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QUB and a few questions...
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27-03-2009 10:59pm#1Hi I'm a 3rd year student at UCD and I'm thinking of going on to do an MA in History (why try for a job now eh?
). I always felt I missed out a bit of the college experience by not living away from home and so I've been contemplating lately doing the MA somewhere besides UCD, and QUB has caught my eye due to its good reputation. There's a few things I'm curious about though.
In terms of accomodation, it certainly looks much more affordable than UCD but what would the overall weekly or monthly price be for living on campus accomodation? Also, having checked the prospectus, it mentions 'Zoned Accomodation blocks' which it says are an attractive option for postgrads instead of being around the undergrad students. Any idea what these are like? The prospectus also mentions Queen's Houses in places like Mount Charles. Anyone know anything about this area?
In terms of the course itself, anyone here doing a History MA and have any thoughts on the work involved?
Lastly, I'm curious to know about the atmosphere of the area. Is it a friendly enough place? Are Dubs like myself welcomed nicely enough? :pac:
Thanks in advance. :cool:'It is better to walk alone in the right direction than follow the herd walking in the wrong direction.'
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Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »Hi I'm a 3rd year student at UCD and I'm thinking of going on to do an MA in History (why try for a job now eh?). I always felt I missed out a bit of the college experience by not living away from home and so I've been contemplating lately doing the MA somewhere besides UCD, and QUB has caught my eye due to its good reputation. There's a few things I'm curious about though.
In terms of accomodation, it certainly looks much more affordable than UCD but what would the overall weekly or monthly price be for living on campus accomodation? Also, having checked the prospectus, it mentions 'Zoned Accomodation blocks' which it says are an attractive option for postgrads instead of being around the undergrad students. Any idea what these are like? The prospectus also mentions Queen's Houses in places like Mount Charles. Anyone know anything about this area?
In terms of the course itself, anyone here doing a History MA and have any thoughts on the work involved?
Lastly, I'm curious to know about the atmosphere of the area. Is it a friendly enough place? Are Dubs like myself welcomed nicely enough? :pac:
Thanks in advance. :cool:
well mate welcome to ni/gb colleges forum,
i dont go to queens but live in the queens university, im a student at the uu jordanstown
accomadation at queens is class, all that can be said, prices would be bit dearer than renting a house in belfast, but its worth it and plus they pay electric and give ya free internet.
mount charles never heard of it, just google maped it mount charles is the name of the accomadation its very close to queens if ya google street map it ya can see a picture.
wat can i say bout belfast, its a class student city, has to be one of the best, the atmosphere is brilliant youll love it, belfast is split into quarters, queens is in the queens quarter. its a great spot and most of the students live in the one area so its great craic.
hope this helps
meanie boots will prob pop along soon and answer this better than me
hope you come to belfast youll love it
regob0 -
Time to meanie_boots 5....4....3....2....1....;)
As a dub and havin spent a good bit of time in belfast (not as a student though) i can tell ya for the most part its good craic, there are certain places like sandy row where you dont wanna go with your accent but after a few weeks you will get your bearins (just check the murals on the walls if you wanna know
), in fact the accent goes down well up here regardless of your persuasion 0 -
Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »Hi I'm a 3rd year student at UCD and I'm thinking of going on to do an MA in History (why try for a job now eh?). I always felt I missed out a bit of the college experience by not living away from home and so I've been contemplating lately doing the MA somewhere besides UCD, and QUB has caught my eye due to its good reputation. There's a few things I'm curious about though.
In terms of accomodation, it certainly looks much more affordable than UCD but what would the overall weekly or monthly price be for living on campus accomodation? Also, having checked the prospectus, it mentions 'Zoned Accomodation blocks' which it says are an attractive option for postgrads instead of being around the undergrad students. Any idea what these are like? The prospectus also mentions Queen's Houses in places like Mount Charles. Anyone know anything about this area?
In terms of the course itself, anyone here doing a History MA and have any thoughts on the work involved?
Lastly, I'm curious to know about the atmosphere of the area. Is it a friendly enough place? Are Dubs like myself welcomed nicely enough? :pac:
Thanks in advance. :cool:
Hey Mr. Nice Guy - I was given the option of attending Queens' for a 'Study Abroad' semester - even though I'm currently in University in Limerick! I spent four months studying there before Christmas and it was an amazing experience!
I stayed in one of the Queen's Houses in College Gardens. It was a great place to stay, across the road from the main campus and pretty close to everything else too! Only one disadvantage: no internet. But electricity and heating bills are included in the rent (think it worked out at just over £60 a week - this was in 2008) Mount Charles was a little bit further from the campus (but still only about a 5 min walk away.) The Queen's Houses have a good mix of people: MA students, Erasmus students and people from all over the UK. I wouldn't recommend the Elms Student Village to be honest - mainly first year students and dead at the weekends.
I found the city to be one of the friendliest I've ever been to. It's a lovely size, great shops, restaurants, gigs etc., all within walking distance of any of the Queen's Houses. I'm thinking seriously about returing for an MA myself when I finish my degree!
Best of luck, hope it goes well for you!0 -
Time to meanie_boots 5....4....3....2....1....;)
Hey I was busy thesis-writing! Fear not, I am here now.
As regards housing...well Elms is very modern. And exceptionally noisy in the undergrad blocks (read: NO sleep, EVER). They do zone the postgrads away from it and I know a couple of people who sleep soundly there every night. It's handy for transport and socialising etc. so thumbs up. Mount Charles is more towards Botanic and has no parking. It's essentially a cordonned off street (there is a barrier!) which is a mix of QUB housing and businesses (the businesses own all the parking). The houses are older and the international students tend to live there. All the ones I know there give it a thumbs up, though apparently their network connections aren't quite as productive as in Elms :rolleyes:
Most of my postgrad buddies are fairly unimpressed with QUB socially; because of its location everything is fragmented and although the Union is fab and has excellent concerts/events etc. there's no real feeling of campus life. Also a lot of people go home on weekends so it's dead Saturday & Sunday. If you're going home to Dublin on weekends though you probably wouldn't care!
I don't know anyone doing the MA in History but I don't think the workload is any better or worse than anywhere else. Teaching is a bit less involved because of all those pesky research interests professors seem to have these days, but they are very approachable. You should pop up for a look around
Belfast itself is amazing...and I will miss it big time when I finish up!0 -
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Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »Hi I'm a 3rd year student at UCD and I'm thinking of going on to do an MA in History (why try for a job now eh?). I always felt I missed out a bit of the college experience by not living away from home and so I've been contemplating lately doing the MA somewhere besides UCD, and QUB has caught my eye due to its good reputation. There's a few things I'm curious about though.
In terms of accomodation, it certainly looks much more affordable than UCD but what would the overall weekly or monthly price be for living on campus accomodation? Also, having checked the prospectus, it mentions 'Zoned Accomodation blocks' which it says are an attractive option for postgrads instead of being around the undergrad students. Any idea what these are like? The prospectus also mentions Queen's Houses in places like Mount Charles. Anyone know anything about this area?
In terms of the course itself, anyone here doing a History MA and have any thoughts on the work involved?
Lastly, I'm curious to know about the atmosphere of the area. Is it a friendly enough place? Are Dubs like myself welcomed nicely enough? :pac:
Thanks in advance. :cool:
Elm's Village is the main QUB-owned accomodation. An en-suite room costs £78.65 per week for a 39 week contract (a 50 week contract is also available for the same price). A standard room is £66.15 per week. Personally, I would recommend the en-suite. The apartment blocks that are built for en-suite are more modern. I lived in a standard room for 2 weeks last year because I moved up a week early and my apartment was being refurbished. The fees can be paid in a variety of ways (i.e. one lump sum, three installments, 5 installments etc). Elm's has its pros and cons. There's a 24 hour shop right at the entrance, it has its own shop and pub (albeit one with zero atmosphere). Security is very good there too. However, if you have a car, theres an extra £70.00 charge for a parking space for the term, and you're not even guaranteed it.Vbeing from Dublin, you would have an advantage over most Northern students to get a spot. Electricity and heating bills are included in your overall fee, and your apartment is cleaned every Thursday morning at 10am. You'll hear the vaccuum cleaners. They WILL wake you.You're not allowed have people from outside Elm's in your apartment after 11 which could not be gayer, but there are ways of getting around it. Be creative :P Also, living with 10 other people can be a bit much at times. And theres no god damn sofas.
I also stayed in Grant House which is part of Elms during my repeats. Its like a miniature Elms, but I wouldnt recommend it. Zero atmosphere again, although you'd probably get more work done there if thats what youre into
Been to Mount Charles once, its mostly international students. The apartments aren't the best looking in the world and are quite small. Also, they had no TV. I dont know if that applies to them all though lol.
Socially, I love Belfast. Im from Kilkenny, but Im having a great time up here. During the week, you're spoilt for choice on nights out. Weekends can be boring though, but its an opportunity to try something different.
http://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/StudentAccommodationServices/Accommodation/QueensHouses/0 -
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Hey Mr. Nice Guy, I was in your position this time last year, opted for Mount Charles in the end.
Advantages: close to the university, so you're not gonna get soaked very often! Just off Botanic, too, which is handy (close to shops, etc.) Good mix of internationals and locals (French, Spanish, American, Canadian, Irish, English, etc.) Also, rent prices are inclusive - heat, electric, internet.
Disadvantages:
the internet connection is poor, and slow (2mb between about 8 people, madness!) It comes from a satellite apparently, although I think - because of the amount of complaints - they're changing to a lne as of next year.
it is expensive for what is essentially a glorified hostel, the houses are not "homes" in the sense that they are, after all, student dorms, despite the deceptive house-y fronts. I found this quite annoying - there are no sitting-rooms / living areas bar at the top and bottom of the street which both have common rooms, with a TV and sofas in each. It was grand for me cos I happened to be living in one such house, but having to leave your house to sit in a sitting-room is a bit annoying, imo.
if you don't like living with a lot of people, don't opt for it!
I could go on but I won't
My only advice is check out all options, but imo there's a marked discrepancy between the service Elms provide and what they charge to live in their accommodation.
Also, as a postgrad living here it's perfect. I'm basically living with a bunch of other postgrads, so wild parties and noise (though naturally at night, given the location, it's going to be a bit noisey) aren't a problem. And there is a service offered by Elms which allows you to "test out" the accommodation prior to the start of term.0 -
regob wrote:wat course and uni are ya thinking of in the uu
I was looking at the MA for History on the website and thought it looked quite good.
Cheers for the info, everyone. I've started the application process so now I just have to go and hopefully get good results. 'It is better to walk alone in the right direction than follow the herd walking in the wrong direction.'
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Hi, I am going to Queens to do a masters in construction & project management. I have'nt been in Belfast ever and hav'nt a clue of the place. I'm thinking of staying in Elm Village because it's the handiest. As a result of being hurt in a car accident, the parking thing worries me because I need the car for going home and that. Any ideas on how it is to get the parking permit?
I was wondering what the noise levels are like at night and what the en-suite apartments are like? Its unreal hard to get pictures of the places. I wouldn't mind having a clue about the place before I go to the open day to ask the right questions.
If anyone can help I would be really greatful.:)
You're application for a parking permit would be viewed favourably seeing as you dont live anywhere near Belfast, so you would have quite an advantage over a lot of applicants. Mentioning what you said about the car accident mightn't do your chances any harm either.
As for Elms itself, I stayed there in first year and its a lovely place. The noise levels arent too, there's constantly security strolling around the place so any noise there is wont be there for too long. As for noise in your own apartment, depends on your flatmates, but the kitchen/living area is pretty soundproof from the hallways and bedrooms. Definitely get an en-suite, its so much handier and for not that much extra, the convenience is worth it. The apartments are comprised of building blocks, i.e. theres maybe 40 or 50, thats just an estimate, and each building has 3 floors with each floor being an apartment of 11 people. Two of these rooms will be double beds. As far as I know, its just random whoever gets the room. You need a keycard to enter each building block, each apartment and each bedroom, so your keycard will work on all three. Each apartment has 2 refridgerators, 11 cupboards (one for each flatmate). One criticism would be that there are no sofas, just these not-very-comfortable fabric chairs. But overall, I enjoyed Elms. The weekends can be very quiet though. It has a laundromat, a shop, a pub (albeit a very quiet one), a restaurant etc. Also, your living area is cleaned once a week, and all bills are included in your rent. You wont be allowed have anyone stay with you overnight (well, you wont be allowed bring anyone in after 11pm, so if they are already in before then, youre grand. There are ways to get people in after 11pm too). Elms itself is about a 10-15 minute walk to Queen's itself. Its a very nice street, you wont have any trouble on it (Malone Road is one of the most expensive streets on Belfast). If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. 0 -
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Hiya Madmac,
While a student in Belfast, I had no need to go into any 'dodgy' areas - you don't have to go through any bad areas to get to uni or the city centre or PEC etc. There are some areas that aren't so friendly but they are usually well marked in red,white and blue Until you know what areas to avoid, don't wander into any estates/back streets and you'll be fine. It's similar to any city, you can find trouble easily if you look for it!
I didn't live in Elms so can't give you help on getting ppl in after 11 though!
Queen's Elms is nice accommodation. If you want somewhere quieter for the Masters (my friends have completed the same one), request Mount Charles/Vick House/Grant House - they are separate from Elms, and have more international students/PhDs and not as many first years! At the weekends there are more people in them, usually some international parties, but during the week they are quieter than Elms.0 -
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