Official 2020 LSE Bankside Hall Thread

Hey guys, made this thread because I thought it would be cool to get to know each other before we start.
Any questions down below about Bankside, LSE accommodations, London social life or anything in general, feel free to ask. I have a few friends at LSE in all years that can answer anything!

Reply 1

Anonymous #1

Pros and Cons of Bankside?

London School of Economics

London

Reply 2

Anonymous #1

How do you think you would manage expenses in London?? Coz rn i feel like im going to be broke!

Reply 3

bukky5656

Original post by Anonymous

Pros and Cons of Bankside?

Hey, so even though I am not there yet, after asking people who have been there, here is the list I have compiled.

Pros:
-Nice big rooms
-Most rooms are en-suite and the en-suites are quite nice
-Some people say the location is not really nice because it's in the South but I've heard a lot of people say its really nice and frankly, I agree.
-Really sociable, probably the most sociable halls. A lot of other students from different accoms come to Bankside to chill and hang out because it's the most sociable
-Really big and diverse, there's both internationals and home students here so it's a great mix
-Catered food is pretty calm
-You can bring your own fridge (but there's a termly charge of £20)

Cons:
-Really expensive, if you don't know how to budget, you will become broke quickly.
-It's quite a walk from LSE tbh (like 20-25mins), which sucks if you don't want to spend money on bus fare
-Due to it being really big, there isn't really a shared sense of community, which could mean there might be some cliques and you may feel out of place often
-Some may say the area isn't as nice as the other halls
-Due to how sociable it is, it may get a bit rowdy and this probably would be annoying if you're trying to work or something
-The kitchens aren't great. They are small and have to share it with about 20-40 people! You can barely make anything apart from basic pasta or something so that kinda sucks if you don't want to always be buying lunch and dinners on Saturdays.

Reply 4

bukky5656

Original post by Anonymous

How do you think you would manage expenses in London?? Coz rn i feel like im going to be broke!

Yeah I understand, I feel the same staying at Bankside.
However, I would say walk wherever you can and if you can. Bankside walk is like 25-30 mins and personally, I say if it's no longer than 30 mins, I can walk it. Therefore, you save money on bus fare because to get there by bus, there is only like a 5 mins difference from walking.
Also, meal prep. Especially if you live in London, which I do. LSE is only like 40 mins on the train away from my house and I fully intend to go back home and meal prep as much as I can. My family often buy things in bulk, like pasta and rice and chicken and instead of buying it and taking it with me, I would probably just go take some off them lol! But also, whilst I'm in the area, I'd probably do my grocery shopping there because it's way cheaper than shopping in central. But yeah i think if you can know how to handle your money in terms with food and travel especially, you will be fine. And apply for bursaries!

Reply 5

Anonymous #2

I heard Bankside is majority Indian. Is this true?
(there is nothing wrong with Indians)

Reply 6

bukky5656

Hey, so no that’s not true from what i’ve heard. Apparently Bankside is extremely diverse, there’s both home students and international students, there isn’t a dominant group there