Imperial or Warwick for CS?

[Mapletreelane]

DS has offers from both and is absolutely torn between these two. He is worried about the cost and social life of at Imperial. We've told him not to worry about cost. He is a naturally introverted very quiet lad not into going out and getting lashed. London doesn't daunt him; we spend a lot of time and he loves it and finds it really interesting. Warwick was lovely and I went to a campus uni and had a great time. So don't really know how to help him. Any positive experiences of either (especially in CS), thank you

Sorry no idea what CS means, but our youngest son went to Warwick to do Biomedical Science and absolutely loved it. 10 years on he’s working at the Bank of England in London, earning shedloads.

Warwick uni has a great parent Facebook group called Warwick university parent group. You can use the search function to search threads on CS.
It's a great uni and fun campus.

Sorry! Computer science!

Imperial out-ranks Warwick both in general terms and for CS, (though Warwick is a few notches up this year on last for the subject).

Imperial has a lot of overseas students and is almost entirely STEM, unlike Warwick. I believe there will be plenty of quiet, introverted students who prefer a daytime trip to the local science museum or a picnic in the park over clubbing in Hoxton.

They’re both amazing offers! Are they asking for the same grades ?

If money isn’t an issue then Imperial.

Thankk you! Imperial is based on 4 A levels AAA A (would have been 3 × A* if he was doing 3 A levels)
Warwick is A* A A .

So makes sense to firm Imperial and insure Warwick. But I think he's actually worried about perceived lack of social life at Imperial. Which is crazy for him as he's not bothered about going out on the lash now !

That world make sense depending on his other offers. Seems silly to turn down Imperial when getting an offer is so difficult, but he needs to be happy.

Friends lad is currently in year 3 at Imperial (not CS) and it has been dreadful. South Ken dorms locked between floors, overseas students to lectures and then in rooms again, no social life. University itself very unresponsive, things marked very late, uncertainty and lack of any kind of well being care. A feeling that they are really resting on reputation (which is why he stayed) and don’t care about students.

Warwick will certainly offer a great social life even for the most introverted - plenty of very niche/strange societies and clubs for everyone to find their tribe.

@Mapletreelane Why are you obsessed with students going out “on the lash”. It’s a crude generalisation and frankly ridiculous. Yes, freshers week can be fun filled but it’s not obligatory. Neither is drinking. Plenty of international students don’t do it much.

Is Hoxton a haunt for imperial students? Quite far from Kensington!

Errrrr, I'm not obsessed with students going out on the lash? Where did it state i was? It was just a figure of speech as in a lot of students do enjoy drinking. Your reply was quite rude calling me crude amd ridiculous, and not in the spirit of this thread, where I was just asking about differences in universities. I didn't even mention Hoxton.

I think you are being rude about other students, but you don’t recognise it. Hope he enjoys the uni he chooses. PS - the quiet ones change…..,

Imperial is usually considered more impressive, but impressive isn’t always the best. My partner got several offers for Scottish uni’s and massively regretted going to Edinburgh, but felt like he had to due to the prestige of it.

Oh that's a shame he's had such a poor experience. I think this is what DS may be fearful of.

I would say Warwick because if he’s naturally introverted then it will be so much easier to have a good social life there. I was pretty introverted (still am really) and went there and I loved that a social life was just super easy and it was the first place I’d really felt at home socially. My extroverted son is there now and has also had a ball.

I get the impression your DS is favouring Warwick in his heart.

If that's the case that's the one he should go for. The difference in prestige between these two is small enough that it shouldn't override hid instincts.

Honestly WW and ICL are at the same level for this field. Deep down while I would suggest imperial (especially as money isn't an issue) there's no harm going to Warwick.

Campus unis are only nice in the summer. They are well went and muddy most of the year.

I don’t have any experience of computer science but I’d go for Warwick, as a campus uni. I went to a campus uni and loved the feeling of community. He’ll have years after he graduates to live and work in London if he wants to. I think you’d get a better university experience at Warwick - social life, accommodation etc.

Imperial does outrank Warwick, but barely. The Complete University Guide is the most well rounded league table. It currently ranks Imperial third and Warwick fifth. There is barely any daylight between them, certainly not enough to affect future plans. International employers know Warwick if the public do not.

I think Imperial’s course modules look sexier but I also don’t think this is hugely important. IMO students need a good grasp of the basics with a reasonable salting of trendy stuff, and a university that has a good interface with their industry ( as well as good preparation for PG studies). Both degree programmes offer all of this abundantly.

Imperial offers or requires a group project, Warwick an individual one. Which will DS favour?

On the social side, a STEM introvert in my family also had a wonderful time in Warwick.

DS cannot really go wrong.

PS OP, Those offers are most impressive. Congratulations and best wishes to DS

My DC had offers from Birmingham, Leeds, and Sheffield but has chosen Lancaster which is certainly lower on stats than Birmingham and Sheffield for CS. Because it's not like we are comparing Oxford vs Derby I have no issue with this - in fact I turned down Edinburgh to go to Manchester myself thirty years ago and have never regretted my choice (apart from not having the cachet of saying I went to Edinburgh)!

I am a strong believer in "go with your gut". My sibling went to Oxford and then also did a doctorate at Oxford 20 years later and had a completely dreadful time, and I outearn them substantially with my Manchester degree and masters.

My DH’s comment on Imperial is that there’s too many men. In retrospect he’d have preferred a balance of the sexes. Just a thought.

Conceptions about the social life at Imperial vary. There are a couple of threads on Mumsnet at the moment about first years at IC. Everyone seems to be having a great time. The S Ken campus attracts a lot of the very well off international students as they are £££. The other available accommodation options are far more mixed and sociable as far as I can tell (several friends children there). Also a lot of the international students, contrary to popular belief, like to mix and be sociable. They’re not all from China which seems to be a popular misconception on here.

The huge difference is of course that one is a campus uni and the other a city uni. As an introvert, everything on site might be more manageable for him at Warwick but London is a hugely exciting place to be as a student especially if finances are not a big consideration.

CS at Imperial is a highly sought after course and very competitive to get on to. Job prospects afterwards are stellar.

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/higher_education/5306123-imperial-recent-experiences?utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=app_share