Postgraduate decisions

I a currently a final year BSc Biochemistry student at Bristol with two offers for a masters at King's and Bristol, both for Bioinformatics.

The course structure are pretty identical in terms of the modules.

Really struggling to make a decision on where to go for the master's. I know King's has that 'name value' in comparison to Bristol, but I can't really ignore the significant increase in living expenses and of course the high tuition fees. As a returning student, I am also available to receive a 25% discount in tuition fee if I do choose Bristol. And I know the city pretty well with many friends already here.

If anyone has similar experiences and are willing to share their perspectives, would be great.

Thank you.

Reply 1

DataVenia

Volunteer Team, Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post

by Yoyoyo5678

Bristol, for all the reasons you've given above.

Reply 2

LJMUStudentReps

Official Rep

Original post

by Yoyoyo5678

I a currently a final year BSc Biochemistry student at Bristol with two offers for a masters at King's and Bristol, both for Bioinformatics.
The course structure are pretty identical in terms of the modules.
Really struggling to make a decision on where to go for the master's. I know King's has that 'name value' in comparison to Bristol, but I can't really ignore the significant increase in living expenses and of course the high tuition fees. As a returning student, I am also available to receive a 25% discount in tuition fee if I do choose Bristol. And I know the city pretty well with many friends already here.
If anyone has similar experiences and are willing to share their perspectives, would be great.
Thank you.

Hey!

I was in a similar position for my undergraduate. I had the option of an institute of technology uni and a more traditional university when I finished school. There was always the worry that the institute hadn't got as good of a reputation as traditional Uni's, so I understand the difficulty you're having.

For me, I chose the institute Uni as it was so much closer to where I lived, I was familiar with the area and I knew in the long run I would be happier overall going there. I also think because you are familiar with your lecturers, that will be a huge advantage rather than having to get to know new lecturers from scratch all over again.

So I think it really comes down to what will make you happiest and most comfortable. If staying in Bristol means lower tuition fees, familiar surroundings, and a strong support system, those are huge advantages. On the other hand, if the prestige of King’s is something you feel would benefit you significantly in your career, it could be worth the extra cost.
Either way, both options sound great, and you’ll do well no matter which you choose!

Hope that helps a bit! 😊

Gemma
Official LJMU Rep

Reply 3

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

Original post

by Yoyoyo5678

I a currently a final year BSc Biochemistry student at Bristol with two offers for a masters at King's and Bristol, both for Bioinformatics.
The course structure are pretty identical in terms of the modules.
Really struggling to make a decision on where to go for the master's. I know King's has that 'name value' in comparison to Bristol, but I can't really ignore the significant increase in living expenses and of course the high tuition fees. As a returning student, I am also available to receive a 25% discount in tuition fee if I do choose Bristol. And I know the city pretty well with many friends already here.
If anyone has similar experiences and are willing to share their perspectives, would be great.
Thank you.

Hi @Yoyoyo5678
I was in a similar situation last year when deciding where to study my masters.
Personally, I'm really grateful I continued at Lancaster, however I completely understand that for some people a change of universities can be good for many different reasons.
Try to weigh up all of the factors for each university eg. course modules, how settled you feel at Bristol/how quickly you could settle in at King's, have you got a part time job you could continue in Bristol if you stayed, are there any scholarships you could get at kings, how much different are the university in terms of future employability options.
A full time masters is only for a year, so could be a great opportunity to try a new university and live in a new city, however on the other hand, it doesn't give you long to adjust and settle in to a new university and city whilst studying.
Good luck with your decision!
-Jasmine (Lancaster Student Ambassador)

Reply 4

PG Study Chester

Original post

by Yoyoyo5678

I a currently a final year BSc Biochemistry student at Bristol with two offers for a masters at King's and Bristol, both for Bioinformatics.
The course structure are pretty identical in terms of the modules.
Really struggling to make a decision on where to go for the master's. I know King's has that 'name value' in comparison to Bristol, but I can't really ignore the significant increase in living expenses and of course the high tuition fees. As a returning student, I am also available to receive a 25% discount in tuition fee if I do choose Bristol. And I know the city pretty well with many friends already here.
If anyone has similar experiences and are willing to share their perspectives, would be great.
Thank you.

Hello,

Firstly well done for achieving offers from both Bristol and King's that is a wonderful result and you should be super proud of yourself!
Having been in a similar position to you I totally understand your dilemma, I ummed and aahhed for a long time, before I made my decision, but I think, for me, I made the right one. The way that I went about deciding which university to choose to go to revolved chiefly around me thinking hardest about where I would be happiest and most at home as this is the only way I personally think you will do your studies justice - if you are somewhere that you are not happy at, not enjoying and don't feel at home, I don't think you will work as hard as you would otherwise do.
I would discount the fact that King's has the 'name value', I would definitely not go just because of any kudos attached to it, and try not to be blinded by league tables - there is a league table for everything and I'm sure if you spent long enough looking at them all, you would find most universities are top in something!
Reading your post, you seem to have a lot of positive reasons to draw you to stay at Bristol, are there any negatives to studying at Bristol compared to King's? You only seem to have one positive to go to King's, have you visited on an open day? If not, perhaps this would be a good idea before you come to make the decision, as the day would enable you to gain a sense of how you feel about the university. Does you feel at home there? Is it a campus that you can see yourself being happy to study at for the Masters?
Alternatively, would you be happy to stay at Bristol which you know really well now and have a network of friends? You know the library set up and the staff in your department. The cost is also something that you can't really ignore London is an expensive city, but have you looked into any funding that may be available to you, or any bursaries etc that you could apply for at King's?
Ultimately I think you need to decide where you would be happiest, as I think this will enable you to study best.
Good luck with your decision and the rest of your studying journey,
Jess
PhD English
University of Chester