Sorry - another which uni thread? Ds is driving me mad with his indecision

[basildonbond]

He has offers from King's for war studies and Exeter for history and international relations

The grades required are similar (equivalent of AAA for kings and AAB for Exeter) both of which are slightly below his predicted grades but he wouldn't have to slip by much to miss!

He prefers the course at kings but the main issue is that we're in London and he probably wouldn't get a place in halls and given his general immaturity and lack of organisation I suspect he'd end up living at home

Exeter is a 4 year course with a year's study abroad

Any words of wisdom which will help sway him one way or the other would be very gratefully received

Basildon my DD has settled very well into uni. Although I have always taken the attitude that I facilitate her to organise herself rather than give in to the overwhelming urge to just get it done and over with, it was the moment that I felt I had to let go, and leave her to it and she hasn't sunk, though you probably have to wade through her floordrobe to find her..... She has stopped sending me things to proofread (it was always the blind leading the blind) and she arranged her second year house a few weeks ago. She did have a summer away interailing which obviously took a lot of independent organisation with her friends, and certainly helped.

Alreadytaken and indeed Molio yes it is undeniably more expensive in London and yes you are not going to build up massive social circles that you see constantly not just on campus but at the same club nights, team practises, play rehearsals, orchestra rehearsals etc. not least because there are more club nights, more orchestras and drama to get involved in and some may play for national level local squads. However my DD outside London has two flat mates whose parents cannot afford to subsidise them and have to work, as did my DD in London. The difference was that in London there were more opportunities to work and to earn more money, and more flexibility to do so casually. Socially there are more than enough opportunities to make friends and build up a circle though, you still meet people in halls, on your course and in extra curricular activities if you make the effort. These are factors to take into account when choosing a London university but they most definitely do not preclude students other than those from private schools who have parents in easy reach. As I have highlighted before this is more than highlighted by the advice from past students on the student room. UCL has 63% intake from state schools compared with Durhams 59% partly because it is generous with bursaries and scholarships because it is very much part of it's founding ethos. It certainly shouldn't preclude students considering courses that may well rank amongst the best available to them. As I say the life will be different but not necessarily worse or better, and with a thriving student subculture different again to post uni working life in London.

Accommodation post halls is if anything easier to come by, you are not part of a student dominated market so no bunfight in December /January, you can afford to wait until you have time and know who you want to live with in summer. The ULU Housing set up is also a significant player in encouraging decent landlord behaviour towards students, it is a national centre of excellence in terms of housing law as it is likely to affect students, again a definite strategy to make London living easier for all their students. I think it is the only one to have a scheme that acts a guarantor on accommodation for those without parents with the means.

The proportion of overseas students in London universities is nearer 40%, it certainly is another difference and anecdotally there does seem to be a greater degree of integration.

And I am not being Londoncentric, just seeking to convey the reality.

Are not most of the comments above, needmoresleep, based on anecdote rather than data? Why is it necessary to point the finger at certain people - I rather suspect me? At least I do have two DD studying in London!