Location vs course?

[Suffolker]

Do you think the course, or the institution/location is more important?

Dd is being very proactive looking at courses and universities and has drawn up a preliminary shortlist. We’re planning a few open days in the summer. She wants to apply for geography so we’ve been looking at various (contradictory!) league tables. She really likes the sound of York and it seems like a city that would suit her well (she’s not a big party person). I know it has a good reputation as an institution, but the geography department doesn’t seem to rate very highly in any of the surveys.

So does the reputation of the institution trump the courses?? I know there’s no straightforward answer to this conundrum but I’d be interested to hear any opinions.

Also @Suffolker Do tell DD privately educated dc don’t have two heads and are actually quite normal people. Prejudice isn’t a great way to choose or reject a university.

My initial thought is that location is v important because they need to be happy living there for three or four (or more) years.

@TizerorFizz is correct, the only league table you can rely on for quality of course / institution is the Complete University Guide.

Not The Times then? Hmm.

I'm not sure about The Times. I think they may have an agenda that the CUG likely doesn't have. I love reading the Guardian newspaper but take their own league tables as a form of "light entertainment".

My daughters method was look at CUG for her subject. Start at the top and then discount those that did the BSC version of the course.

this basically gave us Exeter, Durham, Warwick, York, Edinburgh.

Warwick was discounted as not near a city. Anything London was already discounted.

She visited York and fell in love with it - there was pretty much no other contender. That was city and course.

@Piggywaspushed She said independent school. Not sure I read prestigious boarding school. She would be a rare student at some universities.

Our daughters sound very similar! My DD is also wanting to study Geography and isn't a party girl either.

She plans to look at the modules to see what she prefers and is already thinking she would like to do a placement year.

I've suggested that she needs to visit the open days to see how she feels once there - as she needs to be happy living in that area for 3 or more years. This is the list that she's currently looking at (she wants to stay in the North) with ranking based on subject from thw CUG

Durham uni (4) RG
Loughborough uni (7)
Leeds uni (10) RG
Lancaster uni (13)
Sheffield (14)
York uni (19) RG
Nottingham uni (20)RG
Newcastle uni (23) RG

Sheffield is Russell Group , by the way! That's a good list.