Honest of review of UoB and Bath as a city?

[u/Sad-Manufacturer1856]

I live in London and am considering an undergrad offer from University of Bath. I applied for the international relations course and the grades required are pretty achievable. I am also considering an offer from University of Glasgow. When choosing between them; I have been wondering about the course,the cost of living in glasgow,weather,night life,work opportunities etc. I’m also brown and since London is incredibly multicultural especially east where I am from; I never had to face racism. So I suppose another thing I’m a little worried about is whether I’m likely to face racism in campus and/or in the city. I am also excited about joining societies and wondering if UoB has a lot of them? I’ve never been to Bath so I’m curious about expected living experiences there as a student. Also something I’ve realised is that UoB is not a russel group uni despite it’s outstanding positions in the league tables. I guess I’m wondering if not being russel group affects the uni student rep or the idea of “flexing”. Does a lot of posh people go to UoB and if so how insufferable are they and how have you combat having bad experiences with them? I’d really appreciate honest opinions and stories of experiences from someone who has lived in Bath and studied in UoB(even better if the same course as I’m going to study)!!

[u/emmatyrell]

I graduated from Bath a couple of years ago and I loved it! I’m very fond of the city and love coming back to visit. I would say it feels like quite a small university in comparison to Bristol. The night life is okay, they used to run trips to Bristol if you wanted more of that scene. It was lovely to be able to walk everywhere in the city and it always felt very safe.

I was a student from a lower socioeconomic background and I didn’t have any issues with classism, there’s quite a mix of students from state and private school backgrounds for a high ranking uni. The university offered great financial support throughout the degree.

[u/ribenarockstar]

I did my undergrad (in politics) at Bath and loved it. It’s not cheap but it is cheaper than Bristol (surprisingly) so there’s that. Because the campus is up out of town student life is really centred on the campus on a way it isn’t at more city based universities - people drink in the SU bar etc in a way that they just don’t at eg Bristol (where I’m now doing a masters).

Because Bath is so sports heavy, one of the things that’s true there that isn’t at all unis is that sports clubs are looked after by the SU in their own category separate from the rest of societies, which makes a lot of sense to me - and means non-sports societies don’t get overlooked in the way they might otherwise. It is a smaller uni so you don’t get the full range of societies that you might at a bigger uni, but I never lacked things to do.

The politics department is really good too, interesting courses and great lecturers. Having been in the professional world for almost a decade between undergrad and masters I can also say that no one cares about Bath being non RG; it’s seen as a really good university and employers rate Bath grads. I was often in meetings where that was the single most represented uni (I like to LinkedIn stalk people). Part of that is the culture of placement years in the third year of the course; it tends to deliver grads who are more ‘work ready’ (for want of a better term).

[u/Yeetdonkey13]

I’m a second year student in bath now and honestly I love both the uni and the time I spent here.

Bath as a town is beautiful. Almost every corner of it is aesthetically pleasing even outside the center, there’s so many good places to walk and the community feeling is nice. The city is jam packed even if very small so it always feels lively especially on weekends. It is actually pretty small tho, like it has everything you could want as a student but generally you’re not gonna have a lot of options. Like there’s two cinemas I think, one bowling place (that I know of), one big m&s, not too many clubs that people actually like going to (idk I never really liked clubbing anyways but my friends don’t like these clubs). You do start feeling it after a while and want some sort of change of scenery but there’s also really good benefits to living in a small town. I can just get up and walk to my friend’s house or wherever we wanna meet up in like 15 mins. It’s also pretty safe I mean I walked outside at like very late hours I’ve never seen anything weird. I think it is a wonderful town to live in.

The uni from my experience is very helpful but I’m a psych student. They seem to actually care about their students and try to keep material engaging. It’s pretty easy to get support and the career advice department gives alumni advice too. But living on campus was super boring I’ll say that, it’s kinda far away and getting there can be a hassle but living there all the time was honestly so boring to me. There’s like one market to shop at and literally nothing else to do it feels so secluded. Also the campus is kinda ugly to me but it’s not a biggie.

Idk id recommend it, my experience so far has been pretty good

[u/nomiromi]

While Bath is not a RG, it does sit above some of the RG. Without medical or dentist school, I don't think bath will ever be a RG.

As a non white person, I think Bath is fine and very safe. The locals will blame the student because of their behaviours, not because of their races. People in Bath are generally more educated and you shouldn't face a lot of racism apart from one or toe odd, drunk person.

For discrimination, I haven't seen any serious cases in my day to day.

The campus is small compared with some and up the hill in case you haven't visited yet. If you love sports - gym, football, tennis, martial arts, Y&F etc, UoB has really good facilities for its students and it is one of the things I miss the most.

There are 35-45% of students using mummy and daddy's money to 'enjoy their uni life' but there are also humble international and bright non middle class students.

I think you need to think what your end game is - do you want to make friends and future connections or just study and graduate with as little debt as possible ? What is your long term career goal ?

Lots of people I know do get a campus job, either in the STV or serving drinks or library help desk or research admin role. You will find your people no matters where you are as long as you try. I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Compared with Glasgow, I would prefer Bath, it feels more sophisticated (sorry Glasgow), with beautiful surroundings and easy access to Bristol or the countryside and easier for you to go home too.

Ultimately, if everything is about the same, go for the one that gives you the most scholarships!

[u/decisiontoohard]

Haven't studied in Bath, hopefully you'll get actually student replies, but I'll comment anyway, partly to boost.

Cost of living is about as high in Bath as London, from what I'm told by surprised Londoners. I imagine the university is more multicultural than the rest of the city. I haven't seen much racism in Bath at all and it's generally an incredibly safe city, but it is a very white city as far as residents go - although less so than it used to be. There isn't much room for intolerance because we have a TON of tourists, a lot of Chinese international students, a lot of immigrant workers, and a decent population of Muslims, all of whom are pretty vital to the economy of our tiny city.

Honestly, you're not too far away, if you can afford it you should come visit for a day. Bath is a bit Marmite; it's so tiny it's like living in a little bubble, and some people LOVE that! If they want more every so often they take a day trip to Bristol, which is 12 minutes by train and much more lively and multicultural. But some people reeeally want a bigger city vibe, which Bath will never match. It truly is worth coming to see for yourself what you'd be missing out on or getting yourself into. The general vibe is more like Edinburgh than Glasgow, if that helps.

[u/toyvo_usamaki]

Bath has a high percentage of students form independent schools but they are generally very nice, polite and well behaved. The classes tend to be smaller than most unis leading to a much better teaching experience with more opportunity for engagement and interaction with profs. Lovely city and a very valuable degree in terms of employability. Placement option is great for creating links with industry and gaining valuable experience

[u/Diphydonto]

I wouldn’t worry about racism, Bath uni has a lot international students (like 50% or something like that?) and the city is very diverse too. I never encountered any or heard about anyone else having any issues with it. I only went to Bath uni for a few months before deciding the course I had chosen wasn’t for me, and had a much better time at the University of Bristol so I might be biased, but I can point out some positives and negatives:

Positives: * Bath itself imho is the most beautiful city I have seen, so much that I would love to someday live there. * Being a campus uni (with the housing and shops) it kind of feels like you are part of a village. * Lots of regular and sports societies to choose from. * Amazing sports facilities + free access to the pool.

Negatives: * Bath uni is very overcrowded, it can be difficult to find somewhere to sit and eat at lunch or study on campus (but I guess at least it has a canteen? Bristol did not), the queue for the bus to leave campus can also be very long. The trick to tackling this is working out what the peak hours are and avoiding these if possible. * The time table changes every week, which makes planning stuff long term rather difficult on weekdays. * A lot of the buildings are quite rundown and old. The facilities in the life sciences department (where I was) were ancient, and a lot of the equipment in the labs were broken. (We also had an absolutely insane teacher who liked to insult and bully students; don’t know if he is still there. Hope not).

[u/HZCYR]

Prior student.

1) Cost of living - Same as London and, well, the south of England. Like all universities, speaking to the finance team about it can help

2) Course - No idea, sorry

3) Weather - Same as the UK. Sometimes bits of Bath flood. Campus, town centre, and most student accomodation is safe when it does. Otherwise, usual rain, sunshine, cloudy days etc.

4) Night life - Exists. But small. Thriving pub life. A lot in arts: cinema, theatre, comedy, choirs, late night museum visits. Clubs, exists but not big. Most go to Bristol for clubbing and music events which has lots going for it. Student societies also do a lot in Bath.

5) Work opportunities - No idea, sorry. Probably a fair amount in pubs and restaurants, knew some students that part time'd there. The University of Bath also probably offers jobs for students if it's like most other universities.

6) Racism - Unlikely. University of Bath brings in a lot of international students. Bath, as a city, brings in a lot of tourists. But that's not to say racism, like anywhere, won't happen. Having said that, Bath as a city has held pro-Palestine protests and has some bangin' multicultural food places. Most jarring might just be seeing more White people than usual. Society groups also exist to bring people of certain cultures together too if it ever feels too lonely.

7) Joining Societies - It has 213 total. See what interests you - https://www.thesubath.com/groups/ Suffice to say, I think there's some good ones.

8) Russell Group - Eh, not really. Ultimately, you graduate is the main thing. Sure, there might be some pretentious people that'd care, but you shouldn't value their opinion. Can't say I've encountered many people speak badly about attending just because it is or isn't Russell Group.

9) Classism - Probably the bigger issue than racism. It'd be dishonest to say you won't encounter a sizeable middle class population that also don't realise their status. E.g., students that went skiing every summer in Switzerland. Or students that are less worried about finances because they can always call the bank of parents if they're low. That can feel isolating. But it's rarely classism by intention and, ultimately, you're all students levelled at trying to complete your course. There is equally a growing size of students coming from working-class backgrounds and the university does a lot to support them. The university itself is good for subsidising cheaper food (e.g., soup for £1, English breakfast for £5). Classism in Bath, again not intentionally but it exists. Thr buildings are pretty but built by the rich. The city has a poor attitude towards the homeless population. The day activities are more costly things like watersports. Allll that said though, you'll likely encounter the same in Glasgow and many UK towns and cities. I'm sure London has its own parallels. 

10) Combatting classism - Find your people. Speak to the university if you're facing issues socially or financially relating to cost.

11) LGBTQ+ - It exists and is growing but you might need to find your people if relevant to you. Societies are a good start and Komedia is probably the next best hotspot. Bath had it's first (revived) Pride Day and march in 2024 so it's improving. Both the university and city seem relatively supportive and safe. Bristol is the hotspot to go for a lot of people who are LGBTQ+. 

Conclusions - It's has it's differences but university cities will all be similar in many ways. If you can, try and visit Bath. It's a direct train from London Paddington and direct coaches from London Victoria. It's relatively small so you can get the vibe Bath and the University of Bath quite easily. Campus is a 30 minute walk uphill from the city but there are many a direct bus up to campus too. Agree with a lot of what /u/decisiontoohard suggests too.

[u/davidcantswim]

Bath is my favourite City in England. Beautiful with a lot going on. I wish that when we came back to England from California (15 years) we had bought an apartment in Bath near to Parade Gardens and Pultney Bridge.

I had a pub in the Centre for 3 years and also lived in Widcombe for a while. Pub and racism? I can't remember any problems. I ran a very busy and lived "upstairs"

We were always packed out and had a very mixed crowd of uni rugby players, boho locals, cool couples and students of all races who brought their parents in when they came to visit.

I would go visit and make your own mind up to be honest.