Brunel University - an honest opinion
I’ve been asked by a few prospective students to write up an honest opinion on Brunel to help them make their decisions for next year. My personal experience has been very positive, but I’ve also given thought to the less favourable reviews my friends have given. Make what you wish of it - I hope it helps someone!
I applied to five universities across London and got conditional offers from all of them, but Brunel was always my first choice - largely due to my choice of subject. I do journalism myself, and I’d say Brunel is easily the top university for than in the London area, if not southern England.
My housemates do English with Creative Writing, Electronic and Electrical Engineering, and Psychology, and they all have their own, differing opinions that largely have to do with their choice of course. Brunel is very strong in some areas, but neglects other academic tracks. More on that later.
I was asked for a pros and cons list, and that I shall deliver! Here we go:
Pros
Location: Uxbrige is a very nice town, with two shopping centres, plenty of places to eat out, supermarkets, a cinema, a swimming complex, a nightclub... Everything you could ask for. Because it’s Zone 6, rent is roughly half of what similar properties would cost in central London, but it’s easy enough to take the tube to central if and when you want to. Piccadilly and Metropolitan lines go straight to central from Uxbridge, and it takes about 45 minutes to an hour depending on the time of the day.
Campus: Brunel has a really nice, new-ish campus with well-maintained buildings. It feels safe at night, and it’s not too far from town centre. It’s not the prettiest campus, in all honesty, but it does its job well. There are places to grab lunch, hang out, work out... It’s good. The 24-hour library is also very nice, though the computers could do with updating.
Extracurriculars: Brunel has an incredibly big and passionate network of societies and sports clubs, with something for literally everyone. Starting a society has been made easy enough, and student media is eager to promote extracurricular activities. Clubs often collaborate and competition is friendly.
Entry requirements: I did really well in high school, so this wasn’t really a concern for me, but it may be for some. Brunel strikes a good balance between entry requirements and teaching quality: the requirements are lower than at many better universities out there, but teaching is tailored for the abilities of brighter students. That means that even if you didn’t do that well in school, but are really passionate about your choice of subject, you won’t have to feel like you had to settle for a worse teaching experience because of what you did as a teen. I truly appreciate that.
Facilities: This depends on your course. I cannot stress that enough. Journalism and the performing arts have a brand new, ultra-modern building all for themselves, with free printing, new iMacs and a brilliant equipment store. It makes for an incredibly smooth, enjoyable experience, and it really makes me feel like I’m being given every opportunity to succeed. However...
Cons
Facilities: Other courses aren’t so lucky. For a university that was started by an engineering legend, the engineering subjects have it surprisingly bad. Their computers are way too old to handle the kind of stress simulations put on them, and all their equipment is in dire need of replacing. I’m sure the university will get around to it eventually, but at the moment I would not recommend Brunel for most types of engineering. Design and Automotive and Aerospace Engineering seem to be doing fine - I’m guessing the more “traditional” forms of engineering are just not very high on their priority list at the moment.
Union: The Brunel Students’ Union is terrible. Absolutely awful. They’ve improved a lot during my two years at Brunel, but just the other week two out of three SU contacts dropped out, with no warning whatsoever. Everything went silent for a few days. Not professional, not helpful, definitely not called for in the middle of Freshers’ Week. As chair of one of the biggest sports clubs at Brunel, I can wholeheartedly recommend you don’t follow my footsteps.
Halls: There are massive differences in living conditions between halls, and even flats. I was lucky to be put in the newest halls on campus, but some of the older ones are seriously grimy. The cleaners are rude, and I personally did not get along with my flatmates. Rent is also ridiculous: I share a house with three friends at the moment, and I’m saving around £150 a month, even though I have to pay for utilities on top of rent.
Is it worth applying, then? I honestly don’t know. It definitely was for me, but journalism is one of Brunel’s strongest suits. If there’s a university out there that seems better for your course, apply to it. You’re paying tens of thousands of pounds to be educated, and you’d better get your money’s worth. Do research, go to open days, ask around. If you’re torn between two universities, it probably means whichever one you pick will be a good experience - even if it’s in different ways. Figure out what you want to prioritise, and trust your gut instinct.
If you have any more questions for me or my housemates, shoot me a message!
