EleanorH
Member
Back when I was first starting at UoM and had to apply for accommodation, I remember not really having any idea where to start. I didn't know much beyond the specifications of the rooms themselves and some bits and bobs on The Student Room. For me, this meant that even though I ended up in my '1st choice' accommodation, I ended up not liking it at all and moving after a few months.
(I started off in Richmond Park, Fallowfield, but ended up moving to Burkhardt House, Victoria Park - this was because I found I was doing really long days in uni because I didn't have time to travel back to my accommodation, and because most of my friends lived in Victoria Park so I found myself spending more time there with them and having to travel back to mine alone very late at night)
As such, I thought it was important to share some info myself and my opinions to helpfully put other people in a more informed position about which accommodation they choose!
The UoM accommodation is split into 3 campuses - Fallowfield, Victoria Park, and City Campus (City campus is split in 2). Each campus has its own reputation and set of benefits and drawbacks, so it really comes down to the atmosphere of each campus and where you think would best suit you.
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Fallowfield
Fallowfield is renowned for being the 'party' campus; when I lived there, no matter how late I got back there were still people just heading out for the night, even at 3am! It's by far the liveliest accommodation campus, so if you're the kind of person who likes the idea of going out to clubs on a regular basis then this is probably the place for you. This accommodation campus is also the most close together, so whichever building you're in you'll be close to plenty of other people. It's very conveniently situated for the big Sainsbury's in Fallowfield and the local 'spoons (as well as pubs/bars like Friendship, Revolution, 256, The Bar). The onsite bar (Squirrels, in Oak House) is a bit grimy but well loved and a regular venue for music events and quiz nights.
If you live in Fallowfield, you will need a bus pass or a bike (unless you fancy a ~40 minute walk into uni every day). The bus routes between Fallowfield are fab, just be aware that if you have a 9am the bus stop is often pretty packed at that time. The bus pass costs something in the region of ~£250 for the whole year but that can take you to and from uni every day as well as into town, out to Didsbury, and anywhere else you can get on a Stagecoach bus.
ADVANTAGES: very sociable location, lots of people around, convenient location for shopping and socialising, good bus links
DISADVANTAGES: can get a bit noisy, takes a while to get into uni/town, bus pass necessary
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Victoria Park
The reputation that Victoria Park has is that it's 'boring' in comparison to Fallowfield, but in reality this just means it's a little quieter. People who live in Victoria Park often still do get involved in the Fallowfield social life, the difference being that the parties aren't taking place on your doorstep. This can be a disadvantage if you're regularly travelling out to Fallowfield, but if you want a bit of a quieter scene then this may well suit you better.
The Victoria Park campus is more spaced out but you're still not too far from other accommodation buildings. This campus is located conveniently for the local parks (Whitworth and Birchfields) and some nice coffee shops (Anchor Cafe, Tim Hortons, Cafe Nero), as well as the local 'spoons. The on-site bar is in Hulme Hall and is (in my opinion) the nicest campus bar. There are also some other onsite facilities which are fab (onsite music practice rooms in Hulme Hall and Dalton Ellis, onsite sports pitches, library, etc.) which mean you don't always need to go into uni to get work done. It's also advantageous in that you probably won't need a bus pass if you live here, as the walk into uni is between ~15-25 mins. It's not great in terms of local food shopping facilities, since only small high-street-style branches are located nearby unless you go out to Fallowfield.
ADVANTAGES: quieter location, close to parks and coffee shops, within walking distance of uni, nice onsite bar and other facilities
DISADVANTAGES: less sociable, friends may be further away, less convenient for food shopping
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City (part 1)
As I mentioned, there are 2 different parts of City Campus. The first comprises Whitworth Park and Denmark Road. This campus is popular because of its proximity to uni, with the walk in taking ~5 mins. This is a great place to be if you think you're the kind of person who wants to roll out of bed 10 minutes before you lecture starts and still get there on time!
The perks and disadvantages are much the same as those listed for Victoria Park - the walk between Hulme Hall and Denkark Rd is ~5 mins.
Probably worth being aware that Whitworth Park has a well deserved nickname of 'Shitworth Park'! I believe it's still the cheapest accommodation on campus (along with Oak House) and you get what you pay for... the onsite bar here is also a little grimy but it tends to be a lot quieter than Squirrels which is pretty nice.
ADVANTAGES: close to parks and coffee shops, very short walk to uni, decent onsite bar
DISADVANTAGES: less sociable, friends on other campuses may be quite far away, less convenient for food shopping, Whitworth Park has a bad reputation, on Oxford Rd so can be quite noisy at times
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City (part 2)
This is the campus I know least about. The feedback I've heard from people who've lived there is that they may have originally applied to Fallowfield accommodation and got placed here instead but ended up really enjoying it. It's on North Campus, so very convenient if you're a fashion or engineering student with lectures based on that campus, and for those who need to be on Main campus, there's a free bus that runs between North Campus and the MRI so you don't even need a bus pass. It's located very conveniently for town, so if you fancy being within a stones throw of Piccadilly Station, the Arndale Centre and everything else the city has to offer, this is a good place to consider (the bus ride from Fallow to town is ~30 mins). I've heard that even though there may be disadvantages in having to travel to Fallowfield if you're meeting friends for a night out, it's great on the other end of the night when you leave the club and can be back in your room within 5 minutes!
-- This short article was written by a friend of mine a few years ago when she lived on City Campus - in it, she shares her thoughts and experiences --
ADVANTAGES: very close to town and transport links, close to those working on North Campus, free bus to take you into uni, easy to get home after nights out in town
DISADVANTAGES: friends on other campuses are pretty far away, the accommodation is in the opposite direction to everyone else's
(I started off in Richmond Park, Fallowfield, but ended up moving to Burkhardt House, Victoria Park - this was because I found I was doing really long days in uni because I didn't have time to travel back to my accommodation, and because most of my friends lived in Victoria Park so I found myself spending more time there with them and having to travel back to mine alone very late at night)
As such, I thought it was important to share some info myself and my opinions to helpfully put other people in a more informed position about which accommodation they choose!
The UoM accommodation is split into 3 campuses - Fallowfield, Victoria Park, and City Campus (City campus is split in 2). Each campus has its own reputation and set of benefits and drawbacks, so it really comes down to the atmosphere of each campus and where you think would best suit you.
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Fallowfield
Fallowfield is renowned for being the 'party' campus; when I lived there, no matter how late I got back there were still people just heading out for the night, even at 3am! It's by far the liveliest accommodation campus, so if you're the kind of person who likes the idea of going out to clubs on a regular basis then this is probably the place for you. This accommodation campus is also the most close together, so whichever building you're in you'll be close to plenty of other people. It's very conveniently situated for the big Sainsbury's in Fallowfield and the local 'spoons (as well as pubs/bars like Friendship, Revolution, 256, The Bar). The onsite bar (Squirrels, in Oak House) is a bit grimy but well loved and a regular venue for music events and quiz nights.
If you live in Fallowfield, you will need a bus pass or a bike (unless you fancy a ~40 minute walk into uni every day). The bus routes between Fallowfield are fab, just be aware that if you have a 9am the bus stop is often pretty packed at that time. The bus pass costs something in the region of ~£250 for the whole year but that can take you to and from uni every day as well as into town, out to Didsbury, and anywhere else you can get on a Stagecoach bus.
ADVANTAGES: very sociable location, lots of people around, convenient location for shopping and socialising, good bus links
DISADVANTAGES: can get a bit noisy, takes a while to get into uni/town, bus pass necessary
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Victoria Park
The reputation that Victoria Park has is that it's 'boring' in comparison to Fallowfield, but in reality this just means it's a little quieter. People who live in Victoria Park often still do get involved in the Fallowfield social life, the difference being that the parties aren't taking place on your doorstep. This can be a disadvantage if you're regularly travelling out to Fallowfield, but if you want a bit of a quieter scene then this may well suit you better.
The Victoria Park campus is more spaced out but you're still not too far from other accommodation buildings. This campus is located conveniently for the local parks (Whitworth and Birchfields) and some nice coffee shops (Anchor Cafe, Tim Hortons, Cafe Nero), as well as the local 'spoons. The on-site bar is in Hulme Hall and is (in my opinion) the nicest campus bar. There are also some other onsite facilities which are fab (onsite music practice rooms in Hulme Hall and Dalton Ellis, onsite sports pitches, library, etc.) which mean you don't always need to go into uni to get work done. It's also advantageous in that you probably won't need a bus pass if you live here, as the walk into uni is between ~15-25 mins. It's not great in terms of local food shopping facilities, since only small high-street-style branches are located nearby unless you go out to Fallowfield.
ADVANTAGES: quieter location, close to parks and coffee shops, within walking distance of uni, nice onsite bar and other facilities
DISADVANTAGES: less sociable, friends may be further away, less convenient for food shopping
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City (part 1)
As I mentioned, there are 2 different parts of City Campus. The first comprises Whitworth Park and Denmark Road. This campus is popular because of its proximity to uni, with the walk in taking ~5 mins. This is a great place to be if you think you're the kind of person who wants to roll out of bed 10 minutes before you lecture starts and still get there on time!
The perks and disadvantages are much the same as those listed for Victoria Park - the walk between Hulme Hall and Denkark Rd is ~5 mins.
Probably worth being aware that Whitworth Park has a well deserved nickname of 'Shitworth Park'! I believe it's still the cheapest accommodation on campus (along with Oak House) and you get what you pay for... the onsite bar here is also a little grimy but it tends to be a lot quieter than Squirrels which is pretty nice.
ADVANTAGES: close to parks and coffee shops, very short walk to uni, decent onsite bar
DISADVANTAGES: less sociable, friends on other campuses may be quite far away, less convenient for food shopping, Whitworth Park has a bad reputation, on Oxford Rd so can be quite noisy at times
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City (part 2)
This is the campus I know least about. The feedback I've heard from people who've lived there is that they may have originally applied to Fallowfield accommodation and got placed here instead but ended up really enjoying it. It's on North Campus, so very convenient if you're a fashion or engineering student with lectures based on that campus, and for those who need to be on Main campus, there's a free bus that runs between North Campus and the MRI so you don't even need a bus pass. It's located very conveniently for town, so if you fancy being within a stones throw of Piccadilly Station, the Arndale Centre and everything else the city has to offer, this is a good place to consider (the bus ride from Fallow to town is ~30 mins). I've heard that even though there may be disadvantages in having to travel to Fallowfield if you're meeting friends for a night out, it's great on the other end of the night when you leave the club and can be back in your room within 5 minutes!
-- This short article was written by a friend of mine a few years ago when she lived on City Campus - in it, she shares her thoughts and experiences --
ADVANTAGES: very close to town and transport links, close to those working on North Campus, free bus to take you into uni, easy to get home after nights out in town
DISADVANTAGES: friends on other campuses are pretty far away, the accommodation is in the opposite direction to everyone else's