University of Birmingham

This is the UK’s second-biggest city, an old industrial splurge of a conurbation in the dead-eye centre of England. The city has just about everything a student could hanker after: shops galore, a club scene that makes Londoners envious, loads of bars, restaurants, gig venues and a helluva lot of curry. The redbrick University is 2½ miles out of town on an island of greenery in Edgbaston...more detail It’s a cheery, chummy, middle-class sort of place, with a big emphasis on sport (and a militant rivalry with Loughborough on the pitch)...more on sports It wears a wide-brimmed academic hat, with a strong academic reputation across the (mortar)board, mind-boggling library/computer resources and a diamond-hard research record...more on academic Most first years are guaranteed accommodation, although those who make it to Brum through clearing aren’t always lucky. Housing is fiercely expensive, although much has been refurbished and nowhere is particularly vile. Externally it can be tough to find a decent pad at a pretty price. But as just about everyone descends on the same neighbourhood – Selly Oak – they’re all in the same boat...more on housing The proverbial bucket-bearers dole out support for the cashless...more on welfare

Woohoo: Train station on campus
Boo: Pressure on library books.
Tel: (0121) 414 6727
E-mail: admissions@bham.ac.uk
Website: www.bham.ac.uk