UEA (University of East Anglia in general)

Member Name: elvisian

Product:	University of East Anglia in general
Date:	16/10/01 (1131 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: sunshine, pubs, atmosphere

Disadvantages: concrete, clubs

I finished studying there just over a year ago now but still reside in Norwich so able to provide a cultured response.

Situated on the West of the City between the leafy suburbs of Eaton, the Avenues and the not so glamorous Earlham, the UEA basks in its 1960’s architectural glory, concrete in abundance.
Thus when it’s raining you may find it a little difficult to see its beauty. Fortunately as it is in the East we have more sunlight hours than most.

The Lake, is its crowning glory. Situated a hundred yards from the on campus halls of residence and the ‘walkway’ connecting the main of the campus together, the lake provides an ideal opportunity for people to revise in summer. (Well that’s what I told people anyway) The view from the not so exciting library can be dazzling in the summer. The lake reflecting the suns rays to provide a sparkling sight and an ideal opportunity for contemplating the meaning of life, or how to stretch the single can of beans and loaf of bread out for the rest of the week.

The single best thing about the campus is the square. Located outside the main building housing the LCR, bar, the Hive and the important stuff like collecting grant cheques. Not any more though, ha ha. (Managed to sneak in the back door with the last year of that…NICE).
Again when the summer takes hold, the skirts shorten and the tops become skimpier, oh how the days lectures were spent in the square supping beer and watching the world and good looking women go by. We were always sure that the good looking women disappeared during winter months only to reappear bronzed and beautiful. Since leaving university I have found that this is a national phenomenon and not just a university thing.

Okay so some boring stuff about the course I attended. The School of Environmental Sciences (ENV) remains the number 1 in its field in the UK (although the Times got this wrong in a recent listing and apologis
ed for making this mistake) The teaching is superb and the lecturers are always there to answer questions.

I always realised that this would never be the course that would get me into a job, although I know many people who now have positions in the field even if they had to wait a year in the meantime. It just wasn’t for me. But the course was fantastic, covering common components in the sciences such as computing, maths, chemistry, physics, ecology, biology…. the list goes on. They go into such depth and I feel fortunate enough to study some cracking courses like Epidemiology – the study of the spread of disease (more interesting than you think, check out zoonoses for those animal to human diseases, scary stuff) and Fluvial Geomorphology, wading in the river and collecting data has never been so interesting.
All lecturers are world leaders so you fully respect them from the start, they come across quite smug as they have written a zillion papers about everything and everyone but are very interactive. You find that you know more than you think you just have to work through it in a logical manner.

What you really want to know is about the nightlife. Whilst Norwich is not the biggest city in the world it does have some cracking pubs even if the clubs are not quite up to scratch.
Some great pubs to take in include the Mischief Tavern and the Fugitive and Furkin on Fye Brdige St, especially if you can’t stand the pretence of all these chain pubs.
The Tombland area exudes class and sophistication and is the hive of the ‘beautiful people’ or just those that are wannabes. The pubs include Orgasmic a new classy bar on Queens St and Ha-Ha for some great grub amongst others in the area.
The chains, Norwegian Blue, Lloyds, Brannigans and Squares dominate Riverside with the biggest club in the City – Time. However my personal favourite is Liquid on Prince of Wales St as you do have space to move.
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Closer to the university along the streets vacated by students we have the Black Horse and Pickwick on Earlham Rd. Cracking pubs that offer a wide choice of booze and affrodable student food.
Unthank Rd provides us with an abundance of pubs including the Mad Moose, Lilly Langtry, The Rose and the York.

The LCR is the main place on campus for entertainment. They host a whole manner of events from Craig Charles to the Charlatans (a cracking gig on Saturday 13/10/01) to Gods Kitchen (1/2/01). Club Retro for those classics and the LCR Disco on a Thursday for those cheesy grooves and up to the minute hits.
Pints are well priced relative to the rest of the city at around £1.70 for a pint of Kronenbourg whilst pints in the city reach £2.20 (at least) for the same brand.

In regard of first year accommodation, the village is the best place to be. It’s a better looking place than Norfolk or Suffolk Terrace but not the snobbery of Constable Terrace. A laid back atmosphere, chilled vibes and an independent camaraderie aids the village to be the best place to be. Just located 5 minutes walk from the main campus.

If you want more and can climb out of bed at the weekend’s try a bit of sport and the new sports centre. Fantastic facilities include two indoor Astroturf pitches, doubling as tennis and badminton venues, six outdoor 7-a-side pitches, climbing wall, Olympic sized 50m pool and much much more.
Training for the UEA’s sports teams occurs on Wednesday afternoons so if you are interested in sport don’t pick courses that clash.
You have the ability to join a host of clubs like football, rugby, cricket, hockey etc and even a new cheerleader squad set up by the lovely Alex.
If sports not your thing then there are number of other societies which could float your boat, just check out the upstairs wall in the Hive.

If you want to get out and mountains are not your thing (you won’t find any in
Norfolk) the coast is a treat, don’t be swayed by Yarmouth, Norfolk has much more to offer. Try Gorleston, West Runton, Cromer etc. Visit the Broads for a great day out, the Cathedral and the newly renovated Castle Museum in the centre of Norwich.

If you want a great place to come and study this surely is the place.

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