Oxford Brookes is a good University in a beautiful city

Advantages: Good facilities for teaching, socialising and sports
Disadvantages: Very expensive

...As a Postgraduate Student at Oxford Brookes I had high hope when I enrolled. I have found the the teaching facilities and equipment very good. The buildings themselves in some departments are a little old fashioned on the exterior, but the interior makes up for it. There are many societies and clubs which are very active within the Students' Union. The nightlife on campus is good with events happening on most nights at the different bars around campus. Being within easy reach of the city, I feel, means that you can tailor your student experience in the way you want. Oxford itself has more of a pub than club culture, but there are some good clubs out there too, which I think compliment the club nights at the Student Union very well. Accommodation is of a high standard. The Sports Centre is particularly noteworthy as it has very high...

twinkle321 29.06.2009 · Read review
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Review of Oxford Brookes University

An Overview of Oxford University

Advantages: High academic standards, reputation, university can be the best years of your life
Disadvantages: Can be seen as stuffy and old-fashioned, a lot of work, may not suit all

...run by religious orders and offering Oxford degree courses – Blackfriars, Campion Hall, Greyfriars, Regent’s Park, St Benet’s Hall and Wycliffe Hall. Plus, of course, there’s Oxford Brookes; a former polytechnic now one of the top ‘new universities’ in the country, separate of course from Oxford University, but also involved in student life at the Union, etc. As you can see, there should be a college to suit all types. Older ones offer ‘the full Oxford experience’ – complete with absurd traditions. Newer ones may be a bit less stuffy, but aren’t generally as rich, so may be worse off for accommodation, libraries, hardship funds, etc. most of the above is based on generalisation and my varying knowledge of colleges (supplemented by the Oxford Handbook). So, if you see a college...

a-true-ben 06.01.2002 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Brookes-Worth Every Penny!

Advantages: good Union, friendly people, lovely city, wide choice of courses
Disadvantages: expensive, hell to drive in, WARNING-this review's pretty long, sorry!

...After coming on here and reading the other reviews written about Brookes, I feel obliged to write my own to defend my poor uni! Most of these reviews were written over 2 years ago, so I would like to give a more up-to-date perspective, as I have just finished my first year there. First of all, I do agree that Oxford is an expensive area to live in. You do get less for your money here than you might in Northern or Welsh universities, for example. However, with regards to student accommodation, you get what you pay for. The two most expensive halls are newly built, with decent sized rooms with internet connections and ensuite bathrooms, plus they're brilliantly located. Nightlife wise, the Student Union (SU)'s quite reasonable on club nights. Oxford has many student nights at its bars, where entry is often free and drinks prices are...

jlkovacs1 21.07.2004 · Read review
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Review of Oxford Brookes University

Brookes Uni

Advantages: Modular study, good social aspects.
Disadvantages: Oxford has the equivalent cost of living in London.

...Oxford Brookes University is a great place to learn. The courses are modular, so within each course, the student chooses what subjects to take and what to avoid. All this can be done over the internet from any computer in the world, using the brilliant PIP pages on the university page. The modular nature means that instead of having three/four years of study and then huge exams, you have exams at the end of each term - much less stressful. Socially, Brookes could not be much better. We have some great bands playing - this term we have the NME Carling Awards (Starsailor, Alfie, Amen, JJ72), Divine Comedy, Pitchshifter, Ash and some others. The student union bars are cool, the staff are friendly and everything is generally made as fun as possible....

adam.hopkinson 12.02.2001 · Read review
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Review of Oxford Brookes University

Brookes, good if you're lucky

Advantages: rating improving every year, some departments rated excellent, Oxford
Disadvantages: Wheatley campus 5 miles out, Not like a 'real' uni, Teaching can be lazy, People can be stuffy

...such as Warwick, York, Loughborough, Bath etc. and these unis have really felt like Universities. However i have come here and been dispointed about the feel of the place. For some reason it just feels very college like instead of uni like. I have read a comment to my first review saying taht this maybe due to the fact that Brookes was a Poly just 10 years ago and this may well be true. I just feel that going to Uni should be a great time in someone's life and therefore anywhere that doesn;t emerge you in the student experience falls short in my opinion. The SU is good if you are the type who enjoys school disco and dance nights. However if your taste is more of the rock variety (like me) then you will find Cowley road/oxford far better suited to your tastes. I would say although i am not a big drinker i do like to sit and chat...

Klang180 26.05.2003 · Read review
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Review of Oxford Brookes University

Oxford University - love it or hate it?

Advantages: You either love it
Disadvantages: or you hate it

...I studied at Oxford for seven and a half years. I had never even thought about studying at Oxford (or Cambridge which I visited often as a child) when one day I was on a school open day at New College. I walked into the college and I simply fell in love with it. I knew then that I wanted to study there and have not regretted it. The application procedure for Oxford and Cambridge is slightly more complicated than for other Universities. There is a separate form which has to be filled in and returned, and the deadline to send this in is earlier than for the UCAS form. When I applied there was still an entrance exam, but now that has disappeared. You pick a first choice college (and second and third if you want, or if you don't want to pick you will be assigned them "by computer") and if you are invited for interview you will be...

newc0597 05.05.2004 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Keble College, Oxford University

Advantages: Beauftiful, grand, Oxford as a whole is prestigious
Disadvantages: Grand, daunting, har to get into

...igh street chains, plus a few other shops, both cheap and not so cheap! There are plenty of bars and clubs around, which is only to be expected in a city with not one, but two universities I guess... Oh and I got rejected from Oxford, which is a shame, but it does mean I'm off to Durham this September! Wooo!...

kozwoz 25.03.2005 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

10 reasons to love Oxford University...

Advantages: Good Facilities, Friendly People, Nice City
Disadvantages: Work!

......assuming I can think of ten that is. Still shouldn't be too difficult given what a great place it is. So here we go in no particular order... Buildings: As in historical and beautiful. Many of the colleges are very pretty: Magdalen, Christ Church, The Chapel at Balliol. Plus outside of the colleges is amongst other things The Sheldonian and the Church of St Mary The Virgin - the most visited church in Britain. Oxford Union: 'The Last Bastion of Free Speech', run by elected students and famous for its speakers from the world of Politics, Sport and Entertainment. Visitors in recent years include Michael Jackson, Rolf Harris, The Dalai Lama, OJ Simpson and Kermit the Frog. David Trimble & John Hume spoke in a debate on Northern Ireland there last Tuesday. The Union also runs social events and has a Bar offering Pound a Pint as...

Sweep1 12.05.2001 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Why Oxford?

Advantages: Friendly students and social life, Fantastic societies to get involved with, Proximity to London
Disadvantages: Very academic! Highly pressurised and very stressful

...The aura surrounding Oxford is one which contributes significantly to the pressure on students who are accepted to the university. Not only do they have to contend with very intense workloads and deadlines, but they have to finish term without collapsing and return home to face the curiosity (and often anticipation) of friends and family - making it difficult to admit that the experience may not be as rewarding as it seemed initially. My own experience of Oxford (so far, as a 1st year) has been very mixed and very intense. Without a doubt, the college you find yourself at and the course you have chosen can make or break your time at the university - because there is simply no time to turn back once term has begun. The intensity of the institution demands excellent self-organisation and motivation, because despite the well-known tutorial...

teenage_legend 11.03.2009 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Brookes or Bust.

Advantages: Close to London, Usually a good mix of people go here.
Disadvantages: Very expensive to live. Lack of late night entertainment

...I've just finished a 4 year course at Brookes, the first thing that I would say is that Brookes is in general a great university. However the bulk of this piece is to with external factors, mainly teh cost of living. When I first came here I had been told that "Oxford was London without London"? Doesn't really make sense does it? For the first year I didn't really understand what this meant. It wasn't until I visited my sister, who was studying at Derby, that I understood what that comment meant. Oxford is amazingly expensive compared with other university towns. The price of a pint in a pub is the same as you would find in a central London bar. An answer to this was to drink in the Students Union with its great subsidised prices, unfortunately Brookes has a poor Union, thats not in monetary terms, the SU is loaded, they just don...

Phooey00 19.07.2000 · Read review
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Review of Oxford Brookes University