Durham and Lancaster

[KittyMcKitty]

Hi

i know we need to visit and we will but Lancaster is a very long way from home!

DD is applying to Durham for Sociology- been to the open day and stayed overnight in Durham and she loves everything about it (which came as a surprise as she’d been not that keen till we visited).

Shed always thought that York would be her preferred Uni but Durham now trumps that. She’s also been looking at Lancaster- highly ranked for sociology and it seems to have a heavy research focus (one of the things she likes about Durham). Also there is a lot more focus on the areas of sociology she’s particularly into compared to York (Durham also focus’ on her interests heavily).

so my question is does anyone have any recent experience of Lancaster for Sociology and as a city how does it compare to Durham?

I know a lot of this is subjective but would appreciate any opinions.

Oh my I feel I should keep this from her as the disappointment if she doesn’t get in would be too much to cope with 😂😂

And....Durham admissions process seems designed to shorten your life. Lancaster actually makes you feel welcome!

@KittyMcKitty yes York did themselves no favours with us with that trick with the accommodation portal.

DS is working class and from the north. He is at a hill college and no RAH’s or Hoorays there, which had concerned me as well.

If your daughter fancies Durham and has the predicted grades it I would definitely encourage her to include Durham in her choices and see what happens. The Freps were fantastic during Freshers week and lots to do with regards to College, Uni and city.

DS is currently at Lancaster and I echo the positive comments of others here. Whilst definitely not a big city the University has so much going on that doesn’t seem to matter. The college system has been great; DS has made good friends and got involved with things so definitely feels part of the community there.

The University was very supportive when he wanted to change course and there seems to be a big focus on employability and wider skills development.

The city is pretty and the campus is lovely with amazing facilities and lots of green space. It was a great choice for DS and he’s very happy.

Agree the train service is not great though and it’s a long way for us so he only comes home in the holidays.

Good luck to your DD. Picking a subject you’re really interested in is definitely the way to go. DS started off doing something he thought he should do and that was a mistake.

Lancaster is lovely. I think some of it will come down to personality. I live fairly close and wanted a big city, with loads of nightlife. Lancaster isn’t that and I chose Sheffield instead (I preferred the course for my interests too).
The university campus is a bit out of town and most students live on campus in years 1 and 3. There are regular buses into town. It’s collegiate, and every college has its own vibe, with its own bar etc. There are loads of societies and activities on campus.
In terms of what’s nearby, it’s easy to get up to the Lakes or Morecambe Bay if she’s an outdoorsy type. Preston is about 20 mins on the train and is the nearest city. It’s alright, lots of decent ish pubs, but not amazing and the shopping is dismal. Manchester and Liverpool are a bit further away - Manc about an hour by train, Liverpool a bit further but both are really buzzing and vibrant.
Everyone I know who studied at Lancaster really loved it. It’s a very safe feeling university with a great community. The city itself is beautiful and historic, quite bookish and green, lots of vegan cafes, and traditional pubs, that kind of thing.
If she wants to be at a different nightclub every night of the week it might not be her cup of tea, but it really is worth a look.

My DB went to Lancaster years ago and said that their careers advise was not good and as they were not a target Uni, not many top tier companies visited. Of course this would have changed due to social media and online presence and many applications being centralised. You might want to check this though

We visited all three for open days last year. DS was looking at a science not sociology. He decided against Lancaster because it is properly outside the town. The subject facilities looked good. One of his friends has gone though and so far all seems to be going well. York did not sell itself well on the day. Durham is where he is now. So far so good!

The 2 cities are quite different, but Lancaster has everything Durham has, plus the Lake District, and Manchester.

However, the universities are v different. Although Lancaster is not one of the oldest universities in the country (if not the world) like Durham, in my experience (I've taught or External Examined at both, in humanities, but not Sociology) Lancaster has far more of a community feel amongst students than Durham. I think this is because it's a campus-based university, and a really beautiful self-sufficient campus. Fab library and study facilities. Also, it doesn't ted to attract the rejected-from-Oxford types, so the whole ethos is rather more egalitarian; it has a high proportion of Welsh, fewer Scottish students than previously, and a good proportion of northerners - so students tend to be more down to earth I found (as a lecturer anyway). and

Lancaster is a lovely small city, I adored it there, the University is outside of the city, there is a lot of accommodation on campus rather than Lancaster itself, you do need to catch a bus into the city, they are regular and cheap. The lake district is easily reached by train. Manchester is also easily reached by train but is approx an hour away. I loved my time in Lancaster, on the whole a lovely safe city.

Lancaster has an open day this Saturday

Sadly it clashes with Birmingham which we are going to. We couldn’t do there and back in a day for Lancaster and can’t do a night away this weekend.

TBF lots of clashes with open days for dd this year. She is yr 13 doesn’t like to think too far ahead, works on Saturdays and has a school trip which leads into one of the busiest weekends for open days she fancies. I wished some uni’s ran them on Fridays or Sundays to make things easier.

Sociology was one of the subjects taken at Durham when you couldn’t get in to do History. A bit like Arch and Anth. So don’t see it as a passport to a job in policy or informing policy. That’s what everyone thinks. DC doing a wide variety of subjects can apply for these jobs and a MA doesn’t guarantee much at all. Everyone has one. So get work placements and vacation jobs as well as degrees. Policy can also be informed by academics. Or politicians who think they know everything. Or lobbyists. It’s a tough world. Especially if it’s feminist issues she wants to influence.

thank you. I don’t y think she sees it as a passport to anything- it’s just what she’s interested in and really wants to do - which is what Durham Sociology say they’re really after. She wants to do an MA because she feels it will be interesting and rewarding that’s all. She certainly doesn’t think anyone will hand her a job

Durham admissions process seems designed to shorten your life.
Have to disagree. DN 2 years ago received offer within 6 weeks of applying. State school not applied to Oxbridge. DS applied in November and received offer towards the end of January. For bigger clubs / more pubs / better shopping if that's their thing, Newcastle is 15 mins away on the train.

@KittyMcKitty
Those talking about offer times is really of little consequence. You are either in or out. Some Dc get ultra competitive about early offers and they start talking at school. Then they start worrying. As long as Dc get offers, that’s all you need.

I understand her desire to do Sociology but historically Durham hasn’t been as choosy on that course as others. I would also very much keep Options open at 21 post degree. The specific MA might look good now, but she will need to consider employment options. Most people do in the end. So instead of ploughing one furrow, a field of furrows is useful. There are lots of things to consider.

She (I) just hopes she gets an offer which on paper she should definitely. She’s not applying to Oxbridge (not interested/ not special enough, certainly by MN standards 😂). Having been through it with DS his offers came within less then 24 hrs and 3 months with one rejection from the lowest tariff course he applied to.

who knows what she will want to do at 21 - she may well change her mind but this is her plan at 17 😊

I understand her desire to do Sociology but historically Durham hasn’t been as choosy on that course as others

Is it a sort of variation on the Groucho Marx thing - You shouldn't want to apply for that, because there isn't much risk that the university will turn you down...?

Anyway she got her predicted grades today and they comfortably exceed those which all the unis she’s considering (Durham, York, Lancaster, Birmingham and Loughborough) ask for so all happy here. She just needs to finalise her PS and then cross her fingers

Haha I love this!

Too funny @MarchingFrogs

OP we too have a Birmingham/Lancaster clash. We should swap notes 🤣

@NotDonna are you going to Lancaster? Which subject?

dd is going to do the online open day for them and then we will go and have a look sometime when we go to visit ds in Manchester.

Yes up to Lancaster. She knows other northern cities but Lancaster is a bit different so I think it’s worth her looking despite it being a ridiculously long way! I know she’ll like Birmingham. She wants a campus and a city and this has the best if both worlds but less sure about the course. Not sociology though - business.

The sociology team at both unis are lovely. The author of Stigma gifted one of my students some books after she said she had read bits in lessons and a Durham woman does excellent webinars for schools on feminist sociology ( stuff on single mothers in particular)

My DS does social policy . He's at Birmingham. He didn't want to apply to Durham . Lancaster was in the running but just left out because of social policy being his priority. He applied to Cambridge, Bath, York, Sheffield and Birmingham.

Our school does not do sociology at either GCSE or A level, which is such a shame!