The Student Room Group

Nottingham vs Queen Mary. Any advice?

Hey guys,

Just pondering my offers here. I received unconditional offers from :

Nottingham
Queen Mary
Reading
SOAS

So I think I'm really spoilt for choice here. My instinct is telling me Notts, and I think Im leaning 90% to it, as its a fantastic uni, ranked 10th in the UK and has a stunning campus. I think it has a very good reputation as well.

Now, the allure of London is also potent. Queen Mary -despite not being ranked as highly is still a great uni and in the heart of London. I think, though , the costs of life in London outweigh the benefits as Im paying my own way.

Want to embark on one of the programmes that takes you into another legal system abroad. Notts, QM and SOAS all have that.

Any suggestions on this would be appreciated.
Thanks guys.

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Reply 1
Out of all four, I would go for Nottingham.
Qmul.
Reply 3
I'm pretty sure all those benefits of Nottingham outweigh the 'allure' of London. Not to say that QM isn't a great uni or anything, but I think you'd be better off after graduating from Notts.
Decide based on the city/campus - both universities are apt.
Reply 5
They're all good (esp QM and Nottingham). Go where you like the most. Do not chose on reputation, there is no difference.

I would consider carefully whether you want to do an extra year studying law. Research it through and through. Ask the universities about the programmes. Nottingham allows you to study in Singapore, Australia and the US. That might clinch it for you. Potentially though as there may be a lot of competition for those places (and much will depend on your 1st yr result). But if Europe appeals to you just as much, then that's not a factor. You may decide you don't want to do it later on anyway.

One caveat...if it is really one - Nottingham *appears* t be really harsh on 1sts and 2:1s. It could be the particular cohorts but it's seems very unlikely you'll get a first there. A friend graduated a couple of years ago - no firsts from straight LLB students in the whole year. I think there were 5 or something but from those who had done 4 year courses. It's not that other places are easy but just Notts are stingy (apparently). How other people perform of course is no prediction as to how you will perform. Thought it might be worth mentioning though.
Reply 6
Helloo, can't offer you much help but thought I would say that I am also trying to decide between Queen Mary and Nottingham. Might be comforting to know someones in the same boat lol, have been driving myself mad for weeks and keep changing my mind! :eek3: Have you made a decision yet?
Reply 7
QMUL campus is uninspiring and in a horrible part of London. Nottingham's LLB is much more established. No brainer.
Reply 8
I personally prefer QMUL because I've visited both unis and QMUL just seems like a friendlier place that feels more like a uni. And Nottingham's campus is really really big - I remember for Medlink (where I stayed at the uni for 4 days) it took like 20-25 mins to get from one lecture to another! But I guess if you go there for a while, you get used to it!
I don't know, I'd go for Queen Mary cuz I already live in London and absolutely LOVE it here, but obviously Nottingham's high rank in the UK means it's a fantastic university recognised by everyone. Although to be honest, both Nottingham and QMUL are very good unis. You can't ignore the fact that Queen Mary is part of University of London which is amazing!
Reply 9
I've visited friends at both. Queen Mary may be in the East End but the area is not bad at all and the campus is really nice. Nottingham can be a lot worse living out in the second and third years; but usually you are able to avoid the bad parts. I'd choose both areas over where UCL is mate - in druggie Bloomsbury and near dodgy King's Cross. Crowded with tourists. Nice to visit but not a great student environment.

It's a completely subjective decision.
Reply 10
notts is certainly the best, soas is very good but only if you are interested in the unusual features of his course, while qmul is good i would say that notts has a better reputation, (but if you perfer london then you won't do yourself an injustice going to qmul)
Reply 11
Ryands
QMUL campus is uninspiring and in a horrible part of London. Nottingham's LLB is much more established. No brainer.


Its not the worst part of London. If you do you're research, its got the 2nd lowest crime rate in the city; UCL areas have more crime (the stats are in the QMUL forum, in the thread titled "Worried about the location?" I cant be bothered to link it!)

Nottingham is a very up-and-coming law school, so I'm not sure how that would sway with future employers. But nevertheless, the QMUL campus is fantastic. The majority of the accommodation is 5 minutes away from the Law dept, and has a canal on one side, and the busy Curve on the other- the best of both worlds!

The campus is fine!
Reply 12
chigz32
Its not the worst part of London. If you do you're research, its got the 2nd lowest crime rate in the city; UCL areas have more crime (the stats are in the QMUL forum, in the thread titled "Worried about the location?" I cant be bothered to link it!)

Nottingham is a very up-and-coming law school, so I'm not sure how that would sway with future employers. But nevertheless, the QMUL campus is fantastic. The majority of the accommodation is 5 minutes away from the Law dept, and has a canal on one side, and the busy Curve on the other- the best of both worlds!

The campus is fine!


I didn't say it was dangerous (although it feels tangibly more so than Bloomsbury..) I only said it was horrible. Whilst I admit this is objective, I reckon most people would say that Nottingham's lovely grassy campus is nicer than Mile End.
Reply 13
Ryands
I didn't say it was dangerous (although it feels tangibly more so than Bloomsbury..) I only said it was horrible. Whilst I admit this is objective, I reckon most people would say that Nottingham's lovely grassy campus is nicer than Mile End.


True say, each to his/her own anyway!
Ryands
Whilst I admit this is objective


You mean subjective :smile:

You're right though, it is a subjective question but I'd say QM anyway. I don't think you can compare a campus to London fairly. I don't think much of Nottingham's campus. Though the beauty of Nott's library takes some getting used to:

Spoiler

Reply 15
Rancorous
You mean subjective :smile:

You're right though, it is a subjective question but I'd say QM anyway. I don't think you can compare a campus to London fairly. I don't think much of Nottingham's campus. Though the beauty of Nott's library takes some getting used to:

Spoiler



Christ, you're right.
I'm normally the world's biggest pedant too. I feel so ashamed.
:o:

Personally, I can't sing the praises of London enough.. but Nottingham has such a good reputation. Hmm. Tricky choice indeed.
well, it's 2013 and I'm deciding between Notts and QMUL as well.

Any new advices would be most helpful!
Reply 17
Queen mary and nottingham are both Russel group but nottingham probably is more prestigious considering its been in it for years so id go for that but Queen mary is still a great option
Original post by yaboy
Queen mary and nottingham are both Russel group but nottingham probably is more prestigious considering its been in it for years so id go for that but Queen mary is still a great option


You have a 19% chance of walking out with a 2:2 or worse from Queen Mary and a 45% chance of walking out of Nottingham with a 2:2 or worse.

Do you still feel that the most important factor in this decision is that Nottingham has been in the Russell Group longer than Queen Mary?
Reply 19
Original post by nulli tertius
You have a 19% chance of walking out with a 2:2 or worse from Queen Mary and a 45% chance of walking out of Nottingham with a 2:2 or worse.

Do you still feel that the most important factor in this decision is that Nottingham has been in the Russell Group longer than Queen Mary?


well you should always go to the better uni before considering what grade your going to come out with, choosing between Exeter and Cambridge is a no brainer even though cambridge is a billion times tougher to get decent marks in. So id say the prestige of the uni is more important than the 'chances' of walking out with a good grade

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