UCL accommodations

[Janjanmama]

Most likely dd will firm UCL. We heard about some terrible stories happened last year in UCL's halls and houses. Should we stick to halls? Students have no right to choose which hall they want. Any suggestions please. London is so expensive.

Why's that hellsbells?

I think wherever possible they should leave home as that is part of growing up and being a student. The ones in London are finding they are missing out socially either through having long commutes or not having any money due to costs etc. This is just my opinion after talking to DD's friends over Xmas - also taking into account that we are not affluent. Manchester is a good city to be a student in - although it does rain a lot! Obviously the final decision has to be your DS'.

How do people feel about doing 1st year in halls and the rest living from home if they are a commutable distance away? We are half an hour by train from Victoria so I imagine my dc will look at Uni in London - it does worry me though that they won't get the full experience if they don't actually move out.

Camden is not a good area??! the houses around those halls sell for over £2 million... mmm.

Why would you make new friends in halls and then go back to mummy and daddy? Just not really what a student will want to do. Would they not look like a bit of a wuss? Part of the student experience is getting a house, having parties, friends round to dinner, cooking, washing your gear, getting a bit pissed and your parents having no idea what you are doing - the good and bad! It is learning to be an adult. Some employers actually like to see a student has fended for themselves away from home.

We live within easy commuting distance of London but that made no difference to choice of university and certainly, for DD1, it was not a given that she looked at London. Most of my DDs friends did not want London either because they were familiar with it, had it available in the holidays, and understood the problems that have been well aired on this thread. Some escaped from the pressure to live at home and actively discounted London. They wanted to go somewhere else and be themselves.

My DD2 is in London but at a specialist university and her course was not available elsewhere so her choice was limited. Of course London is a great place to study but if it means living at home, I would not recommend that.

yeah I think you're right. My dc are younger so I was just thinking about how it might work. I went to university alone, to a different country at 17 and didn't get into halls so lived in private rental the whole time. It was a bit extreme tbh so I am hoping my dc will have a more of a happy medium. Halls and shared houses off teh back of that do seem ideal to me tbh.

My dd won't have a HOME in London as her parents are living thousands miles away from her. She has to be very independent either in hall or in student house.

So it's not a matter of to be hall or not to be hall.

I was responding to foragogogo.

I do understand your DC is living away from home OP! Having said that, London is full of young people living thousands of miles from home - it is, of course, a matter of choice. It is not obligatory to study so far away from home.

I was speaking in general but not specifically to you bojorojo. So, calm down.

I assumed you were aware of the purpose of this thread.

I would be wary of basing a decision against London on the basis of hellsbells DDs peers experience as of February in the first year. I have two DDs who have attended uni in and out of London. The out of London one had a frenetic first term with endless social activities laid on by halls and societies both Clubbing / pub crawls and other more cultural activities, thankfully none of the hazing sort at her uni, but plenty of that in the sports clubs elsewhere. Facebook pages fill up with pictures of frenetic enjoyment but often the truth of it is a little different in private. You won't get that sort of spoon feeding at the London unis, there are all the usual sorts of freshers social events of course but it just isn't as crazy. There are however far more diverse things to do and far more overseas students. DD was at an international school in the Primary years and they reunited when many turned up in London. They all enjoyed their time there even if in "the wilds of Camden" Actually Janjanmama Camden is one of the focal points of student life, indeed London cultural life. I go there myself for the concerts shopping and restaurants. I do hope the purpose of this thread is not for you to confirm your prejudices /exercise the chip on your shoulder. London is an international city and UCL in particular an international university with a very long history of inclusivity. And as I have unfortunately had cause to meet the Head of Accommodation Services personally (an entirely unique legal situation) I can really vouch for their commitment to making sure that in accommodation terms the student experience in London is as good as they can possibly make it and problems sorted out. In particular their expertise on legal matters in relation to student housing and the support set up are unmatched.

In the second year things settle down wherever they are at uni as they have found their real friends, settled into houses and what they really enjoy doing. In London DDs friends who came from disadvantaged backgrounds quickly found their niche in paid employment, there is a network and it is relatively easy to find well paid part time / temporary work that you can dip in and out of and is also enjoyable, in bars, restaurants, promotional work etc. My DDs friends out of London who do not have financial support from parents do not find it so easy to and some are having to return home at weekends to earn enough money.

The issue of the impact of the shortfall of funds and its impact on student life for those without parental funding is not just a London one

We in common with many parents pay/paid the rent and of course appreciate the £200 per month saving out of London but in terms of all that DD got out of London life and her prestigious course (now turning into an academic career within the network formed as an undergraduate) it wasn't bad value.

It was you who put HOME in capital letters, OP. I am perfectly calm, thank you and I did realise the UK is not your home and that you want the best for your DC. Some of us do already have chldren living as students in London. Both my DD1 and DD2 are currently there,although DD1 is at a private university.

However, I think you have argued against yourself and in fact back up what hellsbells is saying. It is very disruptive to student life to go home at weekends in order to find a job to earn money to live as a student in London. Virtually no-one does this elsewhere. Lots of parents cannot afford to pay the rent! This is the problem. In London the rents are higher - just a quick look at UCL prices for halls tells you this. Yes, the loan is more for London, but it decreases year on year and even then it does not cover costs - anywhere near! Working for poorer students becomes a necessity and, yes jobs are pretty much available, but it very much depends what degree you are doing and what time you have available. My DD2 worked very hard at her P/t job. If her degree had been medicine, engineering or anything needing hours of lab time, this would have been very difficult to fit in, never mind being very tired!

My DD1 is doing a professional post grad course - it takes hours and hours and hours of studying. Getting a job would be virtully impossible to manage and study at this level of pace and intensity. Although the course is available part time for those that need to do this.

Overseas students are drawn to London like a magnet. Plenty are very well off and the expensive halls are full of overseas students. It is good value if you have the money, but other students struggle and the gloss wears off. They have other friends who are having a great time elsewhere. It suits some people and my DD's would not want to be anywhere else. They live in our flat. They do not scrimp and save. They do not need to work. Horses for courses!

bojo if your second paragraph was directed at me, firstly I am not arguing anything merely passing on first hand information in the face of a lot of misperceptions of London student life. Secondly you misread my post. It is my DD who is at uni outside London who has friends who are returning home at weekends to work to earn money because they cannot find work in their uni town. They have never known a London student have to do that. There are plenty of opportunities for well paid casual work. My DD had a very demanding course but was able to drop and take up work at quite a bit more than minimum wage in various upmarket bakeries, bars and on promotional work and earn extra money as and when she wanted and she had several friends who did not get any money from their parents who managed to lead exactly the same standard of living as she did by working in their spare time and holidays (in fact their houses tended to be as full in holidays as term time because they stayed down to work, and the year round contracts therefore an advantage, even so more so when it came to taking up internships) . It is quite wrong to say the student body in London is overly tipped towards overseas students and those from rich families. In fact in contrast to some other unis like Bristol Nottingham and Exeter favoured by private school pupils the main attraction in London does tend to be the courses, and it actually has a more diverse vibe. It is a different student experience, but none the worse. The expense is undeniable but there are ways round that, as well, if the course is right.

I do have a DD who chose to go elsewhere, but mainly because nowhere in London offered the course she wanted.

FWIW I have stayed in UCL's Ramsay Hall on a number of occasions as an adult, in the summer holidays. Rooms are basic, but fine. Bathrooms are shared and adequate. I have never eaten there in the evenings but breakfast is very good (and plentiful).

bojo the more I think about it the more cross I get at your "horses for courses" comment particularly on behalf of DDs friends that, though their parents did not have the ability to subsidise them at all, let alone house them in their flat with no money worries, are now making their way in the working world in the jobs that they gained on merit given their ability and personal qualities, having had a great university experience in London. It may be outside your experience but university in London is an experience available to all, and certainly UCL will do everything in it's power including bursaries etc to make that the case.

I totally agree that our DCs should make their own decisions about where they go to uni but I do hope you don't mean to imply that Londin is only an option for the rich because it is simply not true.

I think the costs of living in London are an increasing worry for many. Lots of London students live at home. UCL hall charges are high whencompared to similar accommodation in Nottingham, Leeds or Newcastle. Only the poorest of the poor get bursaries.

Many overseas students come for the courses, like everyone else, but are also wedded to London as a place to live and study so do not look anywhere else. That is not necessarily a bad thing and the student body is diverse. My DD2's course has 50% overseas. Horses for courses simply means, choose the right place for you. I am agreeing it is different.

It is very very hard to make the money go round in London. Working is a necessity for quite a few and internships cost money!!! A student who can afford full year rent, is not a poor student. Paying transport costs to and from the internship is not easy for a poor student. Internships mean you cannot get a job for that period time, so where does the extra money come from? Who pays for the suit to wear? Again, poor students struggle with this. It is a very middle class thing to do and the costs are supported by parents. In fact, there has been genuine concern that poor students do not apply for internships. We know many firms recruit from their interns, so we know it is desirable but many do not get the chance to do them even if they are well qualified and have good personalites and merit a chance. Not that this is just a London problem. It is even worse for students who live much further away but want a chance of an iternship in a city bank, for example. Where do they live and who pays for it? Is it just coincidence that so may top employers in the city take people from a narrow background?

I am truly delighted that your DD's friends have done well, whatwouldyou. As I said, my DD2 is in London due to her course. However, the courses at UCL are not so different from other top universities. I still think students choose London because they like the idea of London. I do not think everyone realises they may need a job. Lots of parents struggle to afford the difference between the loan and costs. Not every student likes struggling ith money. So, as I said, make your choices wisely - is that a better expression?

bojo Certainly better than implying that London is not an option unless you are rich, in fact the cash bursaries at UCL are offered to those with families with a household income of up to £47000 - on a sliding scale from ££3000 where the income is less than £16000 but still a £1000 cash payment at least. Where I come from that would not be the poorest of the poor by any means. And students without extra funding from parents have to find additional means of funding wherever they go, the loan does not cover living costs including rent anywhere.

It is a matter of looking carefully at the actual finances, plenty of sound advice on the student room, rather than assuming London is just for the rich.

Many internships, the good ones anyway, are paid, some quite well. Outside the traditional low paid glamour sectors like fashion, the media and publishing the good companies are increasingly looking to have fair access and moving away from the traditional nepotistic / exploitative schemes. DD tried out the corporate world via a marketing internship which paid just as well as the graduate entry schemes.

I thought living in manky halls was part of the student experience tbh