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Bath or Cardiff university

I have offers to study pharmacy from both Cardiff and Bath, and can't decide which to go to.

Both are ranked very highly for pharmacy, but Cardiff is marginally higher, however Bath seems to have a better ranking overall.
Both require the same grades
Bath is slightly closer to home but still far away
Cardiff is a bigger city and might be more similar to what I am used to, as I live in London.

Can anyone give me any advice?
(edited 1 year ago)

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I have offers to study pharmacy from both Cardiff and Bath, and can't decide which to go to.

Both are ranked very highly for pharmacy, but Cardiff is marginally higher, however Bath seems to have a better ranking overall.
Both require the same grades
Bath is slightly closer to home but still far away
Cardiff is a bigger city and might be more similar to what I am used to, as I live in London.

Can anyone give me any advice?

Seriously don't look into rankings at all. In practice for most undergraduate degrees I'd argue rankings make no material difference to the student experience.

Cardiff is probably slightly cheaper to live in than Bath - so factor that in too.

I would focus on the course specifically - does one give you a bit more flexibility and choice than the other? Or are they both quite rigid in their structure and compulsory content?
Reply 2
Original post by 04MR17
Seriously don't look into rankings at all. In practice for most undergraduate degrees I'd argue rankings make no material difference to the student experience.

Cardiff is probably slightly cheaper to live in than Bath - so factor that in too.

I would focus on the course specifically - does one give you a bit more flexibility and choice than the other? Or are they both quite rigid in their structure and compulsory content?

a pharmacy degree is the same in every university in the UK, and there is no choice in terms of content and modules, as far as I am aware
a pharmacy degree is the same in every university in the UK, and there is no choice in terms of content and modules, as far as I am aware


It depends whether you want a really lovely small city Bath or more of a bigger city with a real city feel in Cardiff. Bath is a real campus university whereas the Cardiff accommodation is a walk away. There is no major difference in terms of travel from London especially be train. Only you can decide on this.
For Pharmacy, rankings are totally meaningless.- all UK MPharm degrees are accredited by the GPhC and have exactly the same syllabus. And the NHS is not going to care about 'which Uni' - and neither will your patients.

Where will you feel most comfortable? Have a look on YouTube for Campus Tour / Open Day films - and the tourist films for each place.
a pharmacy degree is the same in every university in the UK, and there is no choice in terms of content and modules, as far as I am aware

You're right, I phrased badly. There isn't choice, but there is a different way to package the course and you might find one better for you than the other.

Also worth noting that Bath are current undergoing re-acccreditation from the GPhC. I'd be very surprised if they weren't re-accredited - but it is worth bearing that in mind a tiny bit as doing a course which is not accredited would not be ideal to progress into the field.
Original post by 04MR17

Also worth noting that Bath are current undergoing re-accreditation from the GPhC. I'd be very surprised if they weren't re-accredited


Bath won't loose it accreditation - the GPhC have just asked Bath to run the new MPharm course at Plymouth.
Original post by McGinger
Bath won't loose it accreditation - the GPhC have just asked Bath to run the new MPharm course at Plymouth.

PRSOM - thank you - didn't know that detail :smile:
Original post by 04MR17
You're right, I phrased badly. There isn't choice, but there is a different way to package the course and you might find one better for you than the other.

Also worth noting that Bath are current undergoing re-acccreditation from the GPhC. I'd be very surprised if they weren't re-accredited - but it is worth bearing that in mind a tiny bit as doing a course which is not accredited would not be ideal to progress into the field.


Why they need to re-accreditation from the GPhC?!
Original post by Ehsanraya
Why they need to re-accreditation from the GPhC?!
McGinger explained that in their post :wink:
Original post by Ehsanraya
Why they need to re-accreditation from the GPhC?!


All Uni/course accreditation is for a specific number of years - and they then have to be re-inspected to retain the accreditation. So, nothing unusual at all.
Original post by McGinger
All Uni/course accreditation is for a specific number of years - and they then have to be re-inspected to retain the accreditation. So, nothing unusual at all.


Thanks for the explanation 🙏
I have offers to study pharmacy from both Cardiff and Bath, and can't decide which to go to.

Both are ranked very highly for pharmacy, but Cardiff is marginally higher, however Bath seems to have a better ranking overall.
Both require the same grades
Bath is slightly closer to home but still far away
Cardiff is a bigger city and might be more similar to what I am used to, as I live in London.

Can anyone give me any advice?

hi what did you end up choosing?
I have offers to study pharmacy from both Cardiff and Bath, and can't decide which to go to.

Both are ranked very highly for pharmacy, but Cardiff is marginally higher, however Bath seems to have a better ranking overall.
Both require the same grades
Bath is slightly closer to home but still far away
Cardiff is a bigger city and might be more similar to what I am used to, as I live in London.

Can anyone give me any advice?

Hi there,

Deciding from here can be tough and there are lots of factors to think about. I can’t speak much on Cardiff but I can give you some information about Bath.

I would recommend taking a look at the course specifically for each university. You can see which modules you will be studying and this may help sway your decision if you see anything particular you like. Bath also has an amazing placement programme so you will have the opportunity to work throughout your course in pharmacy and get some industry experience.

Bath has a huge amount of facilities from sports (state of the art gym, football pitches, tennis courts, Olympic swimming pool etc.), to arts department (art studio, dance studio, theatre etc). There are design studios, cafes and restaurants, a . There amazing societies which you can join for free, over 300 so you're sure to find something you'll enjoy!

Bath also offers great support services to students. Personally I have received both financial and wellbeing support from bath so I can definitely say the university looks out for its students in every way possible and is welcoming to absolutely everyone. It is easy, discreet and free to book onto wellbeing sessions and the university then advises on next steps when needed.

You should also look outside of the university. The town is beautiful with historical landmarks, easy transport (within the town and from the centre to the university is only 10 minutes on the bus) and lots of activities going on. If you want the big city, Bristol is only around the corner too!

Good luck with your decision!
Sophie
Reply 14
Original post by tsracclol1
hi what did you end up choosing?
cardiff :smile:
Reply 15
cardiff :smile:

heyy i’ve firmed cardiff for pharmacy, are u enjoying it?
Reply 16
Original post by charlmay5
heyy i’ve firmed cardiff for pharmacy, are u enjoying it?

yes! the city is lovely and there’s loads to do there. the course defo has less contact hours than i expected in 1st year and quite a lot of lectures you have to do yourself online, but you get used to it, overall i’m enjoying it :smile:
Reply 17
yes! the city is lovely and there’s loads to do there. the course defo has less contact hours than i expected in 1st year and quite a lot of lectures you have to do yourself online, but you get used to it, overall i’m enjoying it :smile:
yayy that’s reassuring
how many hours per week would u say?
Reply 18
Original post by charlmay5
yayy that’s reassuring
how many hours per week would u say?

it really varies, it’s only about 9-15 hours a week in first year, not including placements. The rest of the time is very heavy with self-guided online learning. I haven’t included additional optional drop in sessions in this either :smile:
Reply 19
it really varies, it’s only about 9-15 hours a week in first year, not including placements. The rest of the time is very heavy with self-guided online learning. I haven’t included additional optional drop in sessions in this either :smile:

oh shi that’s way less than i thought, thank u for getting back to me

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