Xaverian College...what a fantastic place…read more This is where I actually became who I am today. I know that sounds silly but this college is fantastic. I learnt more here in two years than I did in five years at high school. The teachers here really bring you out of yourself, they actually care about the students, not just about the grades. I'm still in touch with most of my tutors now, they care what I've been up to since I left and always get in touch to congratulate me on anything I achieve. The range of subjects is vast and the campus keeps getting bigger and better. It's much different to most other colleges as the buildings are spread right out although not too far so you can still walk to all of them comfortably. It's so different to school, everyone is treated as an adult and it was such a good grounding before university, I don't think I'd have been half as prepared for uni if it wasn't for Xaverian.

My overall opinion is 5 stars!…read more Sure some departments are better than others and the quality of teaching will vary, but I believe that Lancaster is one of the best campus-based Universities in the country and definately the best in the North West.

Although my course at lancaster may not have been the most rewarding (I no longer work in the field…read morein which I studied), that was probably more down to choice than teaching. I enjoyed my 3 years at lancaster and certainly felt comfortable and relaxed within the strong community that existed within the college system. Lots of places to shop and eat on campus means that you rarely need to leave (if you're being lazy). It is a self contained town, but well linked by buses to the outside world. I still head back now and then for a beer at one of the bars and am always welcome, even though I'm no longer a student there.

I went to this college 13 years ago and loved it. I studied…read morecatering and hsopitality, at the time they had a great set up with 2 public restaurants that the students would work in. It was a great way to get real hands on experience. They offer many different courses.

I completed my undergrad degree at Greenwich in London and was totally underwhelmed by the…read moreuniversity experience. I wasn't sure what to do next until my friend (and future housemate) asked me to drive him up to Staffordshire University so he could have a look around for his degree. We popped along for an open day and from that point on I never looked back. The reception I got on the open day from the student ambassadors was great. They were very talkative, very friendly and spoke highly of the university. Already, Staffs was one up on Greenwich. Campus wise I was impressed with the student union facilities. The LRV (main nightclub venue) was huge and the Ember Lounge (bar) was also very cozy and atmospheric. Once enrolled on my course I spent many a great night in these venues watching stand up comedy, music and even things like alternative jazz & poetry nights. Facility wise I was bowled over too! At Greenwich I had to put up with inferior media facilities but Staffs had the lot. Industry standard cameras and plenty of them, loads of edit suites so you would have no problem actually getting to use the equipment. If I was to progress in the industry I knew I had to study somewhere like this! I was able to use the equipment whenever I wanted and as a result I now have a really great attention grabbing show reel which has helped me get into the industry. Social wise there was a lot on offer too with nearly 70 different clubs to join. Everything from football/rugby to things like L.A.R.Ping and Ultimate Frisbee. As a result of this I made so many friends that even after my MA I stayed in Stoke to be around the university environment. What is remarkable is that before I came to Staffs I really lacked confidence but I found meeting new people so easy here. Other impressive attributes are the university's own cinema, a 24 hour library, a forensics crime scene house, a smoothie bar and a broadcast studio with TV cameras and radio broadcast rooms. Since finishing my MA here I have taken part in a university based scheme which gives graduates the chance to start thier own business and as of September I will be running my own production company. Living wise Stoke is one of the cheapest places in the country. You get far more for your money here and rent is very cheap. To get ahead in your chosen industry I would highly reccommend Staffs.

I live in Pelsall and when I decided to go to Staffordshire University but the Stoke-on-Trent…read morecampus I couldn't drive and with the commute on the train over an hour, the best choice was for me to go and live at university. Now to get onto the biology course I wanted to do I had to do a two week bridging course so lived at the university for the duration. I lived in the universities housing residence which I loved. There was room enough for five people and the people who I met were fantastic. We all got along apart from with one person who kept themselves to themselves and it was nice being only a few of us as we managed to bond quickly. When I applied to go to university the year later I wanted to stay in these houses as I loved the fact there would only be a few people and the bedrooms were quite big and the living area was lovely. Now I was shocked when I was told a week before I was due to start that I was going to be put in halls because they had made a mistake with my account and all of the houses were full. Like every person about to move into halls I was excited but terrified at the same time and asked myself all the familiar questions. What if they are all horrible? What if I don't get on with them at all? Will my food get stolen? Are they secure? Will it be with all girls or mixed? What floor will I be on? How many toilets will there be? How many showers will there be? Now I will tell all prospective students now just what the halls are like and exactly what to expect from your stay from my personal experiences. - What are they like? The halls of residence at Staffordshire University are pretty much like the majority of universities. They are split into floors and on each floor there is room for around twelve people to live. Everybody has their individual rooms and then there is a shared kitchen and bathroom. Some halls will have a separate living area but for us we just had the kitchen. The rooms on a floor are linked by a corridor and then doors to get outside. The halls that I stayed in had three floors and were colour coded. I stayed in the Royal Doulton halls yellow which was the middle floor. You had to have a key to get into the doors leading into the halls from the outside and then another key to get onto your floor. You then had an individual key to get into your own room. The halls I stayed at were extremely clean and the same goes for other halls I have visited. Remember before the new year of university starts and all of the freshers start, the cleaners will have been in the halls and tidied making sure everything is spick and span for when you move in so you don't have to worry about the cleanliness of the place. Now the one thing you do have to expect is that the rooms are sometimes very small. My room literally had enough room for a single bed, a very small desk and a small wardrobe and not much more room to move. Nevertheless don't worry as although it looks like you can't swing a cat in there, it is extremely liveable and we still managed to get about 6 people in there to watch a film, not exactly comfortably but we coped. The bathrooms were fine and were cleaned by the university cleaner every day. We had four toilets, three showers and a bath and every one of them had locks on the door so you didn't have to worry about anybody walking in on you. The kitchen area was where we spent the majority of our time. There were two ovens, a microwave, fridge, 2 fridge/freezers, a kettle, a toaster and then enough cupboards for everybody to have one each. The cupboards were made with the ability to padlock them so you could keep your food safe. In the middle of the kitchen was a large circular table with seats around it so that everybody could sit down and socialise. The kitchen was also cleaned daily by the cleaner but you do have to do your own washing up. - What is it like living with all of these people? Honestly it is scary at first but I can tell you that after a couple of days you will feel much better. I am not ashamed to say that I cried when my parents and sister left me at university and I had to go and meet all of these people but a few hours later and I was fine. When you first move into the halls it is freshers week so basically there are hundreds of people feeling just like you do and just want to make friends. Within my halls we had a warden for every coloured hall and luckily enough ours was living on our floor with us. It is there job as a warden to make sure everybody gets settled in as well as possible and usually they will have something organised for the first night when everybody gets there. We were there and we were told that for our first night at university we were going to be taken to the student union for the evening. Now going out drinking and dancing is the one of the best ways to loosen up and get to know people. We went there had a few drinks and by the time we had got back that evening we were all chatting and

It's such a great school of an outstanding ousted rating. The teachers are extremely helpful and…read morethe students are all friendly. Everyone is like friends with everyone. The environment during winter is the best. It gives winter wonderland vibes. I think it's a great place to excel in your future careers and a place to meet longterm friends or partners. Not to mention there are places to relax and maybe nap if you're too bored to do anything.

I'm currently doing my Masters and I must confess that I'm really satisfied with the 'product' they…read moreoffer. Especially, in my course (tourism) there are just two students and therefore we get full attention of our tutors, which makes the university very personal. When I have any inquiries they help me or give advice. The most of the tutors are also very good and open-minded lecturers and deliver appropriate content with loads of enthusiasm. However, the university gets just four stars because not everything and all of them is/are perfect.

The University of Derby's campus located in Buxton, commonly known as The Dome, is a fantastic…read morebuilding to facilitate a university. It provides courses within most vocational areas such as hospitality and hairdressing, and has got its own hairdressing salon, fully commercial spa and a fine dining restaurant. The tutors are friendly and supportive and very willing to help out with any academic or personal issues. They are all easy to approach and will gladly see you for a coffee in the university bistro to talk about your assignments!

Holy Cross College in Bury does like to blow its own trumpet - look at us we're in the top ten…read morecolleges again, look at how many people we practically forced to do four or five A Levels or how many got into Oxbridge.. The difference with Holy Cross is that this Sixth Form College actually does deliver exactly what the parents are after. I found the quality of teaching consistently high when I was a student and I am sure that this was a considerable factor in my doing well at A Level. The General Studies module has always been a bit of a joke but the form classes we had to 'prepare' us for this exam were among the most interesting we had. There were debates on topics such as ethics and the big news stories at the time. Their focus is academic - Lower Sixth students have to swipe their student card (there is no registration) at 8.40am regardless of whether they have lectures or not. How many people actually used this time to go to the often empty library, I'd be sceptical. Its on the top floor of one of their buildings and you can only enter from one set of stairs.. it wasn't exactly easy to nip in. I didn't find that any Catholicism was pushed down my throat - yes, the college was originally run by nuns or based on a school that was run by nuns, something like that. And yes there were frail, old nuns walking about every now and again. One other point, this may have changed but when I was there you could only take Philosophy with Theology, half and half. And obviously the majority of the Theology side was Christian, so that put me off a subject I would have otherwise taken (I went on to write my university dissertation on the beginnings of western philosophy). I did two extra exams in my final year called AEAs in English and History and whilst the sessions were interesting and the exams clearly more challenging to both my memory and creativity, once you are getting three or four As what universities want to see is a more well rounded candidate, right? Sports, volunteering, drama, part time job.. There were plenty of extras at Holy Cross: dance classes, Fairtrade fairs, plus we halfheartedly set up a magazine there - not sure if that has lasted..

I would like to have a an application form for before September. I would like to do animal care i…read morehave one course left to do in animal care and then i can go on to a different course.

I would just like to say that I am grateful to Oldham Sixth Form for allowing my daughter to resit…read moreher A Levels there. Her tutors have been supportive and helpful which has rebuilt her trust in the educational system and her confidence after being let down so badly by Hyde Clarendon Sixth Form College. I would like to say thank you to all her tutors in assisting my daughter in getting the grades that she deserved.