Sorry about my slightly snitty post earlier. For some reason whilst MN seems to accept that different schools suit different children there is a prevailing assumption that all students want:
- a "typical" student experience including plenty of alcohol.
- prioritise a well paying job, most probably in law or banking.
- as few international students as possible - with "Chinese" being seen as a particular problem
- to be out of London and to live away from home.
and anyone outside that mold is somehow odd or lacking.
For many, these priorities may be true. I bumped into someone I knew at DS' LSE graduation. Her son's school had sent a full coach load to Bristol. They had seemingly had had much more "fun"; however her son had landed his dream graduate job and so felt that the trade-off had been worth it.
Both DS and I studied at the LSE. Me in the days when students were more left wing than the staff. DS stayed on for a Masters.
DS had a great time. He would think £9,250 great value for a library card, though got much much more than that. If you are focussed on either your subject or your future career, the opportunities are huge. Public lectures, "networking" talks given by practitioners, informal talks given by PhD students. DS undertook a couple of voluntary group research projects in his first year, one via his subject society was shortlisted to present at a conference in the US. Whilst an UG he somehow wangled a place to observe a regular peer review discussion group for post graduates. In his third year he picked up some paid research work plus took part in a voluntary SU project to run a lecture course for students wanting to brush up on their quantitative skills, and was student representative on a major departmental review. And more. He also regularly went to office hours, and received good practical support. I suspect that because LSE is so anonymous, staff often go out of their way to help students who show enthusiasm.
LSE is research heavy and 50% of the student body are post grad. Only 25% of Undergraduates are from the UK, and a fair proportion of these will be from ethnic minorities, and quite a high proportion live at home. First year lectures, especially in Economics, can be huge and classes are large with teaching rather than discussion. The diversity means that the social divisions between year groups and UG/PG are not so obvious, whilst the geographic spread means social life, societies etc, tend to be campus based. DS made no friends at all from hall (he was in an intercollegiate one) but plenty from different years and of different nationalities via societies. He played in a casual student-organised 7 a side league, and joined a school friend to use Imperial's excellent sports facilities. He got much closer to others on his course in his second and third years, with a student from Hong Kong organising the Friday post seminar pub sessions. He first rented a flat and then commuted from home. From observation there is not a lot in it: it depends on how well you get on with flat mates compared with how well you get on with parents. For many, London itself can be a playground. For example I recently met a food obsessed KCL student who had landed her dream Saturday job working in Borough Market (huge discount at all stalls!). The same applies to musicians, art lovers and so on.
DS is now studying for a PhD at a good University in the US and has discovered that his technical knowledge genuinely strong. His network is also excellent as LSE alumni seem to have found their way into just about every good economics faculty in the US.
I suspect DS did not know many geographers. In my day they were a tight knit group, who went on field trips, and owned wellingtons. They also played sport (the group I knew were netballers), which us "ents types" though very odd. My guess is that the smaller courses escape some of the social anomie (Durkhiem - about the only thing I picked up from first year sociology) that students on the larger courses face. The course itself looks fabulous, if your interests lie in economic and urban geography, and the department includes plenty of big names actively involved in policy and research.
In short, if you are interested in your subject is your primary reason for selecting a University, and you are a self-starter who will enjoy a rich and challenging course with peers from a multitude of diverse backgrounds, then go for it. LSE is special. If though at 18 you want a gentler introduction to life away from home, either take a gap year or think about what you really want from University.
FWIW it is worth, DD found her first year at Bristol really hard for the opposite reason. Flat of 12, at least one of whom stopped attending lectures in October, but carried on "being a student" until faced with summer exams. Halls miles from the University, and not much in the way of active societies, and as a Londoner she missed the diversity. It was a year before she found people with (non clubbing) shared interests and a desire to work hard as well as play hard. It is all about fit. DS found his feet almost straight away at LSE. I suspect for him, it would have taken longer elsewhere.