Durham University > Reviews

Advantages: FRIENDLY AND WELCOMING
Disadvantages: NOT SUITABLE FOR EVERYONE

...teaching goes on in the Durham Colleges. They are just glorified halls of residence with more community feeling. Even if you are a liver-out (sounds like a medical thing but is just someone who does not live in college) you still belong to a college, this is great as it helps you keep in touch even after you take the big step of living out! Entry requirements: these vary hugely according to the popularity of the course you want to apply to. I was ... Read review

Advantages: Everything
Disadvantages: possible sharing

...a prospective student I visited Durham University a couple of weeks ago and stayed overnight at the college I hope to attend. I feel in love with the place and really hope to get the grades to go there. The thing I like about the university over all the others I have looked at is the college lay out, Durham University consists of 12 different colleges, and so you have a place to return to and an identity within the university. And of course every ... Read review

Advantages: Looks good on your CV
Disadvantages: Cliquey, boring area, no variety in the people you meet

Having graduated from Durham University and attended a diffferent one for my doctorate, it is easy to see the negative points of the place upon leaving. The town itself looks beautiful from the outset but after a while, there seems to be a bad atmosphere about the place. There is a tension between local people and the students and because it's such a small place, it is impossible to escape. There is a very narrow choice of things to do in your spare ... Read review

Advantages: Colleges, Klute, excellent staff and reputation.
Disadvantages: Too many hills!

...is a sad fact that Durham is often seen as a place full of Oxbridge rejects with a bad nightlife- don't you believe it!. While there are lots of rejects about this really doesn't do justice to what Durham has to offer (beautiful setting and Klute). Apart from the excellent departments and IT services which are necessary but not very interesting there is an atmosphere in Durham that you just can't find anywhere else. There's often criticism of Durham's ... Read review

Advantages: excellent academic support, beautiful city, everywhere is within walking distance
Disadvantages: can't think of any

I'm a student at Durham university and I'd just like to say what a good time I am having there! It's not just that you get excellent teaching. You also get a lot of academic support from teaching staff and on top of that you also have a college tutor. At my college - Van Mildert - you also have a "college mum" who is a second/third/fourth year who does your subject and they are able to answer questions about the subject and sometimes sell you their ... Read review

Advantages: The people, the beautiful landscape and the constant activity
Disadvantages: The cold weather - not somewhere to improve your tan...

...kept myself very busy. While Durham may not be famed for it's rocking nightlife (though I promise you, it does have one), I'm yet to meet a student here who's bored or regretting their choice of university. Wandering round Freshers's Fair a few weeks ago,I found hundreds of activities and societies I hadn't even heard of, and there's plenty to keep me interested. Durham doesn't offer a course in theatre, and yet we have arguably the most active theatre ... Read review

Advantages: Academically impressive, breathtaking city, cheap drink
Disadvantages: Spoilt brats, city far too small

I used to tell people Durham was the best three years of my life, but having been somewhere else for my MA, I now see I was misguided back then, trapped in the bubble that is Durham University. Academically, when you say you went to Durham, people say 'Wow, really' or something to that effect. Great reputation, small classes, top-of-their-field professors, help available from lots of sources. However, the IT service is an UNMITIGATED DISASTER, ... Read review

Advantages: Post-Grad Community
Disadvantages: Post-Grad Community

...can't face living in a Durham college that has an undergraduate population (and all the colleges are 95%+ undergrads) then Grad. Soc. is your alternative. The different sites all over reasonably relaxed self-catering accommodation with your fellow post-grads. So you get a higher class of corridor party and more more developed petty rivalries. And people around you who know what suffering doing a masters degree or writing a thesis brings about. It's ... Read review

Advantages: plenty
Disadvantages: what disadvantages

Durham University is a fantastic institution, for which i only have praise. The University is set in and around the idyllic city of Durham, unlike other Uni's that use the name of a place though not really anywhere near it - Warwick University, is in fact, closer to coventry and is actually in the middle of nowhere. Durham is one of the top academic universities in the country and has been rated in the top five for the last few years. The university, ... Read review

Advantages: Tradition, small number of students
Disadvantages: depends on your outlook

...spent three great years at Durham University from 94-97. I studied classics and St Hild & St Bede was my college. Durham is a small town in the mould of Oxford and Cambridge and tradition plays an important part in the whole collegiate life. I don't know who will be reading this posting but if you are looking for advice on whether Durham is a good university to attend I would say that if you are after a traditional degree education in a beautiful ... Read review

Advantages: Teaching staff, cheap alcohol in college bars
Disadvantages: Posh students, the nightlife

...a warning not just about Durham University, but about any university in the country - make sure you find out what you're getting yourself into before you apply! The reason I know what I'm talking about is because I not only applied, but went to a univeristy that I knew very little about. After not getting accepted to Oxford (yes I am one of those well-known Oxbridge rejects!) I then got accepted to Durham University after an interview. My first thoughts ... Read review

Advantages: Academic excellence
Disadvantages: Snobby reputation

Durham University is most commonly known as the Oxbridge reject University as many of the other opinions have stated quite clearly. And yes, there are many snobs. There are also many normal people who manage to have a great time. If you are from a state school, do not let the University's image deter you from applying as the conflicts of interest tend to lie with a minority of loud, balshy pupils, rather than the admissions tutors. Durham is afterall ... Read review