The Student Room Group

University of Brighton Student blog & AMA

Hello! I'm Blue.
I will be on TSR every Wednesday!
I am a final year computer science student at the Uni of Brighton.
I am queer, trans and have both a physical and learning disability and would be happy to talk about my experiences studying.
I have also lived in both university halls and private accommodation.

Feel free to ask me any questions about student life!
:smile:

Entries in this thread
Applicant days:what are they like?
Brighton is a top 50 city of the world!
(edited 1 day ago)
What are applicant days like?

Hi! My name is Blue and im a Final year Computer Science student at the University of Brighton. As application deadlines are nearing, universities may be advertising their applicant days soon.
When i was applying I had no idea what and applicant day even was!
After I had applied to brighton I got invited to join an applicant day. It took place around March. This gave me a second chance to ask question to the lecturers and current students and more seriously compare it to other universities I was considering.
I'd thought i could give y'all some advice and things I wish I knew when attending applicant days

Some of the events that I did at my applicant day were:

Subjects sessions- this is a talk from a lecturer about the course and gave me the chance to talk to lecturers and current students and ask them all of my questions, sometimes you get to see final yr students dissertation work which was helpful to see what the end results of my education could be!

Campus tour- You get to see all of the facilities the uni offers normally from the perspective of a student themselves. These are also great for learning where things are a bit (which helped me not feel so lost once i started at the uni)

Talk to different teams- a lot of other teams attend these open days such as the fees and finance team and the accommodation teams.


Tips for a successful applicant day
Before the day,think about what is important for you in a university. For example;

Student life- do you want a uni that has a big clubbing and drinking culture or not

Grad outcomes- how many students go on to be employed after they graduate?

Value add- The difference between students degree results and their entry qualifications. This shows how effectively the university teaches. (Brighton is in the top 20 of universities for value added!)

Think about what questions you may want to ask the lecturers and the students. Below are a few that I asked that helped me make a decision.
How is the course structured- how many hours are you timetalbed in per week, how is this split up each day, how much of that time is lectures, labs/tutorials or any other teaching styles
How is the course taught - what do the lectures look like? is there required readings before (some unis do what is called flipped learning where you learn the material at home and then it is recaped in lectures.)
How is the course assessed- think about what works better for you exams or coursework, what do the exams and coursework look like e.g. multiple choice exams, reports etc.
What support systems are in place- for both struggling in work and mental health support. Its better to know and not need them thanneed them and or not need.
Disability & dyslexia support- If you need this its a good idea to ask at this point. Ask about their Learning support plan system and what supports they offer.
Career prospects and support finding jobs- for most people the goal of going to uni is to get a good job so this is kinda important 🤣 Career/employment teams are helpful for both in uni, where they can help find part time jobs and placements, as well as for help finding a job after graduation.
What other things are offered, talk to the students union, not only are they your voice if you choose to study there they also organise a lot of interesting events and societies. Brighton has give-it-a-go events at the beginning of each semester and has tons of societies
Finally think about any course specific questions you may have, for example for me that was what coding languages and softwares the university used.

Applicant days give you another opportunity to look at accomodations more seriously. Take this time to actually consider if you could see yourself living there for 9-10 months as well as if you could afford it. The nicest brand new ensuite flat may be nice but if it means only eating pot noodles every day it may not be worth it.🤣

Another good thing is that you have the opportunity to look round the city you'd be studying in. One of the bigger things i considered when choosing a uni was how much i liked the city and could see myself living.I would be living here for 3 years minimum and want permanently move there so this was very important. Think about things that are important to you in a place for example;

if you like sports, where are the closest gyms/swimming pools/other sports places

if you like music,shows, comedy,theatre etc what are the venues like nearby what are the prices like, what events does the city have (not to boast but the brighton fringe is pretty good if i say so myself)

if you like nature/hiking/outdoorsy stuff how far away would this be from you? you don't want to love the sea and move somewhere landlocked or love the concrete jungle and move to the middle of nowhere.

Even if you don't have the opportunity to look round the city there are tons of youtube videos showing the best of the best in the cities and these are a great resource! (For example the video below from brighton)

I hope this helped anyone!
If you've applied for Brighton our applicant days are now open! You can find which day it is for your course and book here.

Good luck to everyone!
Blue- TSR Student Ambassador
Brighton is in the top 50 cities of the world!

The definitive annual list is published every year, based on feedback from 18k city-dwellers across the globe on key aspects of city life such as food, nightlife, culture, affordability, happiness, and overall atmosphere.

Brighton is ranked 34th and was the third highest ranking uk city! It is also the second-most walkable city! (and our buses are pretty good in my opinion)

Time Out stated that “Brighton has essentially plucked all the important parts of a sprawling cosmopolitan metropolis (connections to London in under an hour, an array of properly excellent restaurants, energetic late-night spots) and paired it with the easy-breezy beachy attitude to life that makes you feel welcome in an instant.”

The beach was praised for its ‘standout restaurants’, ‘buzzy bars’ and ‘new active venues’, meanwhile the food scene was lauded as being one ‘where diners can also enjoy DJs, dancefloors and cocktails, all in one place.’

North Laine was also praised for its ‘hippy-esque beating heart’ and ‘city-wide passion for sustainability, emphasised through everything from vegetarian eateries such as Iydea to homeware shops like Dowse.’

In my opinion, Brighton is the perfect mix of busy and quiet. The city centre always has some even going on, We have the lanes which are very popular (as mentioned above ) which is one of my favourite parts of the city. In the summer as well as holidays brighton becomes quite a tourist spot however, If you go a bit out of the centre were surrounded by a lot of nature and fields. I enjoy photography and my favourite spot is along the seafront, you get a bit of everything from the sea, to modern and traditional buildings as well as a bit of wildlife in the form of seagulls. Places like the south downs are amazing for nature photography.

We also have the amex stadium a short bus or train journey away which is home to the Brighton and Hove Albion! A lot of pubs show the league games, including our student union bar.

What values for the city you want to study in are important to you? I can almost guarantee that brighton meets it!

Blue- TSR Student Ambassador
Original post by UniOfBrightonRep
What are applicant days like?
Hi! My name is Blue and im a Final year Computer Science student at the University of Brighton. As application deadlines are nearing, universities may be advertising their applicant days soon.
When i was applying I had no idea what and applicant day even was!
After I had applied to brighton I got invited to join an applicant day. It took place around March. This gave me a second chance to ask question to the lecturers and current students and more seriously compare it to other universities I was considering.
I'd thought i could give y'all some advice and things I wish I knew when attending applicant days
Some of the events that I did at my applicant day were:

Subjects sessions- this is a talk from a lecturer about the course and gave me the chance to talk to lecturers and current students and ask them all of my questions, sometimes you get to see final yr students dissertation work which was helpful to see what the end results of my education could be!

Campus tour- You get to see all of the facilities the uni offers normally from the perspective of a student themselves. These are also great for learning where things are a bit (which helped me not feel so lost once i started at the uni)

Talk to different teams- a lot of other teams attend these open days such as the fees and finance team and the accommodation teams.

Tips for a successful applicant day
Before the day,think about what is important for you in a university. For example;

Student life- do you want a uni that has a big clubbing and drinking culture or not

Grad outcomes- how many students go on to be employed after they graduate?

Value add- The difference between students degree results and their entry qualifications. This shows how effectively the university teaches. (Brighton is in the top 20 of universities for value added!)

Think about what questions you may want to ask the lecturers and the students. Below are a few that I asked that helped me make a decision.
How is the course structured- how many hours are you timetalbed in per week, how is this split up each day, how much of that time is lectures, labs/tutorials or any other teaching styles
How is the course taught - what do the lectures look like? is there required readings before (some unis do what is called flipped learning where you learn the material at home and then it is recaped in lectures.)
How is the course assessed- think about what works better for you exams or coursework, what do the exams and coursework look like e.g. multiple choice exams, reports etc.
What support systems are in place- for both struggling in work and mental health support. Its better to know and not need them thanneed them and or not need.
Disability & dyslexia support- If you need this its a good idea to ask at this point. Ask about their Learning support plan system and what supports they offer.
Career prospects and support finding jobs- for most people the goal of going to uni is to get a good job so this is kinda important 🤣 Career/employment teams are helpful for both in uni, where they can help find part time jobs and placements, as well as for help finding a job after graduation.
What other things are offered, talk to the students union, not only are they your voice if you choose to study there they also organise a lot of interesting events and societies. Brighton has give-it-a-go events at the beginning of each semester and has tons of societies
Finally think about any course specific questions you may have, for example for me that was what coding languages and softwares the university used.
Applicant days give you another opportunity to look at accomodations more seriously. Take this time to actually consider if you could see yourself living there for 9-10 months as well as if you could afford it. The nicest brand new ensuite flat may be nice but if it means only eating pot noodles every day it may not be worth it.🤣
Another good thing is that you have the opportunity to look round the city you'd be studying in. One of the bigger things i considered when choosing a uni was how much i liked the city and could see myself living.I would be living here for 3 years minimum and want permanently move there so this was very important. Think about things that are important to you in a place for example;

if you like sports, where are the closest gyms/swimming pools/other sports places

if you like music,shows, comedy,theatre etc what are the venues like nearby what are the prices like, what events does the city have (not to boast but the brighton fringe is pretty good if i say so myself)

if you like nature/hiking/outdoorsy stuff how far away would this be from you? you don't want to love the sea and move somewhere landlocked or love the concrete jungle and move to the middle of nowhere.

Even if you don't have the opportunity to look round the city there are tons of youtube videos showing the best of the best in the cities and these are a great resource! (For example the video below from brighton)
I hope this helped anyone!
If you've applied for Brighton our applicant days are now open! You can find which day it is for your course and book here.
Good luck to everyone!
Blue- TSR Student Ambassador

Great news for people who can't make it to brighton for an in-person applicant day. We also have online events!
We have 2 days for our subject QnAs.
Wednesday 26 February 2025, 4–5pm

School of Business and Law

School of Applied Sciences

School of Education, Sport and Health Sciences

Thursday 27 February 2025, 4–5pm

School of Art and Media

School of Humanities and Social Sciences

School of Architecture, Technology and Engineering

These would be a great chance to ask the questions I've mentioned in the quoted post especially as current students will be attending!

And we have a student support QnA on Wednesday 5 March 2025, 4–5pm
The advertised topics of discussion are:

admissions

accommodation

careers

employability and volunteering

disability and learning support

international student support

student money advice

student life, Sport Brighton and Brighton Students’ Union

These are a really good way to ask questions and find out more if you can't make it to an open day, however i do want to mention that we do offer financial support for travel to applicant days which may help you!


I hope this helps anyone and good luck on all of your applications!
Blue - TSR student ambassador
(edited 1 day ago)
Hiya! as i'm in my final semester now i've thought it might be a good idea to start using this also as a blog/GYG/way to keep me accountable 🤣 I also think that for prospective or new seeing what its like at the end of a degree is a good idea. When i applied i didn't even think about what it would be like at the end of my first year nevertheless at the end of my final year!
I'm planning on writing these on wednesdays so its gonna be a weird structure of thur-wed instead of mon-sun.

Just a bit of context I'm studying comp sci 🥸 with a sort of not official specialisation in software eng (i did not realise brighton had a software eng course until second year 🤦*♂️ so ive )

This week:
Lessons have started for the final semester and things are starting to set in! I have 2 modules + my final yr project (sometimes called dissertation).

All of my modules are coursework which is great for me! i do a lot better on coursework than exams. in my first year there were 2 or 3 exams and last year i had one so i'm very happy.

One of my modules is to develop a mobile app + write a report about the development and the other is to write a report/essay mix. The develop + report coursework is very typical of this course so i'm very confident in doing them at this point. i'm not as confident in the essays, as i've only done a few of them. I met up with my course mates in my lectures and labs as well! one of them i haven't seen since the end of last semester so it was nice to see her again.

My final year project has lectures every so often so i havent had one of them yet. I need to organise a meeting with my supervisor as the sem has started now but i want to get a little bit more done of my project first. I got feedback on my interim report which basically said I need to redo the analysis of my references so I want to have at least one reference redone to check with him.

I spent the weekend applying to part time jobs for now and to maybe continue once i graduate until i either do a masters or get a grad job.

I didn't really do much monday apart from cleaning my flat. oh! I also bought a second hand CD player so i decided to burn some cds of albums that dont have cd versions as well as my top 50 from spotify's wrapped for each year i've had spotify which i really enjoyed doing, i felt quite nostalgic having all these cds again!

My mobile dev app lecture this week was about deciding what to do for my coursework and my lecturer said my idea had a lot of potential which is super good! This module also has the lectures uploaded before the actual lecture so i want to start watching them beforehand to help me understand what is going on more.

All my mates got their marks back for a module that i didn't do so now i'm just waiting patiently for my lecturer to get back, i wasn't too confident on that module as its a topic i don't enjoy because i've always found it hard but fingers crossed!

My plan for the next 7 days is to do some work on my Final year project and book a meeting with my supervisor as well as keeping on top of my other modules.

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