City University

City University

City University can trace its roots as far back as 1894 to its predecessor the Northampton Institute. It gained university status in 1966, changing its name to City University London. Given its name, no prizes for guessing where it’s based: Manchester. Only joking, the main campus is located in Islington in London and there are additional campuses in the City of London, Holborn, Smithfield and Whitechapel. A born and bred London institution then.

City University has come a long way from its Northampton Institute roots. Back then the courses included domestic economy and women’s trade, horology and artistic crafts. Nowadays, business and the professions are at the core of the academic teaching at the University. It’s famed for its Sir John Cass Business School, business courses and Department of Journalism. In fact, The Guardian ranked its business and management studies courses as the third best in the country and the university itself as 22nd overall.

Teaching is split over seven schools: Cass Business School; School of Arts; School of Health Sciences; School of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences; School of Informatics, School of Social Sciences; and The City Law School. These comprise of around 40 academic departments and centres. A third of City’s student body are international and half of them are mature students.

Aside from illustrious figures in academia, it has produced its fair share of political heavyweights including: British prime minster Clement Atlee; poet and politician Muhammad Iqbal; and the first prime minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru. Famous faces from the media include Sophie Raworth, Dermot Murnaghan, Kirsty Lang, weatherman Michael Fish and journalist Faisal Islam.

Let’s not forget its business acumen. It counts the current or former CEOs or chairmen of The Coca Cola Company, Sbarro, BAE Systems, National Bank of Pakistan and easyGroup as past alumni. 

City University

City University’s main campus is based at Northampton Square in Islington. Islington is only a few tube stops away from the very centre of London. It’s a pretty desirable place to live, with lovely shops, independent cinemas, arts and theatre venues, great cafes and some very good restaurants. It’s popular with City professionals and most residents of Islington’s residents are very well-heeled indeed

The main site in Northampton Square is home to the University Building, which houses the Students’ Union, the main library, and career service, various lecture theatres and faculty buildings. Elsewhere, The City Law School has premises in Gray’s Inn, Cass Business School is located in the City of London, and other campuses can be found in Smithfield and Whitechapel.

City University has invested millions into its facilities over the past decade resulting in a £12m School of Arts, with fully equipped music and journalism facilities, an award-winning Cass Business School building, a £2.3m renovation of the library, and improved lecture theatres and student study spaces.

City University

City University doesn’t have any on-campus student accommodation, but it does have three halls of residence for undergraduates and four halls of residence for postgraduates located in and around Islington.

The three halls of residence for undergraduate students are East Central House, Liberty Court and Liberty Hall. Liberty Court has room for 295 students, with single study rooms divided into flats with shared bathrooms and kitchens. It’s about ten minutes away from the University.

If you’re looking for en-suite accommodation then Liberty Hall might be just the ticket: each room comes with its own shower. It’s a five minute walk from Angel in Islington. Both halls are exclusively for City students. East Central House has en-suite rooms, a landscaped garden, a common room with flat screen TV and shared kitchens, but it isn’t solely for City students. 

City University

City University have set tuition fees of £9,000 a year for all of its undergraduate honours courses. This might seem steep, but remember eligible students can take out a loan with the government to cover their course fees. They won’t have to pay a penny of tuition fees whilst they are at university, and they’ll only start to repay the loan once they are earning over £21,000. If they don’t manage to pay it back within 30 years, their debt is cancelled. For more information, read this.

City University

Around £250 per week is the minimum recommended budget for a student living in London.  Obviously if you’re a party animal with a taste for gourmet food and expensive threads, you will probably need a slightly larger budget.

London is certainly the most expensive place to study in the country. However, if you’re sensible and manage your budget effectively, you can definitely survive and have a good time. Another perk is that students studying in London will receive larger student loans.

Here’s a tip: get a discounted student Oyster card. This will make tube and bus travel much cheaper. You can also use your City University student ID to get student discounts in shops and restaurants.

City University

City University is up to its eyeballs in scholarships, awards and bursaries. It is part of the National Scholarship Programme and will be awarding 150 scholarships worth £3,000 each to students from low income households. The University has a plethora of other undergraduate scholarships awards granted on academic merit, financial need or via other criteria. You can find more information about them here. 

City University

You’re in London, capital of nightlife (although the Mancunians might disagree). There are clubs, pubs and bars on every corner. Whether you’re looking for live music, comedy, theatre, cinemas or just a good old superclub, London has got it. Add in thriving alternative nightlife, underground clubs and a revived cocktail bar scene and you’re spoilt for choice. The only downside is that going out in London can be very expensive and student nights aren’t all that cheap and few and far between.

The City Students’ Union puts on a variety of social events across the year. The Student Unions’ venue, Ten², serves food throughout the day and puts on a medley of evening events in term time. If you are in search of really cheap drink, you can always sneak into one of the other universities’ union bars. 

City University

City University is working hard to improve its sport offering. Its Saddlers Sports Centre is undergoing a redevelopment and the University promises a six-court sports hall, dance studios, 100 station fitness area, team changing areas and a café.

City has football, basketball, badminton, hockey, netball, rugby and fencing teams and a variety of other sports clubs covering more unusual activities such as climbing, horse riding and ice-skating. It also has a buzzing societies scene, managed by the SU. 

City University

Freshers’ Week is a mixture of inductions, welcome talks and orientations. There’s a Welcome Fair where you can find out about clubs and societies and pick up some freebies. 2011 Freshers’ Week saw a neon rave at 02 Islington Academy, a welcome party and the obligatory (if you go to university in London) Thames boat party. 

City University

City University’s Career and Skills Development Service offers one-to-one appointments with career consultants, a CV and application checking service, a jobs board with graduate, internship and placement opportunities, and a comprehensive range of careers resources. The careers team also puts on a range of events throughout the year to provide you with ample networking opportunities. On top of this, they’ve also got handy resource where you can see the destinations of recent graduates from your course.