Do these universities have a good reputation?

[SausageCrush]

Dd is looking to do psychology in 2021.

We've looked at the ratings and factored in all sorts of things such as her predicted grades, T.EF. rating, graduate prospects, distance from home, campus, etc.

What we would really appreciate is some insider information about whether the following have good reputations, because that isn't something you can find out online. You need to know someone who works in academia or recruits graduates.

We might be over thinking this, but would appreciate any input on the following:-

Portsmouth
Leicester
Hull
Lincoln
Aberystwyth

We plan to visit them over half term. Just to add that these will be whittled down to become choices 3, 4 and 5. Her first choices are Cardiff & Sussex. We've already visited both of these.

Thank you!

Portsmouth have a reputation of taking anyone, so as a back up ok. Leicester is the only one on that risk that's got a decent reputation and has a bonus of being cheap to live in (dd is there and halls are £110 en-suite)

Thank you all for your replies.

Dd got ABB in her most recent (AS) exams, but has recently been hit hard by a bereavement and is very fragile. She hasn't been to any lessons for three weeks now and what with this a the virus, I think we need to be realistic about her grades next year. She had a lot of catching up to do, but insists she wants to try. We live rurally and she's desperate to leave home and start her own life.

The list I gave earlier is from thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk and ranked in order of best (Cardiff is 15th in psychology) down to Aberystwyth (ranked lowest at 82.) Leicester is 45th.

She has been very keen on psychology for years, but doesn't know what she'll actually do with it in the future, although she's drawn to research.

There's a lot to be said for them choosing the town (city) as much as the course. They have to live there for most of 3 years. DD chose London & never thought outside London (I failed to sell her on multi-ethnic Leicester in case her grades didn't compete for London). Daily life in London is quite different from Abba or Loughborough.

Place matters. Having some safe choices are sane choices especially if her confidence is down. She needs to be able to envision herself living happily at the places; there are at least some great teachers & people on every course ime.

DS is in Hull doing a post grad having completed his undergrad there. He loves the Uni and the city. Hull Uni was established in 1927 I believe so has been a uni for a while! He isn't doing Psychology but his previous girlfriend was and she has returned to do her Masters there. She was full of praise for some of her tutors which was the deciding factor in her returning for her Postgrad. Hull is a cheap place to live if money happens to be a consideration and accommodation plentiful - both on campus and off.

We visited Leicester with DS and one thing that put him off was that Halls were a 45 min walk from the Uni and the bus pass was £500.

I do think psychology is a difficult subject because even a masters in it might lead nowhere much. So future plans as opposed to research (teaching at a university) need consideration. Surrey, for example, want ABB and offer a clinical placement year. I would look for this type of course and places like Surrey are a safe option.

She would be cutting herself very short going to any of those with ABB (and I also endorse Surrey mentioned above too). By all means have a range though including a few aspirational ones and a few easier to get into.

I would also look at Liverpool uni as an option.

If Sussex is one of her preferred choices, is she aware they do a foundation year with CCC. So even if she missed the year 1 offer she'd be offered the foundation year instead.

Probably a better option than having a poor insurance offer.

Would she be eligible for contextual offer? Look at those requirements too. For example University of Exeter (12th) requires AAA but only ABC or ACC (have to get the A in any science subject) for contextual offer. So ABB, if the A is in a science would make it a possible choice.

It’s worth putting your postcode in to see as well as reading their admissions documents to see if your DD is eligible for one as that would mean she can reach a that little bit higher for her aspirational choice in UCAS.

Good point. Bristol where 3 of mine went have a big contextual offer system where even if your school is just in the bottom 40% of the country you get an offer of one or two grades lower.

It depends on the course. Some universities have amazing courses but may not be the best university for other things.

Warwick seems low in the tables for some reason. If the student doesn’t go on to fully qualify, Warwick is a great bet at AAB. Sheffield, Newcastle and Lancaster don’t want AAA either. So plenty of very good universities don’t want the highest grades.

Very important as others have said to make sure the course is BPS accredited and gives Graduate Basis for Registration, or whatever it's called now. That leaves all avenues open for postgraduate study/training in psychology if she decides that's what she wants to do.

She should also think about whether she wants to do a four-year course with a placement year/year in industry, as those can be really good. I'm a few years out of date with my information about this (used to deal with psychology graduates in my previous job) but at that time I remember graduates coming from Cardiff, Bath and Surrey who'd done useful and interesting things in that year in industry.

Thank you for all your replies and suggestions.

All of the courses on the list are BPS accredited and several offer placement years (including Cardiff, Sussex & Aberystwyth) which she is keen to do.

We had considered a foundation year. We'll also look at contextual offers. Thank you.

I think we'll be doing a road trip over half term!

I hope you're allowed to travel, OP.
A lot of Unis are doing video virtual online Open days. Check Youtube.

Do try Cardiff. A friend’s DD was accepted with significantly lower grades than offer which surprised me. Stood me in good stead for research jobs in Bristol and London after graduating, though that was a long time ago so may have changed.

Bath requires very high grades. It’s a stretch for the OP’s DD. It’s recognised as one of the best universities for Psychology though and going on a course with a year in practice is definitely worthwhile if you want to practice eventually.

@bigbluebus

We visited Leicester with DS and one thing that put him off was that Halls were a 45 min walk from the Uni and the bus pass was £500.

That's the catered halls. There are self-catered halls within a few minutes of the campus. And whilst the catered halls are a bit far, they're in a beautiful part of the city.

I do agree with @lljkk about how important it is to like where you are, and, to some students more than others, how easy it is to travel home (or someone to travel to them) if need be. You have some really varied places on your lists in terms of o, in terms of demograph and in terms of 'type' of university. and a lot of miles to travel, wherever you are starting from )

Please bear in mind that most universities are offering virtual open days rather than on-campus ones at the moment. And as a visitor it’s unlikely you’ll be able to go into any of their buildings at the moment unfortunately.

I personally wouldn't rate any of those universities - I don't think they have very good reputations and wouldn't exactly be cool places to live. Except maybe Sussex.

If you have her predictions it might help you find her level in the listings but I'd definitely find some more redbrick universities if possible. I'd also watch the student tours on YouTube to get a feel for the campus/city vibe and what's available in the area. You can do a lot of research and get a good feel without needing to visit. Thats a lot of places to go to!

Location-wise, Aberystwyth is the most 'other' of the five and so might be the one to make sure to visit, if your DD likes the look of the course. I can imagine that seeing it in late October would be a good test of how keen one actually was (or just dig out the box-sets of Hinterland?).

Aber is a love it or hate it kind of place to live.

For psychology, I would look closely at the course content as it varies a lot between universities, with some having a more quantitative focus, some more biological, some more social science.

Portsmouth is OK. Aberystwyth is a great university but would she feel isolated in a Welsh coastal town?
Personally - ad this is my personal opinion (and I'm likely to be flamed for it) - I would advise my own family against Hull and Lincoln. But as other posters have said, it's the "feel" of a place which counts as much as anything, what suits one person is not to another's taste.