The Student Room Group

Cardiff or Liverpool

I got an offer at both of these unis to study BA History and i’ve compared them both but both of them seem lovely and i really don’t know which one would be better.
I got an offer from Cardiff for history too, but I'm local and likely won't firm it! I can, however, give a pretty decent insight to life in the city as I've lived here my whole life.
Cardiff is lovely. It's very multicultural and diverse and the buses are affordable and take you pretty much everywhere through the city! Town is a great place - it's large and the Primark is to DIE for. There are loads of hidden pockets in town, like the arcades with independent shops and the walk from Bute Park to Llandaff fields! It's a bit of a trek but me and my friends love to sit by the river and have picnics in the summer!
There's also the stadium, which has loads of concerts and sporting events (especially rugby!) all year round. There are also loads of concerts and gigs in the student union and the Utilita Arena for really decent prices. In the summer, acts often go to the castle as well for a more festival vibe.
If you're big on theatre, the Millennium Centre is amazing. Tickets start at £15 for musicals and plays and it's one bus away from town (or about a ten minute drive) and located in Cardiff Bay. The Bay is a lovely place too, with boat rides and restaurants and the Red Dragon Centre, with bowling and the cinema and even more restaurants (Cardiff is big on food). More on this, in the summer, there's a food festival down the Bay which is always amazing!
Barry Island is also really close - about a 20 minute train I believe? - and also accessible by bus. There's also Penarth Pier, which is more of a rocky beach but really nice to go to for a few hours in the summer. Near the uni itself there's Roath, which has a gorgeous lake and two high streets (they're a bit rundown tbh, but there's one place called Juno Lounge which is the NICEST place in Roath).
Cardiff is amazing for its ease. Everything is quite close together, but there's SO much to do. And it's cheap to do. The uni itself I can give less insight on and I know NOTHING about Liverpool, but I'd always recommend the city to anybody (although I'm clearly very bias lol). It's also pretty easy to find part-time work in the city as well, just because of how easy it is to commute from place to place. Cathays is very much a typical student area, but I wouldn't say it's that bad, although it's a longer walk than you'd think from there to the city centre for the main buses.
Where else have you applied? I'm sure if you picked Cardiff you wouldn't regret it :smile:
Original post by zoeeeeeeeeeeeee
I got an offer at both of these unis to study BA History and i’ve compared them both but both of them seem lovely and i really don’t know which one would be better.

Hiya!

They're both really lovely universities! I would say, Cardiff is really nice if you want accessible nature spots. There's so much lovely parks, bits of nature around - its a great break from studies! Cardiff is also brilliant if you want to spend as little amount of money on transport as possible, as everywhere you need is pretty much walkable! I think I only spent money on 2 bus trips in first year haha.

I won't overwhelm you with more info since honeybee16 summarised Cardiff SO well, but here if you wanted to ask more about the uni or city! :biggrin:

~ Fatiha, Cardiff University Student Rep
Original post by honeybee16
I got an offer from Cardiff for history too, but I'm local and likely won't firm it! I can, however, give a pretty decent insight to life in the city as I've lived here my whole life.
Cardiff is lovely. It's very multicultural and diverse and the buses are affordable and take you pretty much everywhere through the city! Town is a great place - it's large and the Primark is to DIE for. There are loads of hidden pockets in town, like the arcades with independent shops and the walk from Bute Park to Llandaff fields! It's a bit of a trek but me and my friends love to sit by the river and have picnics in the summer!
There's also the stadium, which has loads of concerts and sporting events (especially rugby!) all year round. There are also loads of concerts and gigs in the student union and the Utilita Arena for really decent prices. In the summer, acts often go to the castle as well for a more festival vibe.
If you're big on theatre, the Millennium Centre is amazing. Tickets start at £15 for musicals and plays and it's one bus away from town (or about a ten minute drive) and located in Cardiff Bay. The Bay is a lovely place too, with boat rides and restaurants and the Red Dragon Centre, with bowling and the cinema and even more restaurants (Cardiff is big on food). More on this, in the summer, there's a food festival down the Bay which is always amazing!
Barry Island is also really close - about a 20 minute train I believe? - and also accessible by bus. There's also Penarth Pier, which is more of a rocky beach but really nice to go to for a few hours in the summer. Near the uni itself there's Roath, which has a gorgeous lake and two high streets (they're a bit rundown tbh, but there's one place called Juno Lounge which is the NICEST place in Roath).
Cardiff is amazing for its ease. Everything is quite close together, but there's SO much to do. And it's cheap to do. The uni itself I can give less insight on and I know NOTHING about Liverpool, but I'd always recommend the city to anybody (although I'm clearly very bias lol). It's also pretty easy to find part-time work in the city as well, just because of how easy it is to commute from place to place. Cathays is very much a typical student area, but I wouldn't say it's that bad, although it's a longer walk than you'd think from there to the city centre for the main buses.
Where else have you applied? I'm sure if you picked Cardiff you wouldn't regret it :smile:


Thank you so so much for this!!! this is really helpful, i’ll make sure to check out some places in cardiff when i go for offer holders day. once again because this is very detailed and helpful :smile:) I also applied for Queens Belfast, Queens Mary and Portsmouth and ofc Liverpool !!!
Original post by zoeeeeeeeeeeeee
I got an offer at both of these unis to study BA History and i’ve compared them both but both of them seem lovely and i really don’t know which one would be better.

BBC News - Cardiff: University confirms plans to cut 400 jobs - BBC News
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0k5n0k101lo

This might edge you towards Liverpool?
As above - be very aware that Cardiff is in financial trouble, cutting jobs and courses, and that will also mean cutting student services etc as well.

Go to Liverpool - its a good course with lots of variety, and the city is a great place to be a student,

Quick Reply