Universities

Over the last few months, I have visited a number of Universities, all of which had good and bad points. I am currently doing a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Graphic and Interactive Design working towards a grade of DDD so far, with projected UCAS points of 380.

The Universities I have visited are:

• DeMontfort, Leicester: Graphics with Illustration
• Loughborough: Graphics with Illustration
• NUA, Norwich: Illustration
• Nottingham Trent: Graphics
• Staffordshire: Illustration

DeMontfort 

Good points 

• Halls are within walking distance to campus and town centre
• Campus is being pedestrianised
• Multiple halls of residence
• Course is interesting and I liked the work on display
• University has good contacts with companies in industry 

Bad points

• A chance you won't be accepted into the second year
• Confusing 'Gurus and Grasshoppers' system
• Unsure how classes are set out: If first years have own studio space or is all years are together

Loughborough

Good points

• Everything you could need is on campus, which in itself is pedestrianised and spacious
• The course structure and content is really interesting
• Offer the Erasmus scheme to study abroad in Year 2
• Halls are homely and reasonably priced

Bad points

• We weren't told in prospectus or at the Open Day the exact wanted grades to get an interview or place on the course.

NUA

Good points

• Give students a lot of competition experience
• Course was interesting

Bad points

• Campus was spread out over town centre and halls were quite far away
• Halls expensive
• Actual work itself wasn't the kind of illustration I wanted to do.

Nottingham Trent

Good points

• Campus was all close together 

Bad points

• Person giving the course talk didn't seem interested at all and skipped through most of the slideshow which showed students work.
• Course was Graphics only
• Studio has all three year groups in the same room

Staffordshire

Good points

• Graphics and Illustration students get a permanent work space
• Topics and projects they do are interesting 
• Studios are spacious and comfortable

Bad points 

• We weren't told which projects are given to Graphics students and which are for Illustration
• Encouraged to make 3D versions of outcomes using wood and metal workshops

Based on these points, I will definitely be applying to DeMontfort and Loughborough, possibly Staffordshire. I wont apply to NUA and Nottingham Trent though.