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Higher education

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Original poster

Reading as a University town - is it a good place to live (for students)

30 replies

LimitIsUp · 20/09/2021 14:49

I've been to Reading a couple of times when I was working in Berkshire and had to attend meetings at the RBH. My perception of it driving through it was that it was a bit concretey and ugly. This was a snapshot and could have been grossly unfair. Didn't really reflect any more on it

Is it a decent place to live and study for Uni students? (I am not asking for feedback on the University per se - more on 'being in Reading'). Asking for my dd

Thank you

OP posts:
NotDonna · 20/09/2021 15:10

I visited last year with DD1. It’s got a decent town centre with the usual shops and stores and not too spread out. There’s an indoor shopping centre that then leads to a small river/canal with eateries and cinema complex. It’s also on the Thames with a watersports centre. No idea about nightlife etc but was certainly pleasant enough during the day.

Original poster
LimitIsUp · 20/09/2021 15:11

Okay, thanks NotDonna
Its not a trillion miles away, perhaps we should take a look

OP posts:
PermanentTemporary · 20/09/2021 15:14

Reading is ok. I did a degree there as a mature student and my young colleagues seemed to have a reasonable student experience.

If you're detecting a middling sort of vibe about my opinion, you'd be right. I would rather ds studied in a city with a bit more pizzazz, personally.

Having said that, I'm now getting to know Reading as a grown up because a new partner lives there, and it does have a lot more going for it than I realised as a crazily busy commuting student!

seekingsolace2 · 20/09/2021 15:34

I live in Reading. It's quite multicultural, not as noisy as some parts of London but not quiet either. It has a decent town centre with shops and cafes around, great transport links as well the bus routes from the university to town centre are pretty well used and the new train station is also good. Personally, I would say it's a decent place to live..

Alonelonelylonersbadidea · 20/09/2021 16:06

I grew up in Reading.

The university is good. There are good shops and bars.
Apart from that it's a shithole and home to the rudest people I've ever met (which some people would now say include me after what I've said about it).
I left it as soon as I could.

Xmasbaby11 · 20/09/2021 16:17

I studied at Reading Uni but over 20 years ago. It wasn't a super exciting place but the campus university is nice.

I would say it;'s significantly more expensive than other cities where my friends studied - they were able to do a lot more on a student budget.

Of course my experience was long ago and it may have changed a lot.

doubleshotcappuccino · 20/09/2021 16:23

It's ok .. but a bit of everything and nothing really ..no real heart or soul culturally or looks wise but relatively safe and diverse which is a plus

Original poster
LimitIsUp · 20/09/2021 17:08

Thanks all

OP posts:
Dunrovi · 20/09/2021 17:44

I wasn't wowed when we looked. DD felt that if she was going to leave home (London) she wanted to go somewhere with a more distinct cultural identity than a commuter town.
But equally you could argue that it's a good distance from a lot of places in the SE / Home Counties so a very convenient place to study.

Curioushorse · 20/09/2021 17:54

The campus is lovely. I actually think the student life is alright. It's very separate from the rest of the town and is based around the campus. When the students live out of halls, they tend to live near the university, and the bars there reflect that. I don't think the students generally use the town centre much at all.

It's got all the stuff you'd expect with a good university so, yeah, there is culture. Do students use the rest of their university city much? I didn't at any of my universities- and I'm not sure that's very unusual. Social lives tend to be built around the university experience, not the town.

OP, contrary to some of the other posters here, I think it's worth checking out. It is a Russell group university- so it's good. I also think the students seem happy.

(Disclaimer: I studied there as a post-grad)

PermanentTemporary · 20/09/2021 17:59

I would say that my lecturers were generally pretty good to excellent. Very few duds. My tutors were incredibly helpful. Those were the main things. I was frustrated by library access, which was tricky for a commuting student, and a couple of minor issues with the particular course I was on. I still wouldn't seek to put an individual person off.

SickAndTiredAgain · 20/09/2021 18:04

It’s got everything you’d need, but it’s not somewhere that will wow anyone.
The riverside bit in the centre is nice with the restaurants/bars etc, there’s decent shopping, it has good train connections (20 min fast train to central London), buses are good.

It depends what your DD wants I guess. It’s not massive but some people don’t want massive, I went to uni in Birmingham which is obviously huge and that’s not for everyone either. I don’t know what the campus itself is like but I used to live right in the uni area and it’s close to the town centre which I think is a bonus as opposed to being an out of town campus.

HasaDigaEebowai · 20/09/2021 18:11

It is a Russell group university- so it's good.

Pretty sure Reading isn’t a Russell Group university

Curioushorse · 20/09/2021 18:19

@HasaDigaEebowai

It is a Russell group university- so it's good.

Pretty sure Reading isn’t a Russell Group university

You're right. Apologies! It is a good university though, and in some courses (mine for example), is a leader. But I'm sure OP's child would check all that out (better than me).
SickAndTiredAgain · 20/09/2021 18:20

@HasaDigaEebowai

It is a Russell group university- so it's good.

Pretty sure Reading isn’t a Russell Group university

I believe it’s the only redbrick uni that isn’t Russell group.
Original poster
LimitIsUp · 21/09/2021 09:45

Dd wants to study Graphic design so Russell Group is largely an irrelevance - in fact Graphic design isn't offered in most Russell Group Universities

OP posts:
chesirecat99 · 21/09/2021 12:58

If she wants to study Graphic Communication & Typography, Reading is excellent, one of the best. Certainly worth putting up with a slightly meh city centre.

Xenia · 21/09/2021 13:19

My son went there when he didn't meet his grades for Exeter to went through clearing. It was fine - I quite liked the feel of it and in years 2 and 3 he commuted from here (we live in outer London) so I suppose he was not really getting into the read Reading in that sense but I quite liked what I saw of it.

lockdownmadnessdotcom · 22/09/2021 11:08

I used to change trains there a lot and had largely the same opinion of it as you OP. But it's actually quite nice! The university campus is quite attractive too.

But I agree there are probably more interesting student cities.

lockdownmadnessdotcom · 22/09/2021 11:09

@HasaDigaEebowai

It is a Russell group university- so it's good.

Pretty sure Reading isn’t a Russell Group university

It's a decent pre-1992 uni. Nobody is going to look down on a candidate from Reading university when it comes to job applications.
HasaDigaEebowai · 22/09/2021 13:52

I didn’t say they would. I simply said Reading isnt Russell group because a pp said it was

pointythings · 22/09/2021 15:11

My DD is at Reading and loves it - she's in her third year and is living off campus, but outside of COVID has had a really good Uni experience so far, made lots of friends both inside and outside of the university, and it's a leading uni for her course. It has a lot going for it. My son is there too now.

AlphabetAerobics · 22/09/2021 15:18

It’s not all about “Russel Group” - more experiencing (and surviving) a night in the Purple Turtle.

Original poster
LimitIsUp · 22/09/2021 15:23

Thank you - my dd has been persuaded to take a closer look

OP posts: