University in London...

[Bonsoir]

DP and I want to give DSS1, who is 16 and in his penultimate year of French lycée, a tiny introductory idea of what university life in London might be like. We are going to spend some time in London over half-term and want to show him Imperial College, UCL, LSE and King's College - at this stage, it is about showing him the physical locations so he can compare and contrast with French grandes écoles. We would also really love to show him some halls of residence, as leaving home is a big deal for DSS1. Can anyone give me any useful clues?

Have you checked out the university open days? If any of those coincide with your dates, that would be a really good way for him to get to see all of the university - including accommodation.

I haven't because I think he'd be a bit overwhelmed by an open day at this point! We are taking things quite gently at present - DSS1 needs to be eased into the idea of moving on (this is France, remember, where many, many students stay at home post-18).

I just checked them out and apparently the next University of London open days are in September 2012. Which is right at application time, so good, though also right at the beginning of term, which is bad.

How about approaching them directly then, and explaining your situation - they may be happy to see him on a less formal basis?

I would suggest just wandering up to the Halls - UCL has one near Goodge street and one in Camden - and seeing what you can. Because London halls are kind of integrated into the local area, and not set back on a campus, you can get a pretty good idea of what they are like just from outside.

And you can also look on their websites as most do virtual tours, too, so you can peek at the inside of a room without actaully going there...

Definitely approach them directly - does he have any vague inclination towards a certain subject? If so, it's probably a good idea to contact the individual departments. You probably won't be able to look around halls apart from on official days because they'd need to clear the students out.

The main campuses for LSE and KCL are (literally) over the road from each other, UCL is pretty near and Imperial is the furthest out. I'm at KCL at the moment and a family friend originally showed me round - we were walking past and I said I was thinking of applying, and he (having nothing to do with the university) marched me in and spoke to applications people and got me a prospectus, so you could always try just walking in. I'm sure if you contact them in advance they will be helpful though.

In terms of halls, the KCL ones are certainly spread out, and they are mainly south of the river. Probably the most interesting for your DSS1 to look at would be the intercollegiate ones: they are generally in good locations, and there is a good mix of students from different universities.

There will certainly be French students around - would your DSS1 be interested in talking to someone?

Thank you for all the suggestions - very helpful. Yes, he would be interested in economics/business/management (he's French!) primarily. I will try contacting departments. I'm not sure about talking to too many people though - I don't want to overwhelm him as it is still early days and DSS1 is quite easily overwhelmed (and let's not forget this is a foreign country for him as well as a whole new life stage - the idea is to dip in gently to start with).

Oh yes please Betelguese - your suggestions are very welcome!

I know that King's run campus tours conducted by current students every Wednesday and Friday during term. Very straightforward to book online and much less 'full on' than an open day
www.kcl.ac.uk/study/ug/openday/CampusTours.aspx

You'd want the Strand campus, which is right opposite LSE as others have said, and only a short walk into the heart of legal London/the city if that's the sort of stuff he's interested in

This might also be interesting for him -
www.kcl.ac.uk/ikings/index.php?id=397

(Video of a French student at King's discussing her choice and experience in French! Includes some discussion of her student hall about half way through.)

Bonsoir Imperial run tours every Wednesday afternoon here

The campus is pretty open anyway so you can have a look round, and if you want to look at halls you just walk into Prince's Gardens, or perhaps walk down the road a bit and look round Evelyn Gardens. You can combine it with a visit to the Science Museum and the National History Museum and he would feel right at home with the Lycée Charles de Gaulle being in South Ken too! (we used to go to the canteen as students - much better food, and incredibly it was just open to the public during school hours).

You could do a sort of campus-tour crawl!

Gosh, you are all being amazingly helpful and kind here - lots of information and ideas. I will have a good look at them and discuss with DP and DSS1!

Betelguese - I don't think DSS1 (a) is Oxbridge material (b) would like the collegiate lifestyle. However, DSS2 (a) might well be (b) would adore it, so will be looking at that route in due course!

have you thought about taking him to look at Royal Holloway? It's still London university but perhaps less scary. you might also want to take him to some of the things he might like to do in London so he sees the place as pleasurable.

You don't have to go to a complete open day to see the accommodation, just drop in and join a tour if there are any at the right time.

Bonsoir - what makes you think DSS1 is not Oxbridge material? To be blunt, if he is not Oxbridge material, he is unlikely to be Imperial or LSE material either.

I can well understand not liking the collegiate lifestyle though - I turned down Cambridge for Imperial (much to my headmistress's horror - I was barred from prize day!) due to being completely put off by the college system.

If you follow Betel's plan, LSE and the Strand campus of KCL are at Aldwych (so just before you cross Waterloo Bridge) and would be easy to walk past/go round.

malinois - I don't think he is Imperial or LSE material either, probably. But since we are going to be in London, we are going to go and take a look at the four places that French students pinpoint while we are at it!