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Higher education

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

Original poster

Is Kent a good enough uni?

91 replies

RabbitH0LE · 08/10/2023 16:27

I feel so overwhelmed and out of my depth with this. DD wants to study computer science. Predicted AAA so not enough to go to the top 30 or so unis in the Guardian League table.

Is it worth going to see the likes of Kent at Canterbury, Chichester, Sussex , Portsmouth?

Or better to try and get an apprenticeship? My mum says there's no point getting a degree from these unis. I never went to uni and neither did my husband and DD is also a bit clueless. She's not bothered about a top uni but don't want to waste money on loans etc if it's not worth it.

Please help

OP posts:
HundredMilesAnHour · 08/10/2023 16:36

Well I turned down Cambridge and LSE and did a degree at Kent instead as it was the best in the country for my degree course at the time. I did my year abroad at one of the top schools in France, and got my first grad job with the Big Four. Now I work in the City earning 6 figures.

So "the likes of Kent" certainly didn't do me any harm.

poetryandwine1 · 08/10/2023 16:38

There certainly is a point to a CS degree from these unis! They will have working and recruiting relationships with their own sets of employers. They may have excellent relationships with a number of smaller employers, and they tend to offer more niche degrees in the field of CS than the ‘Top 30’. These degrees are of direct relevance to said employers.

An apprenticeship could also be a fine option. DD needs to discuss the pros and cons of each with a trusted adult, hopefully someone at her school or college. Definitely not your mum. (I am a former STEM admission tutor, also known as @poetryandwine but having problems at the moment)

BTW she should check whether she is eligible for a contextual offer. She is first generation uni: there may be more criteria to satisfy. If she is, AAA may take her pretty far. But I haven’t checked. Best wishes

CousinGreg55 · 08/10/2023 16:42

I would also have a look at Reading, Leicester, Surrey, Swansea. 3 As should be fine for those.

BlueYonder57 · 08/10/2023 16:45

HundredMilesAnHour · 08/10/2023 16:36

Well I turned down Cambridge and LSE and did a degree at Kent instead as it was the best in the country for my degree course at the time. I did my year abroad at one of the top schools in France, and got my first grad job with the Big Four. Now I work in the City earning 6 figures.

So "the likes of Kent" certainly didn't do me any harm.

I turned down Oxford to go to Kent - 2 masters degrees and a PhD later, I also earn 6 figures. Did me no harm.

Whether a university or an apprenticeship is the way to go really depends on many factors. She needs to explore them with people who know her style of study, her strengths and weaknesses, and her aspirations. And then she should make the decision without others trying to influence her - it is her life and she will have to live with it for a long time.

LIZS · 08/10/2023 16:45

Kent and Sussex are long established. Chichester and Portsmouth well regarded. If she exceeded her offer grades at Kent she might get a financial award.

BonnieBe · 08/10/2023 16:47

I went to Kent and absolutely loved it. I am in a senior position in in banking earning a high salary. Did English lit at Kent so very relevant to my job 😂

PermanentTemporary · 08/10/2023 17:06

I think your mum is wrong and you should find out what she is basing her statement on (i don't know everything!)

My son is studying computer science. When he was looking at unis I asked around people who worked in IT. They said you didn't need a computer science degree to work in programming etc. So it depends why your dd wants to do a degree. I think a degree, as opposed to a apprenticeship with one company, offers exposure to a broader range of ideas, blue sky research learning, people doing different subjects, all sorts of different aspects of the subject, leadership experience with societies, the chance to grow up a bit without too much responsibility (this was huge for me as ds's dad died when he was 14 and he coped by throwing himself into school work, I wanted his horizons broadened a bit) plus some plain old fun. On the other hand, an apprenticeship offers income, solid training, no debt, and if with a big company then potentially also a range of experiences and a cohort of trainees to get to know.

If your dd does want to do a degree, then I hear very good things about eg Bath, Birmingham, Southampton, and in fact QMU London kept coming up as a good quality CS course (Ds ruled out London early doors and I'm glad due to accommodation costs!) We particularly liked Birmingham but ds didn't go there in the end.

Merkins · 08/10/2023 17:13

My daughter did a 4 year MSc in Maths & Computer Science at Lancaster and is now a Software Developer at Queen Mary, University of London. She got 3 As.

I went to Kent and my course was 2nd only to Oxford at that time. Really not sure why your mum has a problem with a perfectly good university. It seems a bit of a random one to slag off!

clary · 08/10/2023 17:59

I agree with others, do not listen to your mum. Did she go to uni? Or is she just basing her views on people who say only Oxford is worthwhile?

Kent is a good uni - a friend's DC was there and graduated - is now working in a great role within the NHS.

I don't know about CS specifically, but I would think PG of AAA would mean she could apply to at least one aspirational uni as well. Does she do maths A level? Agree with @poetryandwine1 that she may be eligible for a contextual offer which might bring some higher-ranked unis within her reach. Get her to speak to tutors at school about this.

And league tables, while they can be a useful starting point for research, are a long way from the be-all and end-all. There are many more things to consider when looking for a place and a course for your DD to study and live for three or four years.

poetryandwine · 08/10/2023 18:24

OP, if you happen to live in the West Midlands and DD is Y12, you might want investigate Access to Birmingham or A2B. It is for ‘first’ uni students in the family - Ivdon’t know whether that means literally the first, or first generation. It involves financial and other support as well as a reduced offer.

I realise she is almost surely Y13. Look and see if you generally meet the Contextual Offer criteria at some aspirational places. This could have to do with her school post code or a period of time on free school meals. I say this because the evidence is that students who get contextual offers succeed at the same rate as others. BTW the standard offer at B’ham CS is A star AA so DD is just one grade off, and it is fab for CS.

jayritchie · 08/10/2023 19:47

Predicted AAA so not enough to go to the top 30 or so unis in the Guardian League table.

The Guardian league table isn't very reliable, but notwithstanding this a AAA prediction should leave a lot of very strong universities on the table - especially so if it includes maths A level.

FlyingPandas · 08/10/2023 20:05

A uni is a 'good enough' uni if it offers a good course and is where your DC can see themselves being happy and studying and enjoying their life there.

If unis can only be considered 'good enough' if they are either Russell Group or Oxbridge then that's really quite sad. I suspect your mum has either been listening to friends banging on about grandchildren aiming for these and only these and has become a bit brainwashed. Or she knows nothing about what she's talking about whatsoever. Either way, I'd nod and smile.

FWIW, I went to an RG uni (though pre the Russell Group) and DH went to Oxford. And we have a DC at one of the ones mentioned on the list in your original OP. And yes, it's not a top uni, yes, it's a former poly, shock horror, but it offers an excellent course for his subject, it's a great city with a great range of student accommodation and activities - and crucially and most importantly he is happy. DS had high enough grades for an (in theory) much 'better' university but that's not what he wanted. Better be happy at a lower ranked institution than miserable and stressed at a 'top' one!

Also FWIW, I've been really impressed with the quality of tutor assessment and support offered by his uni. Comprehensive and constructive feedback on every single assessment, delivered absolutely on time, and lots of support available. From what I read and hear from friends about some of the 'top' RG unis that is by no means a guarantee everywhere. Nottingham for example is a hugely popular RG uni but you only have to look at some of the threads on here to see that their admin and feedback and student support can actually be pretty shit at times. And they won't be the only ones.

Your DD should have a look around these unis with genuine interest and an open mind and make a decision from there.

Original poster
RabbitH0LE · 08/10/2023 20:55

BTW she should check whether she is eligible for a contextual offer. She is first generation uni: there may be more criteria to satisfy. If she is, AAA may take her pretty far. But I haven’t checked. Best wishes

Thanks, how do you find out about this? I've tried looking on uni websites but can see nothing about contextual offers other than if coming from care or postcode

OP posts:
Original poster
RabbitH0LE · 08/10/2023 20:56

Thanks for all the replies. She doesn't have maths unfortunately. A few people mentioned that. It rules out a few. Might look at Birmingham then.
Swansea too far.

OP posts:
Original poster
RabbitH0LE · 08/10/2023 20:57

An apprenticeship could also be a fine option. DD needs to discuss the pros and cons of each with a trusted adult, hopefully someone at her school or college.

I asked her CS tutor to talk to her about uni options but he didn't

OP posts:
Original poster
RabbitH0LE · 08/10/2023 20:58

LIZS · 08/10/2023 16:45

Kent and Sussex are long established. Chichester and Portsmouth well regarded. If she exceeded her offer grades at Kent she might get a financial award.

Thanks. What is this?

OP posts:
Original poster
RabbitH0LE · 08/10/2023 21:00

The Guardian league table isn't very reliable, but notwithstanding this a AAA prediction should leave a lot of very strong universities on the table -

Thank you. As someone who didn't go to uni, I don't have a lot to go on. I have no idea where is good or not. How do people know??

OP posts:
Original poster
RabbitH0LE · 08/10/2023 21:01

FlyingPandas · 08/10/2023 20:05

A uni is a 'good enough' uni if it offers a good course and is where your DC can see themselves being happy and studying and enjoying their life there.

If unis can only be considered 'good enough' if they are either Russell Group or Oxbridge then that's really quite sad. I suspect your mum has either been listening to friends banging on about grandchildren aiming for these and only these and has become a bit brainwashed. Or she knows nothing about what she's talking about whatsoever. Either way, I'd nod and smile.

FWIW, I went to an RG uni (though pre the Russell Group) and DH went to Oxford. And we have a DC at one of the ones mentioned on the list in your original OP. And yes, it's not a top uni, yes, it's a former poly, shock horror, but it offers an excellent course for his subject, it's a great city with a great range of student accommodation and activities - and crucially and most importantly he is happy. DS had high enough grades for an (in theory) much 'better' university but that's not what he wanted. Better be happy at a lower ranked institution than miserable and stressed at a 'top' one!

Also FWIW, I've been really impressed with the quality of tutor assessment and support offered by his uni. Comprehensive and constructive feedback on every single assessment, delivered absolutely on time, and lots of support available. From what I read and hear from friends about some of the 'top' RG unis that is by no means a guarantee everywhere. Nottingham for example is a hugely popular RG uni but you only have to look at some of the threads on here to see that their admin and feedback and student support can actually be pretty shit at times. And they won't be the only ones.

Your DD should have a look around these unis with genuine interest and an open mind and make a decision from there.

Thank you. She is also concerned about stress at unis where she doesn't quite meet the grade

OP posts:
LIZS · 08/10/2023 21:05

Kent were offering financial awards /scholarships for those exceeding offers when ds looked around. Many unis offer funding to increase participation among those who, for example, are socially or financially disadvantaged or are first in family to go to uni.

MyEyesMyThighs · 08/10/2023 21:06

As she is doing CS, it's not a waste of time, she will be developing a very transferable skill. I had to learn to code after my degree and I wish I'd chosen a skill based rather than knowledge based degree.

musicinspring1 · 08/10/2023 21:14

I went to Kent , albeit a long time ago, and it was always well regarded and i went on to do a post grad qualification at Kings. Kent used to pride itself on using the 'college'system like the older unis and that style worked well for me. It had a community feel in your college with accomadation, lecture theatres , bar, shop etc all in your xollege. Not sure if it has retained that feel or not.

UndercoverCop · 08/10/2023 21:17

I did some professional qualifications at Portsmouth, it was dreadful. I have two undergraduate degrees and an MA all from different Unis, varying experiences but all good. I wouldn't study anything else at Portsmouth if you paid me.

Fivews · 08/10/2023 21:20

There are loads of modern apprenticeships around for software engineering. They tend to be very tough to land because they're fantastic opportunities. Definitely worth looking into, here's one example https://www.kainos.com/careers/earn-as-you-learn

Earn as you Learn

https://www.kainos.com/careers/earn-as-you-learn

PermanentTemporary · 08/10/2023 21:23

I have to say I'm a bit thrown that she isn't studying maths. I can't help feeling that she's going to find a computer science degree really, really difficult without Maths A-level, even if there's a course that will accept that, but maybe I'm wrong? Not sure what others have found? Ds's first year has been really really maths-heavy.

clary · 08/10/2023 21:56

Yeh sorry @RabbitH0LE the lack of A level maths will be a bigger sticking point than her PGs. Birmingham, which randomly I also checked out, asks for an A at A level maths, so even if they were relaxed about the A-star that's a no. Loughborough also wants maths so even tho its offer is AAA that's also out I suspect.

OTOH just checked Uni of Nottingham and it doesn't mention maths A level - also offer can be AAA so that may be worth a closer look.

What a shame she didn't take maths tho - I'm surprised too as would think it would be an obvious partner with CS.