Choosing your new University

The results are in, you know what you want to study, but the question is where? Do you go and study a subject at a university that you like the name of? Do you find the subject that you desperately want to study but it's at an obscure university on the other side of the planet? The trick is to find the balance.

So to start with, the university itself. My biggest tip would be to do the research on not just the university, but the halls, the local area, the nightlife, the societies, everything and anything that is important to you. Make sure you actually read the 'small print' as it were. Don't just look for the good reviews, look at the not so good ones as well. With a balanced outlook, then you can decide if the university is for you.

But before you can look for universities, you need to find a course that is good for you. Again, there are a few things that you will need to bear in mind. Research, research, research. Do not just pick a course on a whim, nor pick a course because it's at the university you want to go to. Look at the course, is it a sandwich, is it a 3 or 4 year, what the units are, will there be choices, this and many more things relating to any course need to be researched. Do not just pick a course because it sounds fun, speak to people who are already taking it and get the negative points as well. Then, you can make an informed decision.

I picked the University of Bedfordshire to study Computer Security and Forensics for several reasons. I briefly mentioned last week how I came to choose the University and the course. I'll elaborate a bit with a bit more background. I never originally wanted to go to university, I was just going into the world of work. However, because of my A-level grades, I wasn't able to do what I wanted to do. After working in jobs that were rather boring and dead-end, I decided that I was going to go to university. After doing some looking around, I came to the conclusion that I wanted to do Computer Security and Forensics. After looking at several universities, I discovered that no-one apart from the University of Bedfordshire did the course I wanted to do. Several did however do similar courses, but after some research either the units didn't look as good, or the university facilities didn't appeal to me. So it was a combination of all of these that led me to choose my course and university.

Next week I'm going to talk about a reflection of my past year, and some key events that I have found interesting this past year.