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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

Original poster

York University vs Birmingham University - tell me the pros and cons

78 replies

SeaGlassBlue · 09/04/2022 18:18

DS is currently deciding which offer to firm for September. He has applied to study History. He's narrowed the offers down to two favourites - Birmingham and York.

If you have any experience of either of these universities please share (the good and the bad) to help him decide!

OP posts:
kinggen · 09/04/2022 18:28

I've got an active thread at the moment called University of York which has lots of opinions and experience of York, which you might find useful. My DD had the same dilemma (also studying History) and has just firmed York with Birmingham as her insurance. She would be happy to go to either but in the end she just loved York a little bit more even though it is further away from home (an issue for her).

Original poster
SeaGlassBlue · 09/04/2022 19:05

Thanks @kinggen I'll have a look for the thread.

Sounds very similar to my DS, York is further away for us too but I think it has a slight edge over Birmingham at the moment.

OP posts:
Piggywaspushed · 09/04/2022 19:34

Ha! This is the same top choices as my DS except he is social sciences!

Both great unis. DS plumped for Birmingham because of its employment stats but it was a fine margin.

Have you visited both?

I went to York, and loved it. Always has had a top notch reputation for history. Lots of students I have taught have gone to Birmingham for history and loved it.

What factors matter most to your DS?

Piggywaspushed · 09/04/2022 19:38

On the 2021 student living index interestingly the most common of the unis they look at which had 'proximity to home' cited as a reason for choosing it was Birmingham. York was top for being chosen because of the subject.

partystress · 10/04/2022 07:33

I have a DS at York, house sharing with a lad doing a history masters, having loved his undergrad there. The whole York experience has been v positive, so much so that DD is possibly about to make it her firm.

I know several very happy Birmingham students, but my DN is just finishing history BA there. She’s been in the worst cohort covid-wise, but her biggest disappointment has been the lack of contact hours. Something worth comparing?

ronaldmcdonald123456 · 10/04/2022 11:39

I have this gut feeling that York is just one of 'the unis' for history. Makes me think of the war of the roses.

Original poster
SeaGlassBlue · 10/04/2022 13:23

@Piggywaspushed

Ha! This is the same top choices as my DS except he is social sciences!

Both great unis. DS plumped for Birmingham because of its employment stats but it was a fine margin.

Have you visited both?

I went to York, and loved it. Always has had a top notch reputation for history. Lots of students I have taught have gone to Birmingham for history and loved it.

What factors matter most to your DS?

We went to the open day in Birmingham in November and we're going to an offer holder day in York next week.

Birmingham History department was pretty impressive, but then I'm slightly biased as I studied at Birmingham a long time ago (not History). DS liked the feel of the campus.

I think DS is a little nervous of the size of Birmingham as a city, but the university is tucked away in leafy Edgbaston so I don't think it will be a problem.

OP posts:
Original poster
SeaGlassBlue · 10/04/2022 13:26

@Piggywaspushed

On the 2021 student living index interestingly the most common of the unis they look at which had 'proximity to home' cited as a reason for choosing it was Birmingham. York was top for being chosen because of the subject.
To be fair although Birmingham is closer to us than York they are both fairly far away - Birmingham is 3hrs by train and York is 6hrs. He won't be popping home with his washing from either!
OP posts:
Original poster
SeaGlassBlue · 10/04/2022 13:29

@partystress

I have a DS at York, house sharing with a lad doing a history masters, having loved his undergrad there. The whole York experience has been v positive, so much so that DD is possibly about to make it her firm.

I know several very happy Birmingham students, but my DN is just finishing history BA there. She’s been in the worst cohort covid-wise, but her biggest disappointment has been the lack of contact hours. Something worth comparing?

That's very interesting, thank you. I've kind of assumed that universities are reasonably back to normal in terms of Covid and teaching (my eldest DS is in his first year at Aberystwyth and he has had face to face lectures and seminars all year), but perhaps it depends on the university?
OP posts:
Original poster
SeaGlassBlue · 10/04/2022 13:30

@ronaldmcdonald123456

I have this gut feeling that York is just one of 'the unis' for history. Makes me think of the war of the roses.
This is true - one of his other offers is for Lancaster too!
OP posts:
Piggywaspushed · 10/04/2022 13:32

@ronaldmcdonald123456

I have this gut feeling that York is just one of 'the unis' for history. Makes me think of the war of the roses.
This is true, but so is Birmingham!

OP when we went to offer holder day at Birmingham they were very clear that they had been doing face to face for quite some time. This was pretty much university wide.

ronaldmcdonald123456 · 10/04/2022 13:41

@SeaGlassBlue what's scary about a city? There's lots of things to do. Out of curiosity did ur DS apply to London?

Piggywaspushed · 10/04/2022 13:56

Everyone has different tastes, lifestyles, interests and comfort zones ronald!

Petronus · 10/04/2022 14:01

I would go for York in a shot and I’ve lived in both places. Birmingham university is great, but if your son is apprehensive about the size of the city, York would be much better. The Birmingham students mostly don’t live in leafy Edgbaston, they are in Selly Oak, which is busy and less attractive. York is also a great university for History.

Original poster
SeaGlassBlue · 10/04/2022 14:12

[quote ronaldmcdonald123456]@SeaGlassBlue what's scary about a city? There's lots of things to do. Out of curiosity did ur DS apply to London?[/quote]
I don't think there's anything scary about a city - I grew up in a rural village and went to Birmingham University myself. But whilst I don't think it's scary I can acknowledge the fact that my DS is nervous about it!

No he didn't apply to any universities in London as none of them appealed.

OP posts:
Original poster
SeaGlassBlue · 10/04/2022 14:14

@Petronus

I would go for York in a shot and I’ve lived in both places. Birmingham university is great, but if your son is apprehensive about the size of the city, York would be much better. The Birmingham students mostly don’t live in leafy Edgbaston, they are in Selly Oak, which is busy and less attractive. York is also a great university for History.
I know - I lived in Balsall Heath in my second year, which was definitely not leafy... But after being there for 12 months he might have got used to it!
OP posts:
sammyjoanne · 10/04/2022 15:29

DD1 is at a different uni, but when it came to choosing unis to visit on open days she did look at Birmingham, and looked at York both online.
Then decided to choose York to visit on open day, as she was not so keen on birminghams selly oak area and liked a more of a campus feel. York is really nice. She liked Heslington East being separate from where she would be studying on Hes West, and she loved the city, the history of it all. York did end up in her final 5. DD2 who is in year 12 also visited york and she said would have loved to have studied there if they did her subject.

sammyjoanne · 10/04/2022 15:33

@SeaGlassBlue just read a bit of the thread above about Lancaster being one of the choices. DD1 thats where she ended up, at Lancaster. York was right up there also, it just a really nice campus in a really nice city.

Piggywaspushed · 10/04/2022 15:35

What's wrong with Selly Oak, out of interest?

Despite me growing up in Glasgow of all places , I am one of those 'sacred of a big city ' types at least on behalf of DS!... and do worry a bit about small town parochial DS in Birmingham , whereas I know he'd be fine in York.

DogStrummer · 10/04/2022 15:41

I went to York back in the 90's, and absolutely loved my time there.

Went back recently to campus, and it has been allowed to grow wild around the lake. It looks absolutely stunning!

Don't know too much about History at York. I do know one person I shared halls with in the first yr who did history. He's now a very respected teacher at one of the top private schools in the country. So, on a sample of 1, the employment chances are good Smile

TLDR; Go to York.

yellowsuninthesky · 10/04/2022 15:49

My son is at York, we're in the south of England, so Birmingham would have been nearer for us too. It's a very long time since I went to the university campus in Birmingham but I remember it being really nice (probably nicer buildings than York). But York is a very compact liveable city and feels quite safe. I am sure that both would be very enjoyable and both have good employment stats and reputations so in the end it's probably a question of gut feel!

DS went to York on the strength of a visit three years ago as we couldn't go to open days during the pandemic. He hadn't been to any of the other places he'd applied to either at all, or for many years.

ronaldmcdonald123456 · 10/04/2022 15:53

Went on discover uni and saw that York history grads make slightly more (on avg.) than a Birmingham history graduate.

Petronus · 10/04/2022 16:04

@Piggywaspushed

What's wrong with Selly Oak, out of interest?

Despite me growing up in Glasgow of all places , I am one of those 'sacred of a big city ' types at least on behalf of DS!... and do worry a bit about small town parochial DS in Birmingham , whereas I know he'd be fine in York.

There’s nothing wrong with it really, it’s very busy roads, lots of buses which is handy, lots of takeaways. Not pretty at all, not particularly green. Good access to the university and the city centre, lots of students probably love it. York is just lovely, nice campus, beautiful city, still plenty of pubs, nothing too overwhelming.
DietrichandDiMaggio · 10/04/2022 16:09

My son is at Birmingham and loves it there (doing a humanities subject). The campus is great, with some beautiful buildings, and is particularly lovely on a sunny day. Yes, most of the students live in Selly Oak, not Edgbaston, but that's pretty much like any city university, in that there is usually a certain area that the students live in when they move out of halls, which isn't necessarily the most desirable area for families.
Does your son have any particular interests, such as sport that he will want to do?

Piggywaspushed · 10/04/2022 16:17

York is just lovely, nice campus, beautiful city, still plenty of pubs, nothing too overwhelming.

I went to York so am very familiar. So I am mindful of my bias!