I've had an awesome and amazing time here, the students union are good and all kinds of support that I need the university provides for me

To summarise, If you have a passion for film in any area and really believe it's what you want to do then this is course for you. It's worth all the down sides of the university as I've seen the work produced by other universities doing film and seen their chances of employment and it's slim to none compared to the film course at Staffordshire University. It teaches you professional skills, you see everyone else's film in the film theatre and the whole film community helps one another and you find truly like-minded people. THE COURSE is amazing and I had the best time of my life taking part. the UNIVERSITY EXPERIENCE however is very different. If you are choosing film because you're not sure what you want to do, it looks easy and you just want to go out and make friends and get drunk - don't. The film course is only good if you devote yourself to your passion but people who choose it for the sake of it often end up dropping out or changing. Apart from this course there is no real reason to be at this University. Living off campus the first year i often felt very unsafe and very alone. It was very rough initially and I genuinely feared for my safety at times. Having said that, the year i moved on campus and really took in my passion for film, bonded with everyone and enjoyed myself sensibly it was the best time ever and really reformed me as a person.

Whist Staffordshire Univeristy isn'y the largest campus the facilities available are very good for those who want to use them recreationally. As someone who used the gym all 3 years the gym and equipment is excellent however the opening times are very poor and it's often over crowded and booked out by the sports teams etc. It also has astro turfs outside, several bars (although good in price the staff are severely undertrained and slow), a multi functional hall, sports hall, excellent library and probably most impressive - a film theatre. The facilities do have their faults but they are very useful.

The support from the Film Production course itself is above and beyond, they regularly check to see how you are and often give honest feedback and advice. There are often several meetings or people advertised outside the course you can meet concerning how to write essays, how to deal with stress etc. and there is on campus police officers. However, having my bike robbed from campus the one campus security are very poor and whilst try to be helpful ultimately they do not help very much. However the feedback and support from tutors are excellent.

The students union is not the best. As I write these reviews you have to bare in mind that the Film Production course and the actual university as a whole are two completely different things. The film course has a wholesome community feel however the union doesn't have much on for those not too interested in anything other than cheerleading or American football. They don't have too many events on except the club on campus which is very lacklustre and while you will have some good nights out their with friends when you're drunk enough, the union does not really do anything particularly interesting or welcoming for the students at staffordshire university.

Stoke on Trent is the biggest down side of the university itself. The surrounding area's of stoke are very run down and very rough as I've had several bad experiences. I would not recommend living off campus no matter how cheap and nice the flats look - bad idea! however - the next town over, Hanley, is great for nights out on occasion and has an excellent shopping centre with cinema, bowling, restaurants etc. However, it is still very rough and if you're after a big city with lots of people, culture and minimal crime go somewhere else as Stoke is not a particularly safe place off campus.

The societies are plentiful however after the initial interest in some of them early in the year they seem to die off and not many people take interest. Cheerleading and hockey seem to do well, american football is okay but, again, they're not celebrated by everyone on campus and there aren't many events. There is one club on campus that, as much as i complain, I did often go to and you will also end up going to as it is fairly cheap and right on your doorstep. However, it is literally like a kids disco, it is a flat floor with a small smoking area and the staff are extremely slow, you'll be waiting in cues to get in and cues to get drinks for hours. The staff need a lot more training and the events put on are very expensive for what they are. The celebrity guests they get in aren't the best either.

I like the fact that a lot of the tutors have previously been industry professionals and have a real passion for film. Not only this, they make an effort to get to know you all on an individual basis and really do care about your outcome after university. They're such a caring group of staff members that go above and beyond what they're expected to do in terms of helping you with your degree.

As far as the university as a whole, it doesn't do much. However, the faculty and course leaders of Media (Film) Production have aided me in developing my career and havre completely devoted themselves in terms of creating modules that give me a much better understanding of the industry I'm about to go into and the path I need to take in order to get to where I want to be. The information provided to us and the care given has been ridiculously valuable to me and has helped me turn into a professional ready to take on the world.