Chinese - advice on British universities

[Chineselookingwest]

my Son would like to study at UK University. Many of his friends do but they only mix with fellow Chinese and international students and keep themselves to selves. This is not what my son wants - he wants to integrate properly with UK students. His English is fluent.

he does not want to go to a university where international students isolate. He has friends at Essex university and Guildford and Holloway London who do that. He will avoid those places. Where else should he avoid please.

Have a look at Warwick university

Which, if you are not familiar with the geography of the English Midlands, is actually a fairly short bus journey from Coventry Station, not actually in or particularly near Warwock. Number 12 bus iirc.

If he doesn't want to study a second MFL, but is interested in Spanish culture as well as the language, then the Hispanic Studies and Economics BA might be of interest:
https://warwick.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/hispanicstudiesandeconomics/

Have a look at Queen's University Belfast too

you on this site giving recommendations to eat when we stay in uk is so good. I am very happy for 6 weeks in UK with my son. We want to live like UK students but my husband wants son to have nice flat with Cleaner and he will buy it. This is not what my son wants.

Yes, definitely avoid Imperial then

i said UK but meant England. But my son knowing better and looked up. He also likes Cardiff and Glasgow and wants to visit Aberwhisthmith

I would definitely recommend you look at Lancaster University.

I think it meets a lot of the requirements your son is looking for.

In respect of accommodation I'd also say it's very egalitarian.

All first year students are guaranteed accommodation on campus and the options are largely about location rather than facilities - the University has spent a lot on upgrading/new student accommodation so pretty much all have their own private bathroom and the distinctions are based on how central to the main campus you want to be - but the south/north campuses have their own (good) facilities, are quieter and are better designed.

It's an RG+ uni (and outranks most RG ones).

The campus is a few miles from the city but has everything you can wish for (bookstores, food shops, restaurants, hairdressers, medical centre etc).

The library is a lovely space to spend time in.

It's a really friendly university and the college system makes its less daunting as you join a smaller college community to start with and can branch out from there.

Good luck whatever you decide!

I would certainly say that if your husband insists on buying your son a flat and him having a cleaner, his experience will be so different from that of most U.K. students that it would make it much more difficult for him to integrate and find friends. My DD’s Asian friends at university included one Chinese boy from a very wealthy background whose ability to spend money was (and still is) astonishing to their group of friends. He bought her a VR Oculus headset during covid, for example, when they were all new graduates living in different places, just so he had a friend to play with online! But when they were students he still lived in the same accommodation as them, which is how they became friends in the first place. If he had lived in special luxury accommodation they would not have met.

As no-one has commented on Nottingham I'll put my thoughts in, although it has been a long time since I was there. Nottingham has strong associations with Malaysia so there was a good number of Malaysian students when I went, but few on my course and I don't think any in my halls - I was in the standard/cheapest halls, I believe they would have been in the more expensive ensuite halls.

Halls at Nottingham are catered. and had about 12 students per area, so lots of opportunity to mix. We did have a shared kitchen too (which was rarely used) so it is still possible to cook.

There was loads of opportunities to join societies, lots of sports, participate in hall events (parties) etc. I believe it is still known as a very social university. We also got the bus or walked into Nottingham centre, for the clubs mostly. It's a fairly standard Northern small city, not very exciting, and I wouldn't say there's much in the way of nice culture, countryside, history. However, a very standard British campus university experience would be what you'd get there.

Very few students could stay in halls after first year (capacity was reserved for first years) and people would join together to rent a shared flat or house in the surrounding streets and walk into the campus from there.

A compromise with your husband could be to buy a (cheap) house or flat for later years that your son could sub-let to his friends. That is unusual but not unheard of with British families who can afford to do so. From my experience students generally want to share with 3 -6 friends, although that might be as much for the economy of scale as for the socialising!

Cardiff is a city university and whenever I visit I see many Chinese people (compared to rest of Wales) but it is a great city to live in with lots to do.
Aberystwyth is a small town and isolated in comparison to the rest of Wales or Liverpool or Manchester. It is very safe though and surrounded by beautiful mountains. It is worth a visit to see the coast and mountains!

Aberystwyth is definitely small, and by UK standards relatively remote. Given the land mass of China is thirty nine times bigger than the UK remoteness is relative.

Although I have a DC at Aber for the subject mix that the OP’s son is interested in I’m less than convinced that it would be a potential shortlist Uni. For Economics and Spanish there are better options.

Aber has a population of less than 20,000 people. It is small, friendly, fantastic beaches, great surrounding countryside and even has a Michelin starred restaurant. It consistently scores highly for student satisfaction. Worth a visit on your trip if just for the fresh air and spectacular scenery. But in reality likely not a real candidate for the degree the OP’s DC wants to study.

It's a good point about the type of Spanish degree that your DS wants to study. Does he want tostudy pure language, or more of the culture? My degree was in Spanish and Latin American Studies and was mostly taught in Spanish, though not completely, and I think that I graduated with a lesser grasp of conversational spanish than those who did a pure language degree (though that will also be because I did it part time, with no year abroad -- and that year abroad is what really brings on your spoken language).

On the other hand, if I had wanted to work in some international field, then I think that having studied the history, politics, customs etc of the spanish speaking world would probably have looked good on the CV. And that sounds as though it would be an attractive mix with economics for someone who wants to work in international settings.

Very pleased as we all ready booked Lancaster university open day for 15 July when staying in UK. My son likes the competitions between colleges there and accommodation very good. Lancaster city though seems small - our children will be bored in later years of degree when not in university accommodation and have much travel time for lessons? Is this correct view of us?

Is this correct view of mine, not us? Sorry for English mistakes

Very pleased as we all ready booked Lancaster university open day for 15 July when staying in UK. My son likes the competitions between colleges there and accommodation very good. Lancaster city though seems small - our children will be bored in later years of degree when not in university accommodation and have much travel time for lessons? Is this correct view of us?

@Chineselookingwest

In response to your questions.

Yes, Lancaster is a small city, however it's very well located to explore the (beautiful) Lake District and the much larger city of Manchester.

Trains and buses are available and take less than an hour to the Lakes or Manchester - so perfect for a weekend day trip.

In short, there is no reason to be bored!

As for accommodation after the first year, some students choose to stay on campus (it's not guaranteed but there are places), but most prefer to move into the city and house share with friends.

If you live in Lancaster you can get to campus via the bus (very regular buses every 10 mins) and it takes between 10-20 minutes to get there depending on which side of the city you live.

In comparison if you are in south/north campus accommodation - walking to central for lectures is between a 10-15 minute walk, so there's not a lot in it really, which is why so many students decide to swap campus for the city in years 2/3.

Finally if he like competition, he will enjoy the annual War of the Roses between York and Lancaster Universities (the host Uni swaps each year), described as the largest inter-university sports tournament in Europe en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roses_Tournament. Fun to participate in and fun to watch!

Just to add as well as The Lake District (one of the most beautiful parts of the UK) and Manchester, it's also easy and quick to get to Morecambe (25 minutes by bus) if you want a trip to the seaside.

Personally I think it's a big plus of Lancaster, that despite the city being small (though there is still a lot to see/do there) you have really easy public transportation access to other interesting places.

In your son's case, I think that's a real bonus in having the opportunity to explore the UK beyond his University city (which a lot of students don't).

In a way, the fact the city is small, means that students are incentivised to visit beyond it which I think for international students especially gives them a much richer experience of the UK.

My son said to me about War of the Roses! This is very English history matter he says ((I do not know) but son likes because sport is love of his and way to meet people. Lancaster university wonderful from all we read. Will friendly, fluent, sporty boy - Chinese - have nice experience? I said to you all that I booked Lancaster Uni open day in July. I hope you will be here again then to help us further. Thank you

Lancaster is one of the top universities in the country. It’s a great choice.

I don't know anything about Liverpool or the uni, I've only been there a couple of times but one thing, from there he can easily get to Manchester which has one of the biggest and oldest Chinese communities (I know Liverpool has a China Town but it is not as big).

When I say 'Chinese' mostly these are people who are 2-3rd or 4th generation British so a sort of mix but it is where your son can buy food or have a meal and where there are Luna New Year celebrations.

Manchester also features 'the curry mile' a road of Indian and Asian restaurants. In north west England 'Asian' usually means Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan and Bangladeshi.

And it has a large airport so gives him options for flights.

Does your son drink alcohol OP? There are more non-drinkers among young people these days but it is still true that a lot of student socialising is driven by alcohol and those who do not drink will find themselves uncomfortable at a lot of social events where friendships are formed. There will be other groups whose social lives do not revolve around alcohol, but it sounds like those are maybe not the typical British people that your son wants to meet.

Also, what sports does he play/compete in? Again, some sports clubs have surprisingly alcohol-driven socialising attached to them.

My son said to me about War of the Roses! This is very English history matter he says ((I do not know) but son likes because sport is love of his and way to meet people. Lancaster university wonderful from all we read. Will friendly, fluent, sporty boy - Chinese - have nice experience? I said to you all that I booked Lancaster Uni open day in July. I hope you will be here again then to help us further. Thank you

@Chineselookingwest

Yes I'll be around then if you have any questions. Just @ my user name (like I have with yours) and I'll get notified you are asking me a question.

The sports facilities are excellent at Lancaster. I'd definitely recommend you take a look during the open day.

It's another benefit of being a campus outside the city - it has a LOT of space, especially compared to universities based in larger cities like Manchester for example.

If he's on one of the sports teams he would get the opportunity to participate in the Roses and visit York as part of that when they host the tournament (another opportunity to see a different part of the UK).

It's a very friendly university and I'm sure he'd have no problem at all in finding friends and fitting in (especially if he wants to cook for his flatmates!).

Many of the international students tend to stick together, but that's their choice, not because it's difficult to socialise with students from different backgrounds (to be honest I've always wondered what the point of studying abroad is, if you just want to re-create a similar life you could have had at home, so I think your son's approach is to be applauded).

As to the post raised below about alcohol, a young person I know who is there does not drink and has not found it problematic at all in terms of their social life and finding friends.

My son has drunk little alcohol. He does not like it much but has friends who do and he look after them (but scared of responsibility for UK students who drink huge amounts)

son loves basketball, football and table tennis

@Chineselookingwest

Does he have to choose somewhere in the UK?

UK isn't known for basketball at all but the US most certainly is.

Indiana University in Bloomington Indiana. Top Economics and language programs in the country. Beautiful campus and in the heart of basketball country.

I would highly recommend Bath, great for sports, lots of international students and a beautiful City with the most stunning architecture. Worth it just for a day trip if you're in the UK. As pp have said if he wants to mix stay away from the most expensive halls. At Bath many international students reside in Polden for first year and it can limit their interaction with the wider Uni community.

You might find this article useful for the changes in drinking culture at UK universities.

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/sep/06/students-boozy-freshers-weeks-no-alcohol-teetotal?CMP=ShareiOSAppp_Other

It's from 2015 but if anything things have got better, not worse for students who don't drink alcohol.

I've spoken to the young person I know who is an undergraduate at Lancaster who does not drink and they have confirmed that there are plenty of activities (even in freshers week) that don't involve alcohol - sports obviously, but also there were guided tours around historic sites in the city and coffee meet ups so you can meet people without the pressure of drinking.

Depending on your son's interests there are clubs such as the Chess Society that don't focus on drinking (just one example but there are many others).

You mention your son likes Basketball, Football and Table Tennis - Lancaster has clubs/teams for all these sports.

Full list of clubs and societies below:

https://lancastersu.co.uk/groups?grouptype=club-society-551&groupp_cat=network&search=