I loved every minute of my time at Hull University. World class academics and teaching, small…read moreclasses, beautiful campus, fantastic library, vibrant student's union all set in an extremely affordable city...I, for one, couldn't have asked for more.

I spent 6 happy years here (a BSc followed by a PhD). Hull is a really friendly University and also…read morehas a good academic reputation. It is a great place to study and I would recommend it to anyone. I made loads of friends who I still see regularly some 10 years later. It is not a huge university which makes it al the more friendly and is set on a lovely campus. The student Union is a great place with plenty of things going on and there is a big library, sports centre etc etc.

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.

Definitely regret going in. Absolute hell…read more They put so much pressure on us, they have very absurd rules. They do not do much about mental health other than putting them in notice slides every so often, I got put in the counselling and it was awful, very unfriendly and told me I just went to it because my teacher said to. The teachers I have complain about the college and how unfair it is to them and many of the teachers. I wouldn't recommend going to this college, the only reason they get high scores is because they kick out poor grades students before exams.

I went to college here and I just had to add it because it is a great place with loads of choice in…read morecourses and unlimited support for those wanting to go into vocational training or do a university degree. In fact if I hadn't gone to new college I would not have gone to university and I wouldn't have a half decent job so it really does matter to go to a good place like this. I am so thankful for all the chances this place has given me and the friends that I made and how we all turned out well. It's huge with lots of free parking and a wonderful large sports field. The cafe is well priced and the atmosphere is excellent. The academic staff are wonderful, wonderful friends who taught me so much and introduced me to a whole new world of learning. I cannot express how much I loved my time here and I would recommend it to anyone wanting to further their education.

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

When it comes to subjects and teachers I could only speak for certain ones. But on the whole the…read morecollege grounds are fine, you can feel safe and there was never any violence permitted or any big problems that got out of hand when I was there (2011-13). There were plenty of books and DVDs available, plus computers available for printing or studying. I didn't use the cafeteria regularly but it was always full of people. The social aspects were kind of dismal for me because everyone already seemed to be in big groups and I didn't really have time to get to know anyone since I was so busy studying every lunch time. There were a few little events like free healthy breakfast some weeks and you could join sports teams but I never bothered with that. You can call the teachers here by their first names and in general this college helps you feel more like an adult than a schoolkid. It felt so liberating to not have to wear school uniform and no longer be told which colour shoes to wear too unlike at school. For anyone who is dedicated to going to university, this is a suitable college. The amount of homework might depend on the teacher and subject, but always expect it to be loads of homework and plan ahead. The amount of work expected in short deadlines was a big negative for me, but that probably counts for all colleges. Anyway, as for classes, I really enjoyed the Philosophy lessons here, even though it was not my total career focus, every lesson of it was engaging and you were taught things clearly so as long as you take note of everything and listen to the teachers you can understand what is being discussed. The languages department seemed very supportive and encouraging too (I only speak for French really but the other teachers seemed nice when I encountered them).

Ever since my literary agent sister Debbi Michiko Florence posted pictures from her experience at…read morethe inaugural Harlaxton Kidlit Retreat hosted by our friend best-selling young adult author Kristy Boyce, I was very eager to take part in a retreat at Harlaxton College! For 6 days, I got to stay at Harlaxton Manor. There's a whole Wikipedia page for anyone interested in going down the rabbit hole of the manor's history. To make a long story short, it was built by a nobleman named Gregory Gregory (yes, that is really his name!), and is currently owned by University of Evansville. I loved exploring the manor, admiring the architecture, and getting good laughs over seeing my boyfriend's name everywhere I go. It was such a joy to write in such gorgeous surroundings every day, and switch up my location. I could write in the haunted library, the gardens, conservatory, ballrooms, wherever I wanted! I felt like I was in the castle from Beauty and the Beast. All my novels feature a castle in some shape or form, so it was a treat to be able to immerse myself in the experiencing of staying in one for a writing retreat. I liked pretending this was my home for nearly a week. Every day, on top of our writing time, we had optional activities and excursions that we could take part in. The staff was amazing and went above and beyond to ensure that we had such memorable and wonderful experiences! These included: Afternoon Tea Playing croquet Garden tour Pub tour (we visited 3 pubs and had dinner in one called Chequers Inn), Visiting Belvoir Castle (pronounced "Beaver," because the British hate the French lol) Attending Kristy's reading and signing of her book Hot British Boyfriend. Fun fact, the fictional school Emberton in her book is inspired by Harlaxton! Banquet to end the retreat I completed revising an updated outline for a new novel, and sent it back to my agent before the end of the retreat. Mission accomplished! Harlaxton felt so magical. I'm honestly a city girl, but I loved living in the manor in the English countryside so much, it actually felt jarring once I was back in a city like York and London. Not complaining. Kristy did such a phenomenal job creating a memorable writing retreat experience! It's going to be hard to top a retreat where I get to write in a fairytale castle!

Amazing study abroad experience. Went to harlaxton with my school as a summer study abroad program…read moreand was so grateful to get to stay at this beautiful manor. The dorm rooms were really nice. There were rec rooms, vending machines, a pay phone for local calls (like takeout or a cab). There's a laundry room, gym, and bike rental. The town close to it is small, friendly and charming. If you want to stay close to the manor there are beautiful gardens on the ground and trails next to it. The bluebell trail is only open a few weeks out of the summer and is just breathtaking. The living facilities are amazing and the staff is great. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are provided everyday and a bistro (aka a bar) is open at night mon-Friday. There is also a gift shop. Besides being used as a university you can also have your wedding at this manor. I hear the bridal suite is beautiful. Tours are also given.

York Uni is a combination of several colleges on one campus…read more It is set in beautiful grounds with lakes and has a pub and a bar, bookshop and library. I have stayed here as an academic but it really is the cheapest place to stay if you want a holiday or have business in York. Out of term time they do very cheap B & B and also self catering apartments for 6 or more. It is all under £100 each for the week. I think a twin room is around the £80 mark and that includes breakfast. It is an easy stroll into York. I remember one student saying he had gone for a walk to the kebab shop and seen some pseudo walls like a film set. NO The Barbican and medieval walls! Off the campus in the other direction is the village of Hesslington which has a couple of decent pubs that do food but of course there is all that York can offer in the way of food and entertainment the other way. Heslington makes a nice, quite change one evening though. The reason for the 4 stars. Well student accomodation is very basic but it is the b*y ducks! You cannot easily sit on the grass and you trail in duck pup. They started with 2 (think they are Canadian geese) and now they have hundreds! Anyway all of you wanting to visit York here is the cheap B & B! Giving away my secrets now it will be full when I want to go :)

The University of York campus is sandwiched between the city walls and the pretty village of…read moreHeslington. Its sixties concrete building were considered quite innovative at the time, I believe, but they take a bit of getting used to. Luckily, there's a very pleasant campus to help on that front, though the geese are far less welcoming. York is the only university in the country without a central student venue so don't expect a packed SU bar; the majority of the college bars are pretty dead, when they're open. The closest thing to a student bar you'll find is the King Charles XII pub in Heslington village; their cheap booze ensures they're rammed to the rafters with students in term-time. Otherwise it's but a twenty-minute walk to the centre of town and its plethora of bars, pubs and restaurants.