Planning to apply to uni in Nottingham? Here are 17 reasons why Nottingham should definitely be a contender for your uni city.
Updated: 10 Mar 2025
Nottingham is an ideal destination for students seeking an exciting uni experience full of diverse attractions and activities. From its many cultural offerings including galleries and concerts to its vibrant nightlife, there's always something to explore in this bustling city. It also embraces a thriving student community with incredible support from the local universities. With excellent public transport links, numerous parks, award-winning museums and more, it's easy to make the most of Nottingham during your studies. So without further ado, our top 17 reasons you should make Nottingham your uni home.
Nottingham is a bustling city centre with plenty of nightlife and entertainment options around the city. Popular students haunts include Rock City, Coco Tang and Das Kino.
For travelling around the city, you’d expect to find a bus network, but Nottingham actually also has trams running select routes into the city. It’s a novelty, and you can get discounted student tram tickets as an extra bonus. As well as the local transport network, the city’s train station allows for travel further afield with direct trains to Birmingham, Liverpool and London among others.
The University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University offer over 500 undergraduate courses between them, meaning there’s plenty of choice. You can study subjects ranging from literature to medicine to engineering. Whatever your academic interests are, you’ll be sure to find a course matching them in at least one, if not both, of Nottingham’s unis.
Nottingham is well-known for Sherwood Forest. While the Forest is famous for being the legendary home of outlaw Robin Hood, it’s also a great place to reconnect with the outdoors. Closer to the city centre, you’ll find the Arboretum.
In Nottingham, you’ll find museums, galleries and theatres among other cultural attractions. Some places you might want to check out include the National Justice Museum, Nottingham Contemporary and City of Caves.
Thanks to the two large unis in the city, Nottingham has a strong student community with great support services available from both the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University.
There are plentiful job opportunities in the city and surrounding area for part-time work or internships during studies. You could even work for your uni in a role such as a student ambassador and make the most of the flexibility student jobs offer.
Compared to other student cities in the UK, Nottingham isn’t too expensive. Especially when you consider cities like London, you’re getting an absolute bargain in Nottingham when you look at rental prices. Thanks to the great transport network, living a short way out of the city and commuting in can be a great way to keep costs even lower.
Probably not what you’d expect to find in a list of fun facts about Nottingham, but it’s true. Wollaton Hall was used as the set for Wayne Manor in The Dark Knight Rises. Pretty cool, right?
And here’s one you’d definitely expect to find in a list of Nottingham facts. The Robin Hood legend is probably what Nottingham is most well-known for. Luckily (or unluckily as it may be for students), there aren't any outlaws running around the city robbing the rich and giving it to the poor today.
Nottingham offers some of the East Midland’s best music venues. From the Motorpoint Arena to smaller venues like Rock City and Rescue Rooms, there’s a range of music on offer every week from acts both well-known and up-and-coming.
Both unis offer a diverse selection of societies and clubs open to all students so you can make new friends while pursuing a hobby or playing a new sport.
The city features the remains of an 11th century castle for those interested in Anglo-Saxon history, while for those more interested in recent history, there’s a lot of industrial history across the city. Nottingham was a big player in the UK’s textile industry, particularly in lace. This is reflected to this day in the ‘Lace Market’ where many of the factories were located.
There are so many restaurants around the city that we couldn’t even begin to count. From classic UK chains to smaller chains and independent spots, there’s something to suit whatever your tastes and cravings require.
If you’re looking for the popular high street brands you’ll want to head to the Victoria Centre. If you’re looking for something a bit more unusual, Hockley is next to the city centre and has a lot of independent and quirky shops on offer.
Several businesses have made Nottingham their headquarters, including UK high street giant Boots. If you’re looking for graduate roles in and around the city, you won’t be short of choice thanks to the wide range of businesses with offices and headquarters in the city.
From music festivals to food festivals, there’s something for everyone in the packed events calendar. Film festival? Check. Comedy festival? Check. Nottingham Mela? Check. Pride parade? Check.
Being a student in Nottingham is an incredibly rewarding experience. From taking advantage of the vibrant nightlife to the excellent cultural offerings, there's so much to explore and discover. The city provides excellent support to students from its local universities, with plenty of job opportunities available for part-time work or internships during studies. With affordable living costs and quality accommodation options, it's easy to make the most of Nottingham during your studies. Whether you're looking for somewhere to learn or simply somewhere to have fun, Nottingham is a great choice for your uni city.
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