Help with uni choices

MichaelT28082006

am at a bit of a dilemma here, so I need one more choice out of my 5 unis ([Lboro or Notts], York, Liverpool, Surrey, Leicester), either Loughborough or Nottingham. The course I am taking is Psychology. So far out of my research, I’ve listed:

Loughborough:
Pros
•quiet and small city,
•strong placement years and links in industry.
•Exceptional sports facilities and facilities in general, strong sense of community.
Cons
•A ghost town so Lboro invade tends to happen if you want to go to parties.
•Not a Russell group

Nottingham:
Pros
•Located at a bigger area, a lot more to do compared to Lboro
•Also good placement year, links to industry however I’m not sure which one is better than the other
•Russell group uni
Cons:
•Unsure if this is correct but city may not be safe or at its best state. (Please correct if I am wrong)
•much lower ranking compared to Lboro.

Which one would be better for me? I do prefer a more quiet area, but I also would like to be in a prestigious uni, and most importantly, one that is the best for my course (Psychology). I plan to become a professional psychologist, Clinical route.

Reply 1

PS Reviewer

Sounds like you prefer Loughborough but you’re talking yourself out of it because you’ve believed the RG hype.

Reply 2

Stacy De Souza12

Original post by MichaelT28082006

am at a bit of a dilemma here, so I need one more choice out of my 5 unis ([Lboro or Notts], York, Liverpool, Surrey, Leicester), either Loughborough or Nottingham. The course I am taking is Psychology. So far out of my research, I’ve listed:
Loughborough:
Pros
•quiet and small city,
•strong placement years and links in industry.
•Exceptional sports facilities and facilities in general, strong sense of community.
Cons
•A ghost town so Lboro invade tends to happen if you want to go to parties.
•Not a Russell group
Nottingham:
Pros
•Located at a bigger area, a lot more to do compared to Lboro
•Also good placement year, links to industry however I’m not sure which one is better than the other
•Russell group uni
Cons:
•Unsure if this is correct but city may not be safe or at its best state. (Please correct if I am wrong)
•much lower ranking compared to Lboro.
Which one would be better for me? I do prefer a more quiet area, but I also would like to be in a prestigious uni, and most importantly, one that is the best for my course (Psychology). I plan to become a professional psychologist, Clinical route.

Hello I suggest talking to the ex students of the university. At RGU we have the unibody app for instance where you can speak to students and learn about their experiences

Reply 3

Eviednmfs

Look at course modules, from what i know, because loughborough is renowned for its sport a lot of psychology modules have sport included which tbh if your interested in clinical is very distant from your interests. So worth considering

Reply 4

LJMUStudentReps

Official Rep

Hi there,

It looks like you've done a lot of research into both unis which is great!

Unfortunately, the Russell Group 'hype' mentioned above is still prevalent to employers today, so I would take that into consideration. However, if you are planning to do a Masters (which you probably have to for your career aspirations), then it won't matter as much what Uni you went to for undergrad.

Lboro is very much a campus uni, so won't be in a loud city environment which might suit you more. If you haven't had the chance to go to open days for these courses, I would recommend going to each city for a day out with familiy/friends if you are able to do so - this could give more insight on whether you would prefer a larger place with more to do or a quieter place, as well as an idea on safety if that is a worry for you.

Placement wise, I would try to get in touch with either course leaders (info on the course websites) or current students (they may be on unibuddy or have ambassadors on here). They would be able to give you more information on the types of placements available for each, and students would be able to give their own opinions if they have done a placement.

Also, check the different modules offered at each university - even if the degree is the same, the modules taught might be very different and you might prefer the sound of one over the other. One course may have more practical elements than the other, which you may want for clinical psych.

Hopefully this helps a bit!
Jorja (LJMU Rep)

Reply 5

saskiahdltea

Have a look at the exact modules on offer, Lbro is very sports psych heavy, and Notts is quite cog neuro heavy in terms of conent (also def not unsafe I lived there for Masters)

Reply 6

StuRepAbian

Official Rep

Original post by MichaelT28082006

am at a bit of a dilemma here, so I need one more choice out of my 5 unis ([Lboro or Notts], York, Liverpool, Surrey, Leicester), either Loughborough or Nottingham. The course I am taking is Psychology. So far out of my research, I’ve listed:
Loughborough:
Pros
•quiet and small city,
•strong placement years and links in industry.
•Exceptional sports facilities and facilities in general, strong sense of community.
Cons
•A ghost town so Lboro invade tends to happen if you want to go to parties.
•Not a Russell group
Nottingham:
Pros
•Located at a bigger area, a lot more to do compared to Lboro
•Also good placement year, links to industry however I’m not sure which one is better than the other
•Russell group uni
Cons:
•Unsure if this is correct but city may not be safe or at its best state. (Please correct if I am wrong)
•much lower ranking compared to Lboro.
Which one would be better for me? I do prefer a more quiet area, but I also would like to be in a prestigious uni, and most importantly, one that is the best for my course (Psychology). I plan to become a professional psychologist, Clinical route.

Hello @MichaelT28082006!

I am student from University of Nottingham. Ideally, you would want to visit both universities to get a feel for the place and the surrounding areas. Loughborough is rather close to Nottingham so could try to visit both of them on the same day!

In terms of Nottingham as a whole, I would argue the city is pretty safe (especially the areas surrounding University Park Campus and Jubilee Campus), but, obviously, this is my opinion, so take it with a pich of salt!

Good luck!
Abian.