Agonising between university offers

[Redhotchillipeppers]

DS had narrowed his university offers down to Warwick, Durham and Leeds. He has applied for maths and is predicted 4A stars. Warwick is ranked considerably higher for maths than the other 2, but not keen on the travel from leamington spa/coventry in years 2&3. It is 2.5 hour drive from us. Durham seems like a great student experience, but heard some stories about lack of student accommodation in years 2&3, coming with a very high price tag. Leeds is on the doorstep and several of DSs friends are planning on going there. Both he and us are struggling to decide on what would be best.

Durham private rental in year 2&3 is pricey

I’ve seen from other threads that the cheaper further out areas are seen as too far away - but that included Gilesgate, which really isn’t far out at all.

@Redhotchillipeppers thank you that's good to hear because I do feel it will be emotionally cold for DS

I hope DS chooses Warwick so much

OP Warwick definitely has the better reputation of all 3 choices so I would encourage him to go there from his offers

Durham is too far for DS but looks lovely despite its polo playing and tweed societies.

@Redhotchillipeppers Oxford rejected dd. She was all set to go somewhere else. She bagged 4A*, dropping v few UMS points. She declined her place at a super RG uni, before she got back in the car. Plonked herself down announced what she'd just done and said "well Oxford didn't want me, but Cambridge might and if I don't try I'll never know".

She grew up a lot in her gap year and had a very good three years at Cambridge. Not maths!

It's early days and neither of mine are doing in their mid to late 20s what they thought they would aged 17.

Some of DS's contemporaries went to Durham. They found it rather tame (London lads). They spent a great deal of time travelling to Newcastle for the clubs!

@Redhotchillipeppers Oxford was a rejection after interview too for DS which would have made life easier all round

It's hard now trying to work out what decision to make

Really hard

I have to bite my tongue and take massive leaps back atm

I feel like Warwick has an excellent maths dept, DS loved it there on offer holder day and is just a generally all round easy place to live unless you're really into clubbing and shopping

@UpsideLeft looks like our children and us have found ourselves in exactly the same situation - thus the agonising.

@RosesAndHellebores i think the Cambridge rejection may have led to the Leeds and staying at home process in DSs head - some self preservation. Although we had talked about it being Warwick, Durham when walking back to the car after the Cambridge interview if it wasn’t a positive result - although he said he thought the interview went well and didn’t think he could have done any better. I think going back to visit the others will help sort things out in his head. He’s very sensible so…

Same here. In my first week at University in the 80s one of our tutors told the group outright that teaching undergraduates was the price he had to pay to be able to do his research and that first years were the very least of his priorities. He made it very clear that he didn't expect to be troubled by us outside of the hour a week he was obliged to spend with us. There were some nicer and more supportive academics as well of course and we were sometimes taught by post grad students who were generally quite helpful but most of the staff were very much researchers first and foremost. It isn't that surprising really, especially at Universities that are high in the research rankings.

Dc1 went to Warwick. Applied for jobs that were uni blind! Not allowed to mention where studied. On graduation everyone seemed to leave Warwick for London.
I was going to suggest leeds but from what you’ve posted it sounds like his reasonings for Leeds aren’t the best.

Warwick, without a doubt.

@MrsAvocet Different times, wasn’t it? I remember finding my personal tutor incredibly intimidating in lectures, and he turned out to be the most lovely, helpful and supportive person when I needed it.

Some of my post grad teachers are now professors - I’m amazed looking back that they were allowed to lead some of the stuff that they did. I don’t think risk assessments existed back then.

Did he study maths ?

No.
had to state degree subject and grade but not uni attended.

I think that may not be good advice for maths. The very top unis discourage gap years /deferrals in maths because of lost skills.

I went to York so am very biased in its favour as a great uni but it's never had an especially good maths reputation - as my DH (Leeds, maths) never tires of telling me even though I did English

@Piggywaspushed DS isn’t considering a year out. His maths teacher suggested it, but he’s not interested and realises it’s not ideal to take a year out for maths due to loss of momentum.

Son did maths at Warwick. Had a good uni experience but it was very pure and very tough. He didn’t see a number (other than 0, infinity, e and pi) for first year. My main recommendation would be check the course is what he wants.
Warwick and Leeds reasonably priced for accommodation. Durham much more expensive.

@Piggywaspushed I bow to your advice. We aren't mathmos here. Are you sure about the current maths rep at York? I have been given to understand it's made strides?

It possibly has! But I haven't checked league tables etc. It seems to me the v bright ones still do that COWI thing plus a handful of others, which often seems to include Leeds/ Manchester/Birmingham(for computing).

OP my son had an offer from Warwick 2 years ago to study maths. He turned it down in favour of University of Birmingham as he wanted to live at home. I was told by posters on MN that he was mad for doing this. Only your son can make the decision and if he ends up going somewhere he isn't happy then he won't do his best.

FYI
Maths league tables

@Redhotchillipeppers
they all came in very early on. Before Christmas. DS has a friend who has applied for CS with 3 A stars and an A who hasn’t heard back yet. I know this is a cliche but no news is good news.

You were right! By coincidence, my DS got his Warwick offer last night. - A star, A star, A, A.
He sat the MAT last year but was sadly heavily impacted by the IT chaos and as a result decided not to try for imperial.
He is waiting for his Bath offer, his current preference.
So, similar to your DS, while Warwick is probably the strongest course ( and highest grade requirement), he is currently favouring Bath due to liking the vibe on the open day, great sports facilities, being closer to home ( we are in Wales) and, I suspect, being nearest to his girlfriend's first uni choice!
I just want him to make his decision for the right reasons ( ie. Not girlfriend proximity. - if it's meant to last it will), but it is ultimately his choice - it's so difficult for them!

@Fringeundecided congratulations on the Warwick offer ☺️

I’m so glad I started this thread (not that before - I fact only been part of one other thread before this), it feels so much less isolating than it has done last few weeks, hearing everyone’s thoughts.

I shall delight in passing this on to DH...

@Piggywaspushed 😂

"@Xenia What would you say are the things that matter?" Those will depend on the person. For my children it was essentially which is the hardest to get into, highest grades for entry, most difficult that they felt where they had a chance (none tried for Oxbridge). My son's friend who now works in financial services in London went to Warwick (not for maths). My sons were at a fee paying day school but most of the boys were Asian (my son was the only white boy in his class at one point) and some of those Asian boys deliberately chose Warwick over say Bristol or Durham because they felt they would get a better ethnic mix at Warwick. I just looked it up 56% of Warwick students are BAME . Durham is 30%. I would guess Warwick has more state school pupils and Durham fewer and those might be factors either way - plenty of people go to university to meet people who are different from them rather than herd together with those like they are and others are the other way round.

My own view is go to the one hardest to get into and then also look back at careers - where you want to be and where people who newly joined that career attended.

@xenia Do those figures include BAME international students and home students? There can be some very big cultural differences between international and home students of the same ethnic background.