Anyone know anything about London Interdisciplinary School?

[GreenSalon2]

Hard to find more than just their marketing buff so wondering if anyone has any direct knowledge or experience of their degree offer?

I think only one cohort will have graduated, so there's not much historical data on results. It markets itself on being different and new, but other than that I can't work out much about it either? If your kid is interested I guess they should speak to current students.

A little while back a mum was on here because her DD was entranced by
the place. They talked a good game. However IIRC very few staff had PhDs and the curriculum was ‘innovative’ with pissibly some exciting aspects but not necessarily well thought through. Also it was extremely heavy on group work.

My impression was that it was being run on a shoestring. I had concerns about a ademic rigour, viability and financial sustainability. But then I am in STEM and I like data, which were rather lacking in what I was able to find

I remember the previous poster that @poetryandwine mentioned. PP said that LIS told her that her DC would receive a bursary but nothing was formally offered. So be careful with open day promises.

If your DC is interested in a interdisplinary degree look at the offerings of other unis too. Three years ago, my DD and her friends did a couple of courses Edinburgh were trialling for their interdisplinary futures undergraduate degree. I think the degree started the year after. Teaching staff were very well qualified. I would imagine other big unis have similar.

Thanks all. I saw that previous thread too. It’s remarkably difficult to find anything other than what LIS has put out in their marketing material. It looks like it ran at a significant loss last year though a French business school has put money in. I’m worried it may struggle to survive financially.
I have a ND child who thinks it will be the answer to their dreams but takes everything at face value and won’t consider the downsides.

You're right @poetryandwine there’s no data. I know that’s partly because it’s so new but still.

There is a section for it over on TSR, including an 'AMA' with a second year student
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=1540

Thanks, @MarchingFrogs

I looked at several threads on LIS at TSR. None very substantive.

On the positive side, it appears that LIS offer good support helping students find internships and a student listed a nice selection of jobs that at least some get. However no quantitative sense was given - are these the lucky few, or the norm?

The same student did an AMA and gave an example of how students were introduced to data analysis in a manner that seemed essentially meaningless to me. Lovely to choose your own topic which was his (?) focus, but there was no sense of how much learning was accomplished within the module, which was a group project

Iirc the guy who set it up came from running the BASc Arts and Sciences programme at UCL - well-established and might be worth a look?

I can offer some first-hand experience, as I have a DD who graduated from LIS two years ago in the first intake, and a DS who is due to graduate this year in the third intake.

I've been extremely impressed with the quality of teaching and the high academic expectations. My children have been challenged and supported throughout, and the pastoral care has been excellent. In particular, the staff have really got to know the students as individuals, which has been invaluable.
One thing that has stood out is the support with internships. Both of my children completed high-quality paid internships arranged with support from LIS, and my daughter was actually offered graduate jobs by both organisations she interned with. From talking to other parents and students, this emphasis on practical experience and employability seems to be a real strength.

Regarding financial stability, I know this has been raised as a concern because LIS is still relatively new. It is backed by a range of long-term investors, including Emlyon, a leading French Grande École and some British entrepreneurs, including founders of Innocent Drinks and Funding Circle, and it has also received support from the UK government.

A couple of considerations - as it's a very small university, you don't get the same wide range of clubs and societies, although there's financial support available to students who want to start their own. There's obviously a much smaller cohort of students, and so it's different from a more typical university experience, but this has its benefits, as students are known well by the academic and pastoral staff.

Of course, being a newer institution means there isn't the same volume of historical data as more established universities, and it's sensible to ask questions. But from our family's experience over the past several years, we've found LIS to be academically rigorous, ambitious for its students, and exceptionally supportive. Both of my children have thrived there, and we have been very happy with the education and opportunities they have received.

Two years too late for the OP.