University rating
Tell us about your overall university experience so far.
Edge Hill University has given me an amazing University experience so far!
The campus and facilities are excellent - there are many locations across campus to study or socialize (including an expansive library, student bar, and the building of a large new Student Union building to be completed next academic year). There are also many locations to buy food, and a small campus Morrisons which sells necessities. Rooms with course-specific equipment/software are available to be booked out-of-hours so work can be completed any time, any day. However, a current flaw is the temporary Circuit Laundry facilities on campus - the most accessible way for students to do washing. The machines in these facilities regularly get dirty, are often all full (less than 20 washing machines and driers for the whole campus, located in two different buildings which are a fair distance walk from most accommodation), and regularly break and/or steal money from those using them (the fault of the Circuit Laundry company itself - not the University).
Student Support has been reliable and quick to respond whenever my friends or I have had any issues. This has made the transition to student life far easier, and a lot more comfortable. This includes Disability support.
Edge Hill University boasts a wide range of Societies, Sports, Events, and Opportunities - as well as fantastic Student Accommodation with spacious kitchens. Additionally, the Student Union (who runs some of these events and all of the societies) has been welcoming and friendly since day one. Despite the lack of a current Student Union building (with a new building is currently under construction), the Student Union remains active and supportive.
Location wise, the campus is a 5 minute drive from Ormskirk - a small market town with plenty of shopping facilities and accommodation. The campus bus is free-to-use for students, however often arrived later than scheduled. Regardless, it is a 15 minute walk into the town centre from campus. Ormskirk also has its own train station, with regular trains departing to nearby towns, Liverpool, and Preston. Ormskirk itself feels like a very safe and friendly location.
Located in the countryside, Edge Hill is surrounded by crop fields, farms, and woodland areas (such as Ruff Wood, a scenic woodland a short walk from campus).
The Edge Hill University campus is modern and unique. Many of the accommodation buildings and learning facilities (Chancellors Court and Chancellors South, and The Catalyst Library) are only a few years old, and even the old buildings boast a modern interior. In my experience, campus has generally felt very safe - I’ve never had to worry about walking alone, even in the dark. Students have been nothing but friendly, in my experience, which was a big worry for me prior to starting university.
Overall, I highly recommend Edge Hill University. Any flaws it has are minor and do not greatly impact quality-of-life or quality-of-education. The University is friendly and welcoming, with a wide range of facilities and opportunities, and located in a gorgeous part of North-West England. Studying here was one of the best decisions I have ever made.
Facilities
How good are your university's facilities?
Location
Institution Location
Student support
How good is the support offered by the uni? Think both academic (tutors/feedback) and personal (counselling, etc).
Campus look and feel
Institution Campus look and feel
Student life
Institution Student life
Students' union
What do you think of your Students' Union in terms of student representation and facilities?
Course rating
Course rating
My experience with my course (Animation) has been fairly positive since starting in September 2023. The teaching staff are friendly, supportive, and understanding of needs - however, I often find myself struggling to put into action what has been instructed in the lessons, and contact tutors out-of-hours.
Starting on a very positive note - course content offers a wide range of expertise and understanding of the Animation industry, and the software used to develop such work. Industry-Standard equipment is used in the course, which allows students to develop the skills needed for entering the industry. This gives students great career prospects. The course also offers an opportunity to attend several Animation Festivals, which allow students to develop industry connections and potentially enter placements/internships.
The facilities for the Animation course are also fantastic. Located in the Creative Edge building, the main Animation studio gives students access to 20+ industry standard Wacom drawing tablets, a wide range of software (such as Maya, Toon Boom Harmony, and Photoshop), and other animation tools - such as 3D printers and a separate Stop Motion studio. The main animation studio itself is comfortable and modern, with classrooms being just as good.
However, some flaws me and my course mates have encountered is that task explanations are a little too indirect. This has led to myself and others achieving lower grades than we are confident we could have achieved, due to tasks not being explained in the level of detail we required. Work and expectations will often be set with little explanation of what is required, meaning students are not given the opportunity to preform to their full potential.
Additionally, tutor contact time has also been unreliable. Emails may go unread for days, regardless of urgency. Other than meeting tutors face-to-face (which isn’t always an option) is a the only reliable way to get a timely response.
Support online is mostly reliable. The Learning Edge is a Blackboard page which is available on every course, and gives students access to documents and assignments set by tutors. This has been fairly useful in catching up on missed lessons, however lectures are not recorded - which makes it harder to fully grasp what we are expected to do if a student has missed class.
Course content
Course content
Work placements and internships
Work placements and internships
Lecturers and teaching quality
What do you like most and least about the way your course(s) are taught?
Career prospects
How does your uni make efforts to increase your employability (careers department, work placements, transferable skills)?
Tutor contact time
Tutor contact time
Subject facilities
Subject facilities
University halls
What do you think about the safety, condition, location and cost of your accommodation?
5-stars, all around.
Chancellors Court Boyce building was definitely the best accommodation I would have picked, based on my own requirements and preferences.
Location-wise, the building is located in the north campus, next to the Sports Centre - with only a 2-minute walk to Creative Edge and bus stop, and a 5 minute walk to the Main Building (or ‘The Hub’). Situated next to the water, wildlife such as Moorhens and Ducks can often be seen outside the window.
For the Accommodation price, the rooms and kitchen are fantastic. The kitchen space is large and offers plenty of facilities - for a 5 bedroom accommodation, it has 2 ovens/grills, 8 hobs, 2 fridges, 2 freezers, a communal TV, a microwave, a 4-slot toaster, 2 sinks, a sofa, a dining table with chairs, and plenty of countertop space. The rooms are also great- with a single bed, radiator, wall-mounted TV, 6 plug sockets, a desk with a built-in desk lamp, a desk chair, large windows, and several shelves. The en-suite wetroom/toilet has - a shower, sink, toilet, and towel rack. The walls are relatively thick, and I have rarely heard noise from accompanying rooms (though, maybe I’ve just been blessed with quiet floormates… it’s hard to tell).
The accommodation feels very safe, with 3 separate locked doors before entering a bedroom (one card-
pass on the building exterior, a key-locked door leading to the accommodation cluster, and a lockable bedroom door). However I cannot speak much to the safety regarding floormates - I have not encounter problems with mine, so I cannot speak to how ‘safe’ a student would feel if they were assigned bad floormates. But I do know that moving accommodation is an option if a student issues a complaint to Student Services.
I have experienced no problems with the Accommodation Wifi/Internet. It is fast and reliable.
Property maintenance and management is also very reliable. Kitchens and communal spaces are cleaned by an accommodation-assigned cleaner ever morning on a weekday (vacuuming, cleaning countertops, cleaning kitchen equipment/appliances, etc.). Students in accommodation have access to a vacuum at all times for their personal room cleaning.
Room allocation
Room allocation
Internet/wifi
Internet/wifi
Value for money
Value for money
Property management
Property management
Have you stayed in your Universty's hall?
Yes