Uni of Liverpool or Uni of Loughborough

[Spicycake]

For Product Design Engineering?

What are people opinion?

TIA

Both great but very different places – Liverpool a big city, Loughborough a smallish town tbh. So if your DC loves nightlife and the big city offer Lboro my not be the one. Otoh it has an amazing student-centred offer with many great clubs and societies (not just sport) and a super hall structure with inter-hall comps. Which did your DC prefer?

Loughborough for me, very good uni town.

Loughborough has a generally good reputation for engineering and links to industry - maybe should look into that aspect with both of these?

Loughborough is well renowned for engineering. But Loughborough itself isn't great. Don't know what the course at Liverpool is like. But it's a wonderful city.

My sister went to Loughborough and commuted from home. But I think she missed out a lot as all the social stuff was campus based. So difficult for her to get too as she didn't drive.

Liverpool, like many northern city universities, has a long history of engineering. I think the choice really comes down to a city university or a campus one near a town. Any decent engineering grad would get a job. MEng is preferable.

Thank you; they like the course at Loughborough better but liked the university and city better at Liverpool as it felt more lively.

Liverpool

Liverpool is a great student city. We know someone at Loughborough who definitely feels a bit stuck in the middle of nowhere. I guess it suits some but I’d really try to get to the bottom of what your child wants from their uni experience.

Loughborough ranked much higher for Product Design / Engineering and generally highly regarded by employers / has very good links with industry. BUT - the university experience will be very different at Loughborough to Liverpool. Loughborough obviously a campus, small town, lots going on between halls, lots of catered accommodation, 5 mins (at most) between halls and lectures. Sports facilities are amazing, and although there are masses of opportunity to play sports, unlikley to get on the BUCS teams unless you're competing at a very high standard (only mention in case thats important to your DC). Liverpool obvioulsy much bigger city, Greenbank (where lots of first years are) is beautiful but a bus ride from the uni campus for lectures. Probably more opportunity to play sport for uni, but inferior sports facilities overall if that makes sense! Tough choice!

There’s more to university than sport! Far more. Liverpool won’t stop anyone getting a job.

My DS is doing a similar course and had a similar decision to make between Loughborough and a city centre University last year. In the end he decided against Loughborough. There wasn't a huge amount to choose between the courses so he opted for the lifestyle he wanted. We live somewhere quite rural and he really wanted to experience living in a proper big city. When we visited Loughborough he said it felt more like a University that had a town rather than a town that had a University and I could see where he was coming from.
I don't think there's anything fundamentally wrong with campus universities and that kind of set up probably really suits some people but it wasn't what DS wanted. Lots of people were really surprised when he declined his Loughborough offer - it seemed like a no brainer for a sporty would be engineer - but he said it just didn't feel right for him whereas he could immediately see himself living in the other place. So far he has no regrets.
Loughborough is of course very well known for many engineering disciplines and has a lot to offer but Liverpool is another very good University so your DC probably can't make a "bad" choice here - it's not like they'd be rejecting Loughborough in favour of some former technical college that nobody has heard of. If there's no massive difference between the courses and the offers are both attainable I'd just say go with their gut feeling of where they'll be happier.

Loughborough was “Loughborough College of Advanced Technology” before 1966. Many great universities were technology colleges before they were universities. People went to their local one and had no knowledge of what was in Exeter if you lived in Newcastle. It wasn’t relevant until the university expansion ere of the 60s. There can be very good courses at former polytechnics too.

Thank you all.

DC is not very sportive so don’t think they will embrace those facilities at Loughborough. The course does seem better at Loughborough than at Liverpool; but Liverpool is more lively while Loughborough seems dull.

They could also do the same course in Strathclyde but it is a bit far. Apart from that it seems to tick both boxes.

It is going to be a compromise whatever they choose.

Just found out that the course at Liverpool University does not hold any accreditations. I believe this is important; perhaps this is not an option anymore?

Yes, that is very important but check the reason why. One of the courses my DS applied for but didn't eventually choose was awaiting accreditation from the IMechE but there was nothing sinister about it, it was just that it was a very new course and the process wasn't completed at the time. It's accredited now. So I would enquire whether the accreditation process is underway before ruling it out completely. Obviously if that's the case there's still a degree of risk in taking a new course rather than a well established one but a course not currently being accredited doesn't necessarily mean it's no good. But definitely tread carefully and look closely at the reasons why, and at graduate destinations if you can.

@Spicycake I have had a look at the Liverpool web site and they make no mention of accreditation. However for a university like Liverpool with a very long track record of engineering degrees, it’s unlikely it’s not been applied for and will be successful.

The Engineering Council approves degrees and students should know which Chartered Institution recognizes the degree. I would ask the EC about the course and Liverpool. Historically they have run such courses so my guess is that this one is new. They are economical with the info though and I do not see how their grads are working for all those major companies if the degree is new. So I would ask them for a timeline for accreditation.

I would be amazed if they had not bothered because being accredited matters for further professional qualifications. The vast majority of degrees in engineering are accredited. Liverpool will, I’m sure, get this degree accredited in time for 2026 start, if not sooner. But I would start asking.

Interesting about the accreditation bc a bit ago I recall a thread saying “my son wants to do PD engineering and the only places are Strathclyde and Loughborough” so maybe the Liverpool course is new.

I want to slightly defend lboro which in my view is a great uni. But then, I do agree that it is a small town with a big uni; while the uni is amazingly active and there’s lots going on, I agree you are not getting the big city/gigs/clubs vibe you will in Liverpool (or Manchester or Brum or Leeds). So I hear @MrsAvocet’s point.

btw wrt @Africa2go‘s bit about BUCS (not relevant to op’s dc but others may read) can I just amend to say, yes, if you are a 400m athlete then you’re up against an Olympian in Haydock-Wilson and thus unlikely to make the BUCS team; but Lboro really does offer so many sports and plenty of them have a big squad and are more than happy to accept rookies. Ds2’s (🏈🏈) for example.

Sounds as tho Liverpool is better for your ds @Spicycake. But Lboro has lots to offer too. Just different lots (and not just sport fwiw).

Thanks. DC asked Liverpool University; they replied that the course does hold any current accreditation and to liaise with the school of engineering reg future accreditation. They will email the school of engineering. Perhaps is new. Who knows

Liverpool is not an option as it doesn’t have any accreditation; will check reg future accreditation

Lboro is a fantastic engineering school. The students make their own fun in terms of societies and clubs. All a big city has to offer is clubbing, drinking, and crime. Also the engineering degree courses start out the same and then they split off, so a student can switch to a different type of engineering after Yr1 if their chosen course speciality isn’t for them.

Good point. To be fair DC is not the party animal type; prefer going out with small groups rather than big parties; this could change of course; but they do like a quiet time at home with a few outings every now and again with closest friends

Well, have him look at all the societies at Lboro
https://lsu.co.uk/societies/list

and he can go on studentroom and ask current students whether certain societies are lively & fun.

As it is a big engineering & sports school there is a mix of active groups (Hiking, surfing, dance, roller hockey) and the more geeky groups (drones, robot fighting club, Anime, Tabletop(D&D)…

@Summerbay23 Of course a big city like Liverpool has more. You are saying ridiculously negative things. Not everyone at the university does what you say. Or is a victim of crime.

What Liverpool does have are two Prem football teams, theatres, music venues, seaside, lots of cafes and fun places to go and world class museums and galleries plus an amazing history. We go for the racing. Something for everyone.

@clary yes, I agree, there are masses of opportunities to play sport at L'boro (my DC played 3 or 4 times a week in 1st year). OP, just to go back to your comment that L'boro is "dull" - it really isn't so don't let that put your DC off.