Bristol or bath for biology ? Any experience please or thoughts ? Also on the towns for a less streetwise more gentle girl.

[Itcantbetrue]

So after a long haul on choices she's come to bath or Bristol.
She likes both but said bath locks her into a choice of some boring modules at the end.
Bristol doesn't .
Bath is famous for it's work placement which i think is essential in this job market.
Bath more gentle as a city and she still has Bristol close.
I prefer bath and the campus I think it's easier to make friends .
It's her choice and both expensive.

Are we missing anything that I can pass onto her ?

Yeh I was a student at Bristol (posts passim) back in the dark ages. But the layout of the city is still the same (tho there are ofc a lot more students and thus a lot more halls).

Agree both expensive. Both hilly. Both attractive places. But really very different experiences living there I imagine.

Bristol is a big city but Bath is not. That's not to say there won't be plenty of things to do and friends to find for someone less streetwise in Bristol too. No campus in Bristol and I agree that can be an issue. But still more than possible to make good friends.

Sounds as tho she prefers the course in Bristol. What exactly is the situation with Bath and placements? – I know students who have done them and done well, but how much support is there? A lot of unis talk this up but when it comes down to it, what % of students actually find one?

As students we used to get the train to Bath now and then for a fancy day out, having Bath buns in the Pump Room. Happy days.

if she really can't decide she could write a pros and cons list and see which wins. Or toss a coin and see how she feels about the result? Both great unis tbf.

I went to Bath and would definitely recommend it for someone who doesn't want to live in a massive city. My first year was in halls on campus so very easy for someone less streetwise.

I loved Bristol too and I used to go there for nights out, but I preferred Bath as found it a bit less busy and more chilled. I avoided the city centre on weekends etc as it was heaving then. But halls for first year then Oldfield Park for the rest meant I could avoid the busiest parts of the city when I wanted to.

Wouldnt Bath be 'best of both worlds' as Bristol is only what 40mins away on train for occasional nights out? My kids both discounted Bristol as wanted leafy =campus but tbf they went to school in London so were very much sick of city living and fancied a pleasant change for a few years, given they're most probably going to end up working in a large city.

I think its a choice between city or campus uni. Some like living in a big city, some prefer a campus experience.

Accommodation can be difficult in Bristol. DS knows several people commuting in from home in Gloucestershire, South Wales and Birmingham.

Given the state of the job market for graduates I would be tempted by Bath for the work placement.

It is important that DD feel enthusiastic about her choice. This can end up making a big difference to her outcome, by affecting countless small decisions that really add up.

However I am curious about those ‘boring’ final year modules at Bath. I could be missing something, but when I looked into this quickly it appeared that the capstone of the Bath Biology degree is a Final Year Project or Dissertation, and the required modules are on research techniques and data analysis.

Are these the ones DD is referring to? If so, kindly, I think that swerving them is a huge mistake. If she has enjoyed any aspect of her learning and is reasonably well organised and motivated, a Project is a good opportunity for high mark for doing something both substantial and interesting. These courses are designed to help students attain that mark and make their work on their chosen topic satisfying.

Equally, a UG Biology degree is a good degree but not necessarily one that has employers competing to land you. These modules will enhance employability. For anyone thinking of a PG degree, they are even more important.

I am not trying to point DD to Bath. These are both excellent programmes. But these two rather ‘dry’ modules are a strong positive feature, not a drawback.

Best wishes to DD

I'd say Bath but be aware she may not get campus accommodation in the first year and certainly won't in subsequent years. There are a number of halls in the city centre and it's a total lottery where she will get, regardless of her preferred choices on campus. That said, she'll be with other first years wherever she gets and city halls will give her a head start in finding second year accommodation and getting to grips with city centre life. The other issue is that they usually have to find their own work placements (unless it's a course like pharmacy that has huge recruitment shortages) and the parents of students Facebook page suggests it's a very tough market with lots of students going straight from second to fourth year as they haven't found a third year placement

Yes that was my thought about placements @Thatsanotherfinemess1 - deffo suggest a further probe.

Great post from @poetryandwine , on point as ever. @Itcantbetrue is the module poetry refers to, ie the project, the one dd thinks us dull? I agree it sounds interesting.

Also agree re the likelihood of PG study. DS2 is doing a biology- related degree and it's an integrated Master's - even then he is looking at a PhD. (Doctor DS2 😄)

@Itcantbetrue Bristol has a campus feel if dd chooses a Stoke Bishop hall. There are so many students living in halls there it’s impossible not to
make friends. I would also point out this means a 10 minute bus commute to the university area, but no one really minds this. The halls nearer the city centre tend to be for those who want the bright lights - but of course that’s not obligatory.

Id also check how many actually get work experience at Bath. Are they placing students from a university bank of employers, or just extending the course allowing students to find their own placements? An engaged student can look for summer work and that’s valuable too if in a field of biological interest.

Bristol is bigger but has a clearly defined university area. Students don’t go all over the city. It has a lot to see and do outside of the university, but it depends what dc value. Spreading your wings is something students should do! Both universities will be packed with very pleasant students and very few students are not accommodated within Bristol - often it’s clearing ones.

Id also advocate looking at the courses again - biology is perhaps a less employable science so making sure dc understand the job market matters but there is not just one way into employment and dd might even want to teach! Enjoying the course really matters too.

Bath is really busy at weekends, especially through summer (admittedly not in term time mostly) and expensive to go out in. Despite its genteel image it’s not really, I find it boisterous at night in the city centre, so many groups pushing and shoving.

Bristol is grittier, no doubt about that but has more options for housing areas including living outside of the city (my neighbour is a masters student, it’s 8 miles away and they use a small motorcycle to commute on).

I spend time in both cities and they both have pluses and minuses but the cost of bath is my personal drawback and Bristol has a better grassroots music scene plus new arena being built

Amazing responses thank you so much I'm so grateful.

Re being streetwise I can see she's not ,the choices she makes out and about but I don't think she sees herself as such !
I will show her these replies thank you

Does she have plans post degree? I used to work in academic research and if she wants to work as a "biologist" she would very likely need a PhD, and she would be on short-term, low-paid contracts for much of her 20s and probably into her 30s. Just something to keep in mind - biology is fascinating and I don't want to talk anyone out of it! She will of course be able to use her degree in other ways, too.

The placement year at Bath sounds useful, but do check if they actually help you find a placement, where previous students have gone on placement, etc, that may be good to know.

Of 6 students in dd house, 1 has not been able to get a placement (so far) . 2 are going abroad (alternative to placement year). 3 have placement..
At least for year abroad they seem to get a fair bit of help.

Great point being made above to investigate success finding placements (in any programme offering them). I don’t know the policy at Bath specifically, but every uni I do know of makes it the student’s responsibility to find their own placement. The quality of the uni’s or degree programme’s connections can matter a lot, however, and some provide more useful leads than others.

While the Facebook page referred to by @Thatsanotherfinemess1 at 13.23 is anecdotal evidence, it points to an underlying statistic: the number of students in the placement programme skipping the placement year. These students are on degree programmes with industrial placements but going from Y2 to Y4, or transferring out - in any case, graduating in 3 years. It is a good bet that most are failing to obtain decent placements.

If anyone really cares, this might be publicly accessible already or accessible via an FoI request.

I am not that invested but I think accumulating data on this would be a useful service, as an indicator of which industrial placement programmes nationwide are effective.

@hahabahbag Bristol is not gritty where the students mostly live! It’s prime real estate! Stoke Bishop is equally leafy and calm. Most Bristol students don’t want gritty and don’t go looking for it. Most like the odd coffee shop, a night out at weekends and sports! I think some people have never had a student at Bristol. City centres are lively but not obligatory.

Bath is nicer and the placement situation should not be underestimated. Bristol is expensive and not so desirable. I lived in Bath for 5 years so I'm a bit biased but the uni experience is great.

70 % get the placement according to the talk and they do help.
Tbh it's one reason they are doing well in league tables on employability etc so I do think they do help with it.

I think many unis do well with science employment. It’s important to realise grads might be doing marketing or something unrelated to biology and that could be the placement too. However it’s valuable but is an extra year.

As PP have said, an undergraduate Biology degree is not super sought after by employers. One of my young relatives has followed an undergraduate Biology degree with a Masters in Bioengineering with links to employers. It's probably worth doing a bit of scenario planning here and making a decision on which university to choose based on possible exit scenarios.

It is worth bearing in mind that 20% of U of Bath's first year accommodation is down in the city (25% of looking at ensuite). So prospective students need to understand that on-campus accommodation is not a dead cert and they need to be comfortable with that.

Historicaly, U of Bath has attracted Home County students studying highly monetisable degrees like CS, Econ, who aim to live and working back in London. Placements, even though student arranged, made the uni attractive to career-minded students. This is the basis of Bath's relative success and relative reputation The recent decline in well paid openings in and around London will be a headwind in future.

In respect of science degrees, with the exception of Engineering, I suspect that Bath does not have a particular edge relative to other universities. So the logic of a placement year makes most sense if the aim is to secure something in the SE in a more general grad role - but obviously with the proviso that you are competing with lots of other grads with a wide range of degrees.

I had a DC graduate from Bath last year and a DC in second year at Bristol. I always felt DD was safer in Bath than DS in Bristol, it suited her and she loved the campus life. DS would find Bath very boring and dreary and Bristol was right for him. Academically they are both brilliant. DD is now in London and did manage to secure a perfect (for her) graduate role in fact the woman recruited did her MSc at Bath, she's still living with two Uni mates who also have scored very good jobs. We live very far away from the home counties.

Maybe for rich students but DS loves in a shitty part of Bristol and pays a fortune in rent.

@Beyondamountainandoverthesea Well it’s not obligatory to go there. However loads of halls are in very attractive and expensive areas so of course rents are high; as they are in London or Edinburgh. Also, of course not everyone in the older halls is rich! Dc can work too to help out. Of course students choose to suit their pockets but most students don’t live in shitty parts of Bristol. In fact where is shitty there? I’m sure the residents in that area would love that description. Most students and parents work out in advance what they can afford and obviously northern universities are cheaper. Research is vital.

My DS is just finishing his STEM degree in Bristol. It’s been a really good experience and he’s enjoyed the city.
It not being a campus has no bearing on making friends- that happens in halls (he was in the city centre), on the course and societies.
DD has had his challenges and we found the uni very supportive. Also the city has great music scene which he’s very in to!