Uni questions

popadom

Hi

Applied for uni, and if i get in ill have to live at halls or rent. I would like to know from other students 2 things;
1. is it worth paying for ensuite or sink in halls room?
2. Is it worth halls in the first year or look at other things (eg lodging)

Ive lodged before so know how that works. However never had to shared with more than 3 people, so thats why i ask about ensuite, is it a nightmare sharing with lots of people?


Thanks

ZaraLynziHodson

Hi,

I would say that if you want your privacy then go for en suite or a sink etc. As for wether to live in halls, there are factors on the plus and on the negative, halls cost loads, you are basically paying more for a shared flat than you would probably for a shared house though you do get everything you need bar tv liscence. You would miss out on the social side of it however if you are social enough with your classmates then that shouldn't be a problem, you may find that if you go into a shared house with people you don't know you might not get on with them, at least in halls you will probably find someone you like and you can go see them a lot.

Hope this helps.

Zara xx

ajwolf

1. This is partly your own personal preference, would you mind sharing a toilet/bathroom with others? Another big consideration here is do halls provide a cleaning service? This can help a lot! When I say cleaning I mean they clean toilets, shower, wipe surfaces in kitchen and hoover but they don't do your dishes or tidy for you. In my halls I had a sink in my room which was good there were a couple of toilets in their own room and a couple of showers also their own individual rooms. This was between 6 people. Our halls provided cleaners once a week who cleaned showers, toilets etc. We were all fairly clean people anyway but it saves arguing over who will clean the toilet. Having the sink in your room also limited mess in communal areas. I personally feel a sink in your room is enough. Find out from the uni how many people you share with and if cleaning is provided.


2. I think living in halls is a really important part of uni. It makes you feel more part of the place and it can be a good way of getting to know people. I think when you go to uni you should get to know as many people as possible at first and through many different avenues e.g. course, class, clubs, etc, halls give you another option.


About sharing in general and cleaning again. I've lived in halls with cleaning and halls without cleaning. The ones with, it was a great thing however the people I lived with on that occasion wouldn't have been too messy anyway. In the halls without the cleaners I had my own en suite and I can't tell you how thankful I was for that. That particular group of people were exceptionally messy, you should have seen our kitchen, I was the only one who cleaned up after myself! Halls can be a bit of a lottery in terms of who you end up with but so is renting. Don't let that put you off I'm just giving you a warning/something to think about.

Jessie11

Personally I stayed in a hall where I shared toilet/shower facilities with 7 other girls. No problems whatsoever with that aspect, never had to wait to shower or use the toilet and saved about 3 grand over the year compared to ensuite rooms. Personal preference I guess.

Derivative

I've had shared bathrooms twice in University accommodation, at the moment my shower and bathroom are shared between about four people and I have never seen anyone else even use them.

If you are in halls, often if your neighbours study different courses, they will be up at different times of day anyway, making showering a lot easier - as a scientist I am up earliest on my staircase generally (cheeky dig about having the best degree, obviously).

Last year I was on the top floor and had 4 flights of stairs to the bathroom. Had to queue about twice in the year, and that was only because I woke up late.

In neither year would I have taken ensuite if you'd have offered me it for any price. I simply don't think it's worth bothering unless you end up queueing every day for ages.

With regards to halls vs lodging:

I think that halls are generally better if the price differential is not too high. Ours are actually cheaper than house sharing I believe, if you go for the smaller rooms. Being able to knock on a course mate's door at 2am the night before a deadline is priceless. Okay, not quite. But it's bloody good.

We have a balloting system for hall rooms, and generally the most expensive/luxurious ones go to the top people on the ballot. I intentionally chose the cheapest rooms as I feel that paying any more than I have to for rent is burning money. Clearly my course mates don't feel the same - maybe they know something I don't, so you may wish to take my advice with a grain of salt.

Person_one

How old are you? How long have you been living away from the family home?

WhiteHorse

I've seen communal facilities where the filth was indescribable. Halls can be very, very noisy, too.

popadom

Person_one wrote: »

How old are you? How long have you been living away from the family home?

19 now, and living away since 16.

bouncydog1

IMO if you can afford the extra for en suite then you should have it. You have no idea what the personal habits of your room mates will be until you have lived with them.

I suggest you go over to the student room and read some of the horror stories about shared bathrooms. The one that I couldn't believe was the student who left the bathroom in such a state that there was stuff on the wall and the ceiling!! He was asked to leave (quite rightly IMO).

Benefits of halls is that there is always somebody to go out with, someone to travel back on the bus with late at night and lots of socialising. Plenty of opportunity to make lots of friends and you can then house share in 2nd year with people who you are likely to have to share a bathroom with!

DD is in first year halls and believes that living in a large group makes you more tolerant.

Which Uni by the way?

hbk619

Halls were cheaper in my area, and had a cleaner who did the floor of the kitchen and the bath/toilet. Definitely get a sink.

A lottery though, my kitchen was always a mess (I didn't use it) and my flatmates weren't my kind of people. Another friend had people who had parties every other night, throwing eggs on the walls and stupid things like that. Another even had one of his flatmates use the floor in the toilet as a toilet..

Then again, all of the people they shared with probably loved halls.. I ended up moving out two months early.

Still my houseshare didn't end up that amazing either. Maybe I'm not a people person..

WhiteHorse

bouncyd!!! wrote: »

... the student who left the bathroom in such a state that there was stuff on the wall and the ceiling!

This sort of sick behaviour is increasingly common.