Great campus, great location, reasonable facilities (University of Sheffield in general)

Member Name: jamesontheroad

Product:	University of Sheffield in general
Date:	13/03/08 (143 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Quality of teaching and research

Disadvantages: Expensive and poorly featured accommodation, understaffed library

It's very difficult to review an entire university in one go, so I would advise anyone considering Sheffield for their course to read around and consider teaching and research ratings for both the university and the department you're interested in.

So, this review considers only the campus, facilities etc.

Accommodation options are increasingly limited; a once broad selection of good halls has been 'rationalised' down to dormitory blocks around the Edge in Endcliffe and privately managed halls in the city centre. First year undergraduates should try to get into university managed halls instead of private sector properties, although hall facilities such as in-house canteens and bars have gradually been phased out in favour of centralised services. This means that many residents have to fully dressed and braced for Sheffield weather when you want to go and have breakfast.

Library and study facilities are broadly ok, but resources have been pushed away from the Main Library to a new study centre called the 'Information Commons'. This is a modern building of questionable style and functionality that carries a small collection of short loan key texts and banks of computers that seem to be used by students 24/7 for Facebook and Bebo. Avoid it if you want a good work environment, the Main Library is much better although suffers from poor staffing hours.

The University sport facilities are very good, but are shared with a private health club, and you may find health club membership cheaper at private gyms elsewhere in the city. The Union is superb, offering a great range of resources, support and entertainment options.

There is so much more to say, but I can't do the entire university justice in a short review. Feel free to contact me if you're interested in studying here; otherwise I strongly recommend an open day so you can get a feel for the city and university.

Summary: Love it for all its faults