Accepting Unconditional University Offers.

[Guest55]

I am happy to share gold with such worthy 'competitors' ..

[kenyancowgirl]

Pffft! You lot have no ambition!! Surely, in this 11+, Obridge driven world, you should, like me, be aiming for "Gold Plus Plus"?!!!!!

[Catseye]

Oxbridge are universities are like any other they have some very strong departments/faculties but some weaker ones as well.

It is important for prospective candidates to research the relevant department , Unistats, give some indication but not the whole story.

In general Oxbridge courses are very theoretical with little emphasis on real live applications when it comes to STEM subjects. In the humanities and Languages some Dons really do need to be out to pasture and are well past their sell by date but on the whole their departments are world leading in many respects.

We are very fortunate to have so many excellent universities in the UK-so be grateful.

btw TM-no offence taken

[KB]

However there are science courses which are primarily lab based projects in the final year - a good way to get a foot in the door for postgraduate research if that's what you are looking towards.

I'm not an advocate of Oxbridge as the holy grail either btw and endorse doing your research to find the best University/ department for yourself not just going on perceived prestige.

[Amber]

I recently read a paper by Simon Marginson (2006) which I found really interesting and which helps to explain why some universities hold high prestige while not necessarily offering anything at all special in terms of teaching quality. An interesting point he makes is this one:

The acid test is that when faced by choice between a prestigious university with known indifference to undergraduate teaching, and a lesser institution offering better classroom support, nearly everyone opts for prestige. This does not sit well with the ‘student-centred’ pieties of quality assurance and consumerist marketing, but it is a fact of life.

He also points out the link between affluence and access to prestigious institution; which is not a massive surprise:

Wealthy families invest in high value education to maintain their social and professional leadership. Positional markets in higher education are a matching game in which the hierarchy of students/ families is synchronised with the hierarchy of universities; and the peak group in each hierarchy is steeped in the habits of sustaining the other.

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Marginson also looks at why it is that American and English institutions dominate international league tables, which for me as a big critic of these is interesting too.

It may be interesting to those who are trying to understand why Oxbridge holds such a mystique, even in cases where courses are 'better' at other institutions.

[KB]

There may be those for who going to a prestigious university is actually more important than the quality of teaching so as with all things it's 'horses for courses'.

Also, the Oxbridge model makes it complicated to assess 'teaching' quality. Undergraduate experience can be patchy but for the students who are the right fit having access ( if limited) to those at the front of their field of research can be the driving force behind their choice.

Absolutely agree that not only can Oxbridge not be the 'best' for certain courses but it can also be miserable ( or worse) for students who aren't a good fit.

Apologies - right off topic now.

[Catseye]

Undergraduate experience can be patchy but for the students who are the right fit having access ( if limited) to those at the front of their field of research can be the driving force behind their choice.

For us it is a balance between location and teaching quality.


The "golden triangle" (Oxford, Cambridge and London) for CS definitely has advantages because of the concentration of high tech companies and potential networks but we would still not of chosen UCL or King's College because of it's CS departments.

Manchester seems to be a good compromise because of its long tradition in CS(first programmable computer, oldest formal CS department in the UK [even though Cambridge were developing computers in their Applied Maths department before M/CR] and its links to Alan Turing, innervation in graphene and the Graphene Centre and so has a worldwide reputation in computing. All good on a future CV to be able to access international employers.

[Amber]

Manchester seems to be a good compromise because of its long tradition in CS(first programmable computer, oldest formal CS department in the UK [even though Cambridge were developing computers in their Applied Maths department before M/CR] and its links to Alan Turing, innervation in graphene and the Graphene Centre and so has a worldwide reputation in computing. All good on a future CV to be able to access international employers.

Hopefully your son likes the place too, Catseye, as he will be living there for 3 years.

[solimum]

Many of DD's friends like Manchester so much they still live there after graduation! - I'm just annoyed that they've now removed the long stretch of roadworks on the northbound M6 now that I no longer have to drive up there regularly, and put them instead on the M5 for when I go to see her in Cardiff!

[Guest55]

Many of DD's friends like Manchester so much they still live there after graduation!

I think that is true for many unis - certainly for many of the students I've taught they have stayed near where they studied.