a public school? In the States, they're both the same.

Reply 5

You pay a lot of money to go to public school. State school is free.

Reply 6

binarybelle

What is the difference between a state school and a public school? In the States, they're both the same.

A public school is one that you may call private?

A state school is a school that is funded by the government, where education is free.

A public school is a privately run, fee paying school.

I think the use of "public" is quite archaic. It used to mean a school that was open to any member of the public (providing they could pay the fees of course). This was in contrast to the other schools at the time, relgious schools, which were open to only members of that religion.

It can be confusing. I think the term public school is starting to disappear and is being replaced by private school.

Reply 7

binarybelle

Oh! Here we have public/private. Public is free.

Reply 8

River85

A public school is one that you may call private?

A state school is a school that is funded by the government, where education is free.

A public school is a privately run, fee paying school.

I think the use of "public" is quite archaic. It used to mean a school that was open to any member of the public (providing they could pay the fees of course). This was in contrast to the other schools at the time, relgious schools, which were open to only members of that religion.

It can be confusing. I think the term public school is starting to disappear and is being replaced by private school.

I think a public school means the oldest of the 'private', fee-paying, schools. Ones like Eton.

Reply 9

Yes, as I said, public school's an old term and most just use private now. Public/private is interchangeable over here.

Reply 10

Schokis

I think a public school means the oldest of the 'private', fee-paying, schools. Ones like Eton.

Officially and traditionally I think public school meant the nine old established fee paying schools such as Eton. But now some schools, especially newer ones, prefer to be called independent although the media and general public still refer to the as public schools

I don't usually use wikipedia as reserch but its explanation is decent and fairly accurate

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_schools#England.2C_Wales.2C_.26_Northern_Ireland

Reply 11

I don't think Eton will ever call itself a private school, though. It seems much less elite and prestigious. I don't agree that public/private are interchangeable, either. To think of my local private school calling itself a public school is laughable.

Anyway, there aren't too many public school people about. There's a nice variety of people on campus, actually.

I chose what college I wanted to be in, applied as such (including good reasons why), and was allowed in. So that's nice.

O.P., you should come on a couple of Open Days and check it out.

Reply 12