Oxford vs. Warwick vs. Paris in terms of LIFE QUALITY (2)

[jota.be]

Sorry but there were server problems so please ignore the previous thread...


I know this query is rather on the soft facts of a program, however it is important to me considering I have to spent 4 to 5 years of my life in this place. I am well informed about the programs itself and funding possibilities so I rather like to know about your opinion on the locations.


Best and thanks.

[fp3690]

You might want to rephrase. However, Warwick is probably the last place you want to spend 5 years of your life. Oxford and Paris depend on preferences, and I guess that the cost of living is comparable.

[elcapitano]

I agree that Oxford and Paris dominate Coventry (Warwick), although the cost of living at Warwick should be lower than Oxford or Paris, so depending on funding you could be more comfortable there; I have friends who attended Warwick and were very happy there.

Both Oxford and Paris are beautiful cities, Paris obviously has more going on in terms of Art and other Culture but Oxford isn't too far from London, which isn't bad. It probably comes down to whther you'd prefer to life in a smallish city of a couple of hundred thousand or a huge city.

Also, I suspect, but don't know for sure, that Oxford and Warwick have more international students than Paris so if you're not English or French that might be worth checking out.

Do you not have a clear academic preference between Warwick and Oxford? I was under the impression that they were strong in different areas?

[filroz]

I would not be surprised, if the living costs for student were lower in Paris. Thanks to generous social system, there are many bursaries, for example CAF for accommodation... However, it you have to fill in many forms, which is non trivial exercise.
Based only on the place, for me personally, Paris is better then Oxford (I have never been to Stockholm, but I've spent 5 months at Sorbonne )

[miaataro]

I have to ask, just out of curiosity and also because I might apply there next year, why is Warwick such a bad place to live? I mean, I have no idea what kind of a place Warwick is but I quess something has to be really wrong there because it is so often said here that it is a lousy place.

[Karina 07]

Don't get me wrong, I love Paris. However, having stayed in both for a month to two years, Oxford strictly dominates Paris. Amazing choices in terms of quality of life, the both of them. But Oxford wins, imho. You can meet a dozen presidents/prime ministers in a year, among other things. The place is gorgeous.

[filroz]

How is number of presidents related to quality of life?
If you choose Paris, then check that CAF

[tangsiuje]

Originally Posted by miaataro

I have to ask, just out of curiosity and also because I might apply there next year, why is Warwick such a bad place to live? I mean, I have no idea what kind of a place Warwick is but I quess something has to be really wrong there because it is so often said here that it is a lousy place.

I'm doing my undergrad at Warwick. As far as I know, many people really like it here, especially undergraduates. The campus is pretty with plenty of greenery and it's very international (about 20% overall, probably higher for postgrad). I even talked to a friend who did an exchange in Paris at SciencesPo this year and he said he really missed Warwick. Personally, I just loved the place when I visited, and that's why I decided to go there (rejected by Oxbridge, couldn't afford London). Once you've paid the terribly overpriced on-campus housing (think a monopolised market with a strong restriction on supply), living on campus isn't that bad. For a year, or so. That's as long as a normal person can stand the "campus bubble".

Now imagine this campus was situated right outside a nice and metropolitan town. It would be fantastic. Sadly, it isn't. It's about 20 minutes by bus to the nearest town, Coventry, and a bit more than 30 minutes by bus to Leamington Spa. If you want to live in a "town", these will be your only choices unless you have a car. (If you actually do have a car and can carry the cost of gas and parking permits, the situation needn't be that bad. Warwick (the town) for instance, is quite nice, and would be at commuting distance with a car.) For Coventry, I guess it's been getting better in the past couple of years, but it's still a very boring and ugly town (plenty of chavs). For this reason, many people prefer living in Leamington, which is essentially Coventry but a bit smaller and a lot white facades (Coventry is all grey).

As a postgraduate, you'd be living off-campus most of the time. You may get an on-campus spot in your first year, but bear in mind that on-campus postgraduate residences are really very expensive.

So, surely you can go to Warwick. Just make sure you visit the place before, preferably on a windy and rainy day (that's what it's like most of the time). If you've never been to England outside of London before, this is especially important. London is just very, very different from the rest of England.

Hope that helps a bit.

Oh. I'm probably quite a lot of a city person. So that's my bias which should be kept in mind.

[Karina 07]

Originally Posted by filroz

How is number of presidents related to quality of life?

Sigh, I thought someone would ask. There's stuff to do. A lot of stuff to do. It's a very student/academic-centered place. There's an air of grandeur. The visiting presidents are a quasi indicator of the visiting other people. Everyone goes through Oxford. The bulk would be visiting academics (which should count in quality of life rather than quality of school, because good academics leads to happiness), but there are all sorts of other people. It's easy to stay informed as to what's going on in the rest of the world. In its own way, it's the centre of the world, because anyone passing through London will be happy to make a quick jaunt to Oxford if they're anyone notable enough in whatever field to be invited. In Oxford, you get the resources of Oxford and London (some people go to London once a week; I went more like once a month). In Paris, you get Paris. Oxford's just a fantastic place. I don't know how to properly describe it because it overwhelms me, but it's very hard to leave.

[elcapitano]

Miaataro

It's not so much that Warwick is a dreadful place to live, it's not dangerous or anything like that,it's just a little lacking in non-academic appeals, principally:
- Coventry is a small, not particuarly prosperous city with all the lack of cultural life that entails. It's also not noted for it's bars, clubs and restaurants. It's dull. However, it's still a city, so there are cinemas probably a theatre or three, some bars, restaurants and clubs and good transport links so you'll be able to fill you're time.
- Coventry got bombed pretty heavily in the second world war and they didn't do a brilliant job rebuilding. So it's not pretty or historical.
- The Campus is a while from anywher which I wouldn't like.
- The countryside in the Midlands isn't the best Britain has got to offer.

On the plus side - it's cheap compared to London/Oxford/Cambridge and Essex, and it's a really good university.