culture at university of exeter penryn campus

hi everyone! i'm an international student looking to study in the uk. i've applied to university of exeter as i really like the course content, but i've heard that the university is extremely "white" (more so than other unis) and that people can be quite snobby? i'm not sure how much to believe this but i'm a little worried given that i'll be very visibly part of a racial minority. plus, most if not all of what i've heard has been from people studying at either the streatham or st luke's campus, so i was wondering if anyone who's studied or is currently studying at the penryn campus could share more about how the culture is like at the penryn campus? thank you!

Reply 1

UniofExeter Rep

Official Rep

Hi, it is great to hear that you are interested in the University of Exeter. I am sorry to hear you have some worries about how you might fit in, but completely understand why this is the case. As with the South West more broadly the University of Exeter doesn't have the most diverse population in the country. However, we do have students and academics from over 150 countries studying with us. Our students have a range of interests which can be evidenced through the 150 different societies based at our Penryn Campus too: Sports & Societies It is also worth noting that this is a shared location with Falmouth University, a specialist arts institution which does also provide more of a mix of people on this campus.

All this said I know you are really looking for a current students perspective. Hopefully someone will get back to you on here, but in the meantime I would recommend using our ask a current student messaging service. We have students from all of our campuses who I am sure would be very happy to provide you with their experiences which I hope will be more informative for you as you make your decision on where to study.

I hope this is useful - do let me know if you have any other specific questions or concerns I can help with.

Melody
University of Exeter Student Recruitment Team

Reply 2

Anonymous #1

Original post by UniofExeter Rep

Hi, it is great to hear that you are interested in the University of Exeter. I am sorry to hear you have some worries about how you might fit in, but completely understand why this is the case. As with the South West more broadly the University of Exeter doesn't have the most diverse population in the country. However, we do have students and academics from over 150 countries studying with us. Our students have a range of interests which can be evidenced through the 150 different societies based at our Penryn Campus too: Sports & Societies It is also worth noting that this is a shared location with Falmouth University, a specialist arts institution which does also provide more of a mix of people on this campus.
All this said I know you are really looking for a current students perspective. Hopefully someone will get back to you on here, but in the meantime I would recommend using our ask a current student messaging service. We have students from all of our campuses who I am sure would be very happy to provide you with their experiences which I hope will be more informative for you as you make your decision on where to study.
I hope this is useful - do let me know if you have any other specific questions or concerns I can help with.
Melody
University of Exeter Student Recruitment Team

hi, thank you so much for the reply! i'll definitely check out the messaging service :smile:

Reply 3

ExeterStudentRep

Official Rep

Hi @Anonymous #1,

I just thought I'd add to Melody's answer as a student here myself!

In my experience, the student community at Exeter is very diverse and there are students from all different backgrounds. We celebrate having students from lots of different backgrounds and cultures, as it makes our learning environment exciting and diverse, and also means you get to meet really interesting people. I've made friends with people who have come from different countries, religions, education backgrounds etc and everyone I have met has been extremely friendly and welcoming. Of course, to an extent there is a proportion of students from private school backgrounds and as Melody said we don't have the most diverse population in the country, but I have found everyone to be really friendly and inclusive.

It's also worth mentioning that every student has to take a Equality, Diversity & Inclusion training module when starting at the University to ensure that everyone feels welcome and included at our University and that all our students have a foundational understanding of these key issues. There’s also a dedicated channel to report behaviours such as harassment, bullying, intimidation, and discrimination, no matter how big or small, so everyone can feel supported here. You can have a look at this webpage if you’d like to learn more: http://www.exeter.ac.uk/speakout/

As Melody also mentioned, there are plenty of societies, which are a great way to meet people with similar interests as well as people from similar backgrounds.

I hope this helps and let me know if you have any other questions.

Sophie
University of Exeter Student Ambassador

Reply 4

Anonymous #1

Original post by ExeterStudentRep

Hi @Anonymous #1,
I just thought I'd add to Melody's answer as a student here myself!
In my experience, the student community at Exeter is very diverse and there are students from all different backgrounds. We celebrate having students from lots of different backgrounds and cultures, as it makes our learning environment exciting and diverse, and also means you get to meet really interesting people. I've made friends with people who have come from different countries, religions, education backgrounds etc and everyone I have met has been extremely friendly and welcoming. Of course, to an extent there is a proportion of students from private school backgrounds and as Melody said we don't have the most diverse population in the country, but I have found everyone to be really friendly and inclusive.
It's also worth mentioning that every student has to take a Equality, Diversity & Inclusion training module when starting at the University to ensure that everyone feels welcome and included at our University and that all our students have a foundational understanding of these key issues. There’s also a dedicated channel to report behaviours such as harassment, bullying, intimidation, and discrimination, no matter how big or small, so everyone can feel supported here. You can have a look at this webpage if you’d like to learn more: http://www.exeter.ac.uk/speakout/
As Melody also mentioned, there are plenty of societies, which are a great way to meet people with similar interests as well as people from similar backgrounds.
I hope this helps and let me know if you have any other questions.
Sophie
University of Exeter Student Ambassador

hi, thank you so much! this is quite reassuring :smile:

Reply 5

ExeterStudentRep

Official Rep

Original post by Anonymous

Hi Anonymous,

Just to reply again with a perspective specifically from the Penryn Campus. I'm a current PhD student based at the Centre for Ecology and Conservation at the Penryn Campus and also studied here previously for both my Masters and undergraduate degrees too.

As both Melody and Sophie have mentioned, the University of Exeter has a really diverse student body, with a range of students from across the UK and internationally too. In truth I probably shared some of the same concerns as you coming to Penryn from a state school in the Midlands and was worried about a stereotype of students being posh or otherwise different from me. However, my experience of actually living and studying here I haven't found that to be the case at all, and have actually found lots of friends and course mates with a similar background to my own. As Sophie says, everyone tends to also be extremely welcoming and friendly regardless of their own background. I think the smaller size of the Penryn Campus really helps too as you can get to know everyone in your cohort or classmates individually, so it helps to foster a more inclusive atmosphere that really feels like a community. In a way I think the smaller class sizes probably stop any real cliques from forming and help encourage more integration across friendship groups.

If you are worried about finding like-minded people at university, I'd really encourage you to look at the Societies that Melody also linked to here. In particular, there are lots of community focused groups such as African Caribbean Society, Asian Society, Christian Union, SU Islamic Society, MENA and many others that may help you feel more at home. One of my friends is the current president of Asian Society for example, and I know they've won awards recently for some of the socials and different events they organise throughout the year.

If you have anymore questions or concerns please feel free to reply and I'd be happy to answer them, especially if it's about life on the Penryn Campus.

Kingsley
University of Exeter Student Ambassador