So I did some reading through some old reddit posts on [r/UniUK](https://www.reddit.com/r/UniUK/) and on [r/AskUK](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/) and I was able to narrow down to some cities that kept being mentioned and these cities are:
*Manchester*
*Nottingham*
*Liverpool*
*Newcastle*
*Leeds*
*Edinburgh*
Now personally, I don’t really plan to attend a Russell group University *(Except I get some kind of financial assistance or discount from one of Russell group Universities, although I highly doubt the possibility of that happening)* as the tuitions for international students are just way over the top and I also don’t intend to study in London as the housing situation is crazy, however in regards to the course that I intend to study (a business course), the University of West London ranks very well on the UKuni ranking index
[https://www.ukuni.net/uk-ranking/subject/business-studies](https://www.ukuni.net/uk-ranking/subject/business-studies) *(I am not sure how recent these rankings are, also What confuses me is that from what I have read on reddit the UWL and UEL aren’t good universities but some how the ranking says other wise*)
The cost for studying as an international student is about 13,000 (*then there’s also Birkbeck which I might like considering the fact that I am a mature student and the program seems designed for Matured students but with Birkbeck, I am kind of confused, is Birkbeck the same thing as the University of London?*) , as tempting as these might seem, the living expense is a deal breaker and this leaves me with the cities mentioned at the top.
From what I’ve read, The living expense in Manchester and London is almost the same (I might be wrong on this one), I understand Nottingham, Liverpool and Leeds are all very affordable cities but the University tuitions seem expensive for international students *(at least for the Russell group Universities, I didn’t see any other Uni from these cities on the University index so I don’t know if there are other universities in these cities that aren’t as expensive but are reputable),* same applies to Newcastle except for the fact that Newcastle is also very far away and seems like its really isolated from the rest of England *(I believe Edinburgh is the closest city to Newcastle).*
I guess the situation is basically a mix of both the good and the bad : Affordable City / Expensive Tuition or Affordable Tuition / Expensive city. So based on your experience, I would like to know what you guys would suggest.
*Note: Just thought I should mention this, I would personally prefer to stay at a city not too far from London as I intend to do some small media business of my own and I believe a populated city with a lot of young people would be part of my customer base so if I am not going to stay in London then at least a nearby city which would enable easy access to my business.*
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Toon might be isolated but it’s got the Biggmarket so why would ye want to go anywhere else
Just as aside to actual answers, as general advice goes, you should get your degree from the best university available to you unless they’re more or less on a par with each other.
You’re likely to feel a bit poor as a student regardless of where you go for a few years but you’ll take your degree with you for life.
Newcastle is probably the cheapest city there.
Manchester is significantly cheaper than London, probably about the same as Leeds.
Nottingham is pretty good as they also have great public transport which is discounted for students
Rent is cheaper in Newcastle and Liverpool, although that’s probably only going to make an impact in your second year as I’d expect your first year will be in halls of residence.
The University of London is a group of universities and institutions both in and outside London. Birkbeck is one of those institutions. It’s also known to have a focus on research, so may not be the best choice for a taught programme.
The best institutions for business programmes are LSE, Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick, ICL, London Business School, Manchester, UCL, Lancaster, and Leeds.
Liverpool.
Shout out for Cardiff. We have at least two universities to choose from and the city is great.
Edinburgh will be the most expensive
Manchester a decent level below that but still quite pricy (and neither anywhere near London costs)
The rest are fairly equivalent
None are near London, but Newcastle isnt the most distant one, its on the north/south line so one of the easier to get there on public transport.
Newcastle and Edinburgh are the nicest ones to live imo.
Newcastle has two universities in the city centre, one Russell group (Newcastle) one not (Northumbria).
Other Cities wise it’s not far from Sunderland or Durham. Train from Newcastle to London is 3/3.5 hours. York is not too far either on the train. I’d say it’s a pretty affordable place to live.
Would highly recommend Sheffield! I’m pretty sure it’s cheaper than Leeds and Sheffield Uni is Russell group too. There’s also loads of international students.
If money is an issue don’t study in the Anglosphere. I don’t know where you have got your figures from but international fees for my Arts degree were £30k a year nearly £50k for science ir medicine. International students are only allowed to work 20 hours a week which won’t cover bills let alone rent. If you study in Scotland it is a 4 year degree. You can study in mainland EU for completing free taught in English you just have to have €10,000+ in savings to get a student visa.
I am biased because I’m moving back up there myself soon, and did my Masters there but Newcastle is excellent, and very affordable. It’s also sub-3 hours on the train to London thanks to a very direct route, but I appreciate that’s still a long way. It’s a very walkable city, has excellent public transport and because it’s the largest city in the area is a good hub for things to do.
One downside of Newcastle is that it is fairly cold relative to the South East, depending on where you’re originally from.
The tuition was relatively cheap when I was there, but that was 5 years ago so I would imagine it’s gone up (I know the non-international fees have shot up)
Nottingham Trent is a good university and Nottingham can be affordable.
Newcastle would be the most affordable though. And whilst Newcastle is sort of isolated, England is still a tiny country so you’d only be a short train ride away from Edinburgh or York.