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

@amybabysa wait I thought firm and insurance would already have been done and chosen by now?

Thank you! This is so good to hear. DS has mentioned about the Computing society as well, he's heard great things about it. Where did your DC stay in the first year and how was finding 2nd year accommodation?

@Coldilocks@Mapletreelanewhich exam board was the physics ? Ds did ocr.

He should choose where he will be happiest.

However, anyone who believes Warwick is at the same level as Imperial lives in cloud-cuckoo-land.

Imperial is tops in research, although Warwick is also excellent. However although an active research environment contributes to a great atmosphere for strong UGs, the quality of the research, as long as it is decent, is less important. Warwick is miles beyond ‘decent’. On any scholarly measure it is a UK top 5 CS programme.

Success on either programme, or several others, will get DS where he wants to go next.

Just had a quick peep at his revision book and it's AQA

They lived about 3 mins from campus last year. Shared a room to save money.
They're staying with a relative this year so not the typical second year. Many friends are house sharing all over London. Some friends are very well off. Others less so. It doesn’t appear to be a barrier to making friends and getting on.

The course is very practical. Lots of group projects. This suits my DC. I’d look at what the course contains but reputation wise I’d say Imperial is more prestigious.

It was OCR.

Bath firm and Birmingham as his insurance but that has a higher offer than Bath bizarrely. DS didn’t want to apply to the Bristol/Durham/Edinburgh unis. We looked at Warwick which I loved. I gave the CS student an absolute grilling much to DS’s embarrassment but it was the first uni we looked at so DS asked all the questions later on. The student was lovely. The teaching staff were great. The student Union seems a great place to hang out and people watch if your DS needs to recharge on other people’s energy.

Such a difficult choice for your son OP. I don’t envy you this week.

Warwick is fab. DD eventually chose UEA but only because of her course. My very quiet niece is at Warwick and having the time of her life.

I was going to say exactly this. The impression I get is he is leaning to Warwick.

I think your son would be happy in either Warwick or Imperial but just to point out my DS’s experience at Imperial.

My DS started at Woodward Halls in North Acton. Not the most exciting area but the rooms were fine and relatively cheap. How happy your DS would be is really dependant on how he gets on with others in his flat. It’s a bit of a lottery as to who is there of course. My DS did not make friends with anyone in his flat but found his tribe later in the first term (staying in the same hall).

There are many introverted people at Imperial just from the nature of the subjects studied. There is also a high percentage of International students who tend to socialise within their own groups (not always, but often ).

Another point to mention is that your DS is more likely to land a summer internship in the 2nd or 3rd year if he goes to Imperial. (This is conjecture on my part) . This is because he is likely to already have accommodation in London and there would be many opportunities for him to gain useful employment in the city. (My DS did in the 2nd and 3rd year summer holidays - 4 year course). These placements were invaluable for gaining employment following graduation.

Accommodation in the 2nd year and beyond is often in the Fulham, Hammersmith or Shepherds Bush areas. Close-ish to South Kensington but at a more tolerable price than local to the college. House shares are obviously common (my DS chose the smallest room for economic reasons).

There are also valuable bursaries available at Imperial - depending on household income.

And finally …. graduation is at the Royal Albert Hall if this appeals!

@ItsReallyOnlyMe thank for this. Really useful.

@WhereAreTheWildThingsNow So he drinks his grant money? The extra cost of booze in London do you mean? Good use of the money then. How do universities get conned into this?

Are students not entitled to use their grant to pay for whatever they like. Rent, Food, Transport, Beer…

Im not sure what your point is. Are lower income students required to be teetotal, eat lentils and bike everywhere? I believe the imperial bursary is there to help level things up a little.

it’s a good thing. I’ll drink to that 🍻

You usually make very good, well thought out points. This unfortunately wasn't one of them.

I'm an Imperial grad (graduated in 2017, brother graduated in 2021) who started off in JMC at Imperial and moved to Maths with friends from Computing. I think I know better than most in this thread of graduate outcomes from Imperial, social life etc.

Warwick is obviously very good but one thing that surprisingly hasn't been brought up by anyone in this thread is that Imperial Computing has the highest starting graduate salary out of all uni courses (£64k after 6 months). It's essentially viewed the same tier as Oxbridge for CS and Engineering. That's not just because it's in London. It's heavily targeted by the top top tier of employers pay wise (quant firms, hedge funds, FAANG) . If you look at LinkedIn company profiles of the most represented universities at e.g. G-Research, Meta, Google and filter for "software engineer" in London, the top 3, in no particular order, are almost always Oxbridge/Imperial. DoCSoC (Computing Society) is heavily sponsored by the likes of Citadel, Jane Street (look up their pay...6 figure grad package) which host hackathons and placements are very, very good.

See Times link archived for starting salaries:
https://archive.ph/oNrzo

Social life...is what you make of it. I won't pretend that I went out as much as my friends at Bristol etc...Imperial has more introverted students and less going out (also because of a higher workload). My CS friends seemed to enjoy uni life, though. There are so many societies in College to get involved in so there's plenty of room to make friends.

@curiousllama thanks so much for this. DS has pointed out the salaries! Interesting that you were able to change course. He wanted to apply for JMC but wasn't sure if his TMUA was good enough. If he manages to get A star in FM maths he said he'll ask about changing to JMC. Appreciate it was a few years ago but what did you have to do to change?

My DD is just finishing at Imperial but doing Biological Science. She’s had a great time and loves London. She has a lovely small group of friends mostly met through her halls and her social club.

She was in Wilson halls in Paddington for first year and walked through Hyde Park to campus.

Shes very sociable and I was concerned about her meeting people but she did.

The work has been very hard but she has really enjoyed having expert lecturers.

To be honest, CS to JMC probably isn't the easiest but it does happen and it's case by case. Definitely easier to switch from JMC to CS. I had to interview to switch (it was on graphs).

What was his TMUA? I would say, to be comfortable, 6.5+ would give him a stronger case, and he would need to ask early on. I asked three weeks into my course. Also, I'm Maths is under Dept of Maths whereas JMC is still run by Computing. He likely won't be the only CS person wanting to switch!

I can also second Wilson Halls. I didn't stay there but I had friends who did and my brother stayed there. It's the best balance of price and distance imo. About a 40 min walk to campus (tbh was too far for me as I'm lazy) but can cycle, take the District line etc...

Hi! He got 6.2. He thinks it is unlikely he'll be able to change but will definitely ask if he gets A in FM. (His offer is A A A A but only maths has to be A ) . Assuming he gets his other grades too!

6.2 is decent! If he really wants to go for JMC, trying to get as close to 100 and having a good few sentences up his sleeve on why he wants to switch would be a start ;) (I'm sure he does.)

I'm frankly quite happy I studied in London. I've always been a big city person and need stimulation. Don't think a smaller place would have suited me. Let me know if you have any more qs!

Sorry, close to 100 across his A Level Maths/FM*

Ds will soon be finishing his 2nd year at CS in Imperial. I'm really pleased with how it's all gone so far. He got 4 A stars in his A levels and an A star in his epq (computing related). He also did really well on STEP (which was part of his offer. Is this no longer the case? As it can influence some).
His university experience is different from mine! For a start, he doesn't drink alcohol and neither do a lot of his friends. He doesn't go clubbing. But, he is involved in an awful lot of social activities and societies. He's heavily involved in Felix (student newspaper) and the climate groups, he attends concerts, goes with friends to Kew Gardens, visits exhibitions, meets every week to play a specific game, does martial arts etc. He is really busy, but that does seem to be through choice as there's so much he wants to be involved in.
In first year, he stayed in Wilson House and it was excellent. He paid for the annual bike pass, and cycled through Hyde Park every day to uni. The kitchens there are a bit crazy as they are used by so many people, but they are cleaned every day! This year, he has accommodation with two friends from his course in the Hammersmith area. They found a place fairly easily, got the first one they went for. It's a two floor house with a living room, big kitchen and two toilets. So, all good.
This summer he'll be doing undergraduate research work and staying in London. He has really enjoyed all London has to offer. I think he found the first year of the course easily manageable and the work increased in second year, but not to the extent that he's had to compromise on any of his extra curric!
I'm sure your ds will make a good choice. Good luck to him.