York, Durham, Exeter

[GodessOfThunder]

These universities seem feature in a disproportionate amount of discussion on Mumsnet as institutions commenters see as desirable for their DC to attend. Obviously they are well regarded universities, but why do they attract more discussion here than other Russell group universities, especially those in northern and midlands post-industrial cities such as Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, Liverpool, Nottingham and Birmingham?

A few possible reasons were suggested by DH:

• They enjoy an undue level of perceived prestige due to being in smaller old cities/towns like Oxbridge
• The Mumsnet user base is skewed towards the SE and biased against post-industrial cities. Mumsnetters are less likely to be familiar with them and hold “grim up north” perceptions.
• There is a “showing off” factor in starting threads and commenting that DC has applied for, or attends, these institutions - the same goes for the “Oxbridge support” threads, the like of which you never see for red bricks.

Does anyone agree, or are there other explanatory factors?

Sorry- Scotland 2, South West 30. Biggest number going to any area. Lancaster 1.

My children are / were at Bucks grammar - quite a lot of Oxbridge offers this year also Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Exeter, Durham, Bath, UCL, Loughborough, Nottingham are always popular plus the other RG plus various conservatoire’s.

Oh and Inforgot York always v popular.

Universities that pupils from DD's comprehensive school in South Yorkshire went to, that I know of:

Cambridge
LSE
Nottingham
UCLAN
Manchester
Sheffield
Glasgow
Newcastle
Leeds
Lincoln
Huddersfield
HYMS

So, a very definite Northern bias

Seeing as we're now on the topic of geographical correlation of home region to target universities:

From DS's Belfast Grammar School, pupils go to Aberdeen, Exeter, and all points in between, the notable exceptions being:

1. London / the South East - my assumption is that this is cost of living related;
2. Places nowhere near an airport, Lancaster being a MN favourite that I've never seen as a destination in the annual report.

Entrants to QUB and UUJ tend to be single-digit in numbers - my DS justifies this as being down to them all knowing the cities' nightlife and social options inside out by the time they are 18/19.

@boys3 - thank you so much. This was an eye opener and also very witty! So Durham is pretty much more than half private school / grammar school. That is really interesting. It seems DD’s assessment was not entirely unfair.

Whilst I’m on a thread with knowledgeable people (and bearing in mind that I’m technically a foreigner!), can someone explain the significance of Russell Group universities? I’ve always understood they were the bees knees, but this is not necessarily reflected in the league tables?

@Zimunya They are a marketing collective of research intensive universities. None are post 92 universities that converted from being polytechnics or colleges of higher education or teacher training colleges. Some top universities are not in the Russell Group such as St Andrews and Bath. This does not mean they these unis are not doing research. Exeter and QMU joined RG quite recently. RG is shorthand for a type of uni that banded together to promote their status. As you can see, many do fill the top slots. Others are further down the rankings. Of course individual courses can be ranked high or low! So you have to dig into subject rankings.

@RampantIvy A relative was at a comp in Sheffield and their leavers’ list had no one going further south than Nottingham. Didn’t see Oxbridge at all. A lonely outlier went to Durham! Although I know other schools did have Oxbridge students and times change! Thd largest percentage by far went to Sheffield or Hallam.

@Zimunya the bees knees depends what you compare them with. When compared to my local university they are, indeed, the bees knees! If you compare Oxford and QMU, QMU might not appear quite so bees knees!

@TizerorFizz I'm talking South Bucks. Lots of Oxbridge, London, Durham, some Warwick and Exeter. Bristol seems to have fallen out of favour a bit. Very high WP so doesn't work in the favours of those grammars, particularly with a GX postcode.

Where’s mid Bucks? I’ve never known 😂. Is marlow S Bucks?

@Zimunya and @TizerorFizz - Durham and York were also two of the last entrants to the Russell Group, alongside Exeter and QMUL - sometime early last decade IIRC

@Chipirones , interesting what you say about Bristol, my friend's ds is at an all boys Bucks grammar and most of the upper sixth this year who applied to Bristol got rejected because the school / home postcodes are not contextual enough. The school careers dept was really surprised.

My dd’s school had no difference in their Bristol offers - all of DD’s friends who applied were offered.

Bristol will depend on subject. They would get in if they did MFL!

Im sorry if people cannot look at a map and work out where mid Bucks might be! Not everyone lives in leafy lane GX!!!

This is Chesham grammar.

This is Challoners Girls

Purely anecdotal but I notice a big difference from when one of my older children applied to Uni a few years back from one of those schools. Bristol was very popular then but it seems to have changed quite a bit in this cohort. 40% WP target so it feels a bit risky for them and a bit too edgy too.

Bristol edgy? Have you been to Clifton and Clifton village? Expensive and pretty smart overall.

Bristol is edgy though (I used to live there). Cool city but pretty rough in places.

Our local leafy comp gets contextual offers from Bristol so lots go there. Not so popular with the private schools locally.

Its one of the least edgy major cities in the UK

I don't think anyone at DD's school went to any of the universities in the south west. It is such a PITA to get to. My sister lives near Bristol and it isn't a journey I enjoy having negotiated the M42 and M5 car parks many times. Rail travel from Yorkshire there is also very expensive. Our open day visit to Bristol was the most expensive of the lot.

Loads went to Sheffield (uni of), Lincoln, Manchester and Leeds. The school doesn't get many to Oxbridge. In DD's year there were two offers. The Oxford would be was a rather arrogant young man who fluffed his A levels and ended up in clearing having been rejected from Oxford and his insurance. The Cambridge applicant went to Cambridge and excelled.

That may well be @GodessOfThunder but perception is reality.

Unnecessary- I asked - I don’t live in GX or anywhere near it - tbh I’ve never been there!

it was a genuine question- I have never heard of mid Bucks before - the council have always referred to N Bucks, Chilterns and S Bucks.

@TizerorFizz Bristol offers were various STEM / Economics / PPE type courses and 1 MFL.