how many universities to research

[eatyourveg]

ds1 is going to a ucas convention with school and is advised that as there isn't a lot of time to visit every stand running the course he wants, he should come up with a list of places he wants to find out more from, with a view to coming back with info that will provide him with a short list of places to visit which then gets whittled down again to the 5 going on the ucas application.

At the moment there are about 15 possible places based on the grades he is likely to get and the type of place he wants.

Question is how many should he whittle it down to before going to the convention and how many is it usual to have on a short list for visiting afterwards?

I'd suggest looking up on something like Sunday Times or The Independent guide to unis, plus he needs to consider which he'd actually like to go to (location, campus or city, big city or small etc) and find which appear to be the best 8-10 for him, before the convention.

For interest is it the convention in Manchester? My DS is going there soon. we need to do some whittling too! My DD got a list of about 10 from the method above and it seemed to work for her, five years ago.

He may well find that if he looks at prospectuses/websites, he'll be able to rule out some of these choices quite easily. Get him to write a list of things that would really put him off. I can think of some examples - these may not be things that he's concerned about but it'll give some idea:

• Are students guaranteed accommodation on campus in their first year?
• Will he be on the main campus, or if not, are there good transport links to campus/town centre?
• How big is the university, and the town near it? If he has strong feelings about a big or small place this will matter
• How many people each year do his course? Will he have lots of peers, or not many? (It can feel lonely if there's only a few of you.)
• How is the course examined? Lots of coursework, or lots of exams? Does he feel strongly that one or other of these is harder for him?
• How much contact time do current students get, and of what type is it (lectures, seminars, workshops)? This may vary once he starts his course, but could give him some idea, and if he is daunted by the idea of, for example, lots of small seminars/lots of big lectures, it might help him decide.
• How many people drop out each year?
• What sort of amenities are there on campus - good washing machines, tumble drier, good cooking facilities, cafes, etc?

I don't know if that helps, and he may have considered all of those things already. I've put a lot of practical, living-conditions type stuff down, because it's easy to forget about, and it is rotten if you end up somewhere that really isn't equipped for the sort of person you are. However good he is at his course, if he spends half his time fighting to access one of the three available washing machines on his floor, it'll get him down!

what does he want to do and what places is he considering. you will get loads in inside info here.

As well as looking at the Times and Guardian league tables, as sandripples suggest, you could look at Research Assessment Scores for your ds's chosen subject and at the National Student Survey scores.

Last week's THE also published a slightly different student survey which looked at a lot of the things that are important to students. Have a look here.

Thanks for all these suggestions, esp LittleRedDragon. He has gone through some of your suggestions but I will tell him about the other things. Hadnt thought of the washing machine hassle!

The main contenders he is considering for either International Politics or Law are Hull, Aberystwyth, Keele, as definites, Northumbria, Sheffield Hallam ,Bristol WofE, Lincoln, Bangor, Birmingham City maybes, or Lancaster, UEA, York and Surrey if he pulls his finger out.

He's still not sure if its single honours or joint or major/minor, the LLB versus the BA joint because he doesn't want to be a solicitor or barrister but figures LLB opens more doors.

He's the quieter sort who would much rather go for a pint down at the local than go out clubbing. Give him a book of poetry, a pint of beer and an acoustic guitar to strum on and he's happy.

sandripples not Manchester - we are down south

Hope he finds the convention useful!

We visited 6 uni when our first went, but it was too much I think, with d2 we just looked at 3 . However it is important to visit at least the main choice and standby one as it does make a huge difference when you actually see the unis and the towns there are in.

You cant get a real idea without seeing them and D1 changed her mind totally after visiting them, when she was adamant she was going to go to Manchester, she ended up in St Andrews which she didn't even want to consider but put it down as a last choice as it did exactly the subjects she wanted.

LRD's list of logistical problems is good but misses one big point: how easy is the commute? Can you get home for the weekend in 2 hours on a £1 megabus or is it 6 hours and three changes of train

Just remembered another one: double-check where your particular subject is being taught. We found quite often that Universities were running departments off the main campus, in buildings which were several miles away (and, inevitably, the accommodation was several miles away in the other direction).