March 20, 2019, by Sunita Tailor

What to look for on a University Open/Offer-Holder Day?

This blog was written by second year English student, Emily Hall.

After recently working as a student ambassador for the School of English’s offer holder day, where prospective students are invited to have a final look around the University before making their final choice of where they will be studying. It got me thinking about all the open days I went to, I think about 9 in total, at 7 different Universities. As someone who doesn’t like making decisions, I wanted to make sure I was absolutely positive about where I wanted to spend such an important 3 years of my life. In all honesty I was also reluctant to make the decision, because it meant that I was to leave my small bubble of college life and move away from home, but I am so glad I chose Nottingham. Seeing all the prospective students and hearing their questions made me think about what I use to look for when visiting a University, and how Nottingham managed to top all the other Universities I looked at around the country. These are the four things I always made notes on when visiting a University…

  • The Course

No matter how important the societies of a University are, or the beautiful grounds its on, the course itself is so important. Every University will have different ways of approaching the subject, offer different modules and different ways of teaching. Nottingham’s English BA is so diverse, and the opportunity to do English Literature, English Language, Drama and Creative Writing in my first year was exactly what I was looking for.

  • Accommodation

It may seem that University accommodations all seem quite similar, but there are some important factors to think about. Catered vs self-catered? On or off campus? Does it have a social space? Laundrette? What is the security like? And of course, the price is an important factor.

  • The Campus

The campus itself played a massive role into why I chose Nottingham. From the sloping green hills and gorgeous boating lake, I could imagine myself walking around the campus with a coffee in hand and feeling rather at home. It is important to think about what you want from the campus, and whether you want it to have more of a city or rural feel. Are there any shops on campus? What places are there to eat or socialise? You will be spending an awful lot of time (or not, I’m not one to judge…) on campus and so want it to be somewhere you feel comfortable and happy.

  • The City

If you’re moving to a different area, it is important to have a look around and again judge whether it is somewhere you can see yourself living. Nottingham is the perfect mix for me, with beautiful rural places like Wollaton Park, to the fantastic shopping possibilities in the city centre. It is useful to look at transport links too, whether that is bus or tram routes around the city, transport around campus, or to the train station.

 

Other honourable mentions of things to do on an open day…

*Chat to current students. They know what going to the University is like better than anyone else.

*Have a wander. Look at notice boards, see what is going on at the University and something might catch your eye that you’d like to be a part of.

*Have a look at the Student’s Union. It will give you a real taste of Uni life.

 

Posted in Student WordsTips/Advice/Guidance