Bristol University

What’s it like as a place to live? Bristol is a beautiful city, with a mixture of lively student activity and local historic culture. Wherever you are in Bristol, there are always local pubs and shops, and while Bristol is a big city in terms of what it has to offer, you are always in easy walking distance from home, whether after lectures or after a night out.

How’s the student accommodation? There is a huge range of accommodation in Bristol, at varying prices. Catered and self-catered halls are found in Clifton (near the university) and in Stoke Bishop, a half-hour walk from university but essentially a campus in its own right. There are also university-owned student houses ranging from less than 10 residents to over 100. Accommodation prices range from around £60 per week to over £160. You can live in basic accommodation or you can enjoy being listed gardens in Goldney Hall – there is a huge amount of choice. Moving out of halls you are given a similar choice, depending on where you choose to live.

What’s the student population like? Bristol does, like many universities, have a reputation for being very middle class. It is the case in Bristol that unless you personally find yourself in a class-dictated bubble (you won’t if you don’t want to!!), you will find it to be a place with a huge variety of people, whose backgrounds are either an irrelevancy or a topic of interest. While it is fair to say that most students here come from privileged backgrounds, the student population remains diverse. Students come from across the country (with enough Northern students to have formed the hugely popular Northern Society, for example) and there are many students from abroad. People’s experience at Bristol varies and, while many students undoubtedly live in a bubble, my personal experience (and that of all my friends) is one of refreshingly varied backgrounds, interests and personality. The student population at Bristol has a collectively healthy attitude, with academic and social drive in equal measure, and the vibe is a friendly one.

How do students and locals get on? As Bristol is a big city with the hub of student activity generally centred around certain “studenty” parts of town, the students (when in mass) don’t seem to get in the way of locals. However, common ground is shared – particularly if you live further away from the university itself. This is one of the advantages of living further from the university – I lived in a big student house 20 minutes away from my department, on Gloucester Road, where any night out at the pub would show a good community atmosphere – the group of students essentially becoming locals.

What’s it like as a place to study? Speaking for my own subject (music), Bristol is a great place to study. A visit to the bustling Arts and Social Sciences Library, the stunning Law Library or to Woodland Road, where many of the departments are situated, shows the general academic bustle of the university! The libraries have everything you can imagine, you can take open units and make use of other departments.

What are the teaching staff like? My own department has hugely respected music historians, composers and performers, all on first-name terms with their students in a genuinely integrated department. This makes the university experience exciting and massively inspiring. All students spend at least some time on a one-to-one basis with their professors, and it seems that I am not alone in my view that the teaching is generally engaging. Some departments are rumoured to have less interaction between students and staff (maybe law and economics, for example) but most students are hugely satisfied. It is always worth talking to a student in the subject you wish to study, whatever university you choose. But Bristol, based on my experience and that of most of my peers, can be proud of its staff.

What are student societies like? The fresher’s fair demonstrates the massive amount of student attention to creating societies. There are societies for knitting, cheese tasting and other novelties, as well as societies which put on great events − from fully-fledged operas and plays to charity nights out and sky-diving trips. Most people are, at least by their second year, affiliated with a society of some kind, whether it is related to their hobby or their course, and few will make it through their time here without at least going to support events put on by these societies.

What’s a typical night out? Every university has its cliché night out. Bristol has its fair share, and you can spend as much time as you want in the great fun/disastrously-cringing clubs. However, Bristol is more unusual in offering a huge array of live music, be it jazz, classical, rock or electro, and lovely pubs.

...... And how much does it cost? Drinks at the student union (and at student events or club nights) are always cheapest, and you’ll even be able to get yourself £1 pints here and there. But the average pub will charge between £2.50 and £3.50 for the same thing. A lot of clubs and live music nights are free, others cost £5 or, very occasionally, £10. As with anywhere, prices vary but you will be able to enjoy yourself for less money if you go to the right places!

How can you get home safely? Taxis home, when shared, can cost you about £1.50 each, so this is what a lot of students do. Others (me included) are more stubborn, and take advantage of the fact that you easily can walk home from almost any night out. There are dodgy areas in Bristol but they are well-known and easy to avoid.

Is it an expensive place to live? People manage. Most people are freer with their money at the beginning of term than at the end, but if you budget ok, you can live comfortably on your loan through the term. Life is always more expensive if you go out every night!

Average price of a pint? £2.80 would serve as a good average, but everything is cheaper if you’re drinking in student bars or at club nights etc directed at students. Or at Wetherspoons.

And the price of a takeaway? £1 or so for your bog standard chips, add a couple of pounds and you can enjoy a greasy kebab or burger.

What’s the part-time work situation? People seem to find work quite easily, whether at pubs, in student bars themselves, or in the huge amount of shops and restaurants over Bristol. The university claims you should not do more than 12 hours paid work a week, and should keep your tutor informed. However, many people do more than that, and it depends on how you personally manage your time. My department and many others will inform students of subject-related paid work.

 What’s the best feature about the place? The huge amount of culture on your doorstep.

And the worst?  The hills. Especially if you’re a cyclist.

And if you had to sum it all up in a sentence (or two)? Bristol has a huge amount to offer, whether in terms of diverse academia, culture or just good fun. Everything feels fairly contained, with your friends’ halls and nights out always within manageable distance, but the city remains a hugely diverse, exciting place.

Sue Lawley (BBC), Susan Engels (actress, RSC), Frances Horovitz (poet), Hugh Cornwell (lead singer with The Stranglers), Paul Boateng MP (Cabinet Minister), David Hunt MP, Alistair Stewart (newsreader), Lembit Opik MP, Emily Watson (actress); Matt Lucas , David Walliams (comedians); Michael Winterbottom (film director), Chris Morris (satirist), Simon Pegg (actor).

Check out union website, www.ubu.org.uk.