[HDNG]INTRODUCTION:[EHDNG][PARA]Nearer Manchester than Liverpool or Preston, but between them [PARA]all, Bolton [ITAL]looks as if it's a fairly small and insignificant [EITAL]old town. [ITAL][PARA]Its dark, satanic mills grew up amidst the hills of the north-west [PARA]under overcast skies and if it had been among less towering [PARA]company, it would have gained more credit as a sizeable civic [PARA]centre on its own merits. [EITAL]Between Liverpool, Preston and [PARA]Manchester (including Salford), there are now 8 universities - one [PARA]of the highest concentrations of students in Europe. The newest [PARA]is Bolton Institute which has now been awarded university status,[PARA]if not a university name. The Institute's main site, the Deane [PARA]Campus, is outside the town centre on 2 main roads, consisting [PARA]of a high glass tower and lower surrounding blocks built in the [PARA]late 60s. Apart from a [ITAL]scruffy [EITAL]stretch of grass in front of the [PARA]tower, [ITAL]there isn't a lot of greenery[EITAL].[HDNG]ATMOSPHERE:[EHDNG][PARA][ITAL]The tone is set by the massive proportion of mature students - [EITAL][PARA]one of the highest in the country[ITAL]. Conventional student activities [PARA]and adolescent high jinks still take place, but not on a huge scale.[PARA]People tend to come in for their lectures and then leave fairly [PARA]rapidly. Really, the only place to sit and socialise is the refectory [PARA]which is scruffy, crowded and smoky (although the food is [PARA]good).[EITAL][PARA][PARA][ITAL][HDNG]THE SITES:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Deane Campus: [EBOLD]The main campus, see above.[PARA][BOLD]Chadwick Street Campus:[EBOLD] (700 students - School of Arts and [PARA]Sciences, School of Education and Health Studies)[BOLD] [EBOLD]About a mile [PARA]from the main campus on the outskirts of Bolton, there are the [PARA]single-storey teaching blocks and new halls of residence of the [PARA]Institute's 2nd site.[PARA][BOLD]Great Moor Street Campus:[EBOLD] (300 - Art and Design, division of the [PARA]School of Arts and Sciences) 10 minutes walk from the Deane [PARA]Campus is a converted Victorian red brick school used for Art [PARA]and Design classes.[PARA][BOLD]Eagle: [EBOLD]Currently a student-free zone, and looks a bit like a light [PARA]industrial estate. Some departments, however, are in the [PARA]process of moving here.[HDNG]TOWN:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Population: 253,300 [BULL] London: 182miles [BULL] Manchester: [PARA]10miles [BULL] Blackpool: 35miles[ESTAT][PARA]Bolton is blessed with lots of modern amenities including a large [PARA]shopping centre with 3 arcades and branches of all the major [PARA]chains. The Market Place development has given modern fronts [PARA]to various old shop buildings. Relics of the cloth industry include [PARA]the Tonge Moor Textile Museum featuring Samuel Crompton's [PARA]Spinning Mule ([ITAL]considered quite an 'ass'et in its time[EITAL]) and [PARA]Hargreaves' Spinning Jenny ([ITAL]she wasn't so bad either[EITAL]). Also [PARA]worth a look, the Last Drop Village, an 18th century converted [PARA]farmhouse extended to create a picturesque village with [PARA]cottages, pub, restaurant, hotel, craft shops and other would-be [PARA]tourist traps (if there were any tourists).[HDNG]TRAVEL:[EHDNG][PARA][BOLD]Trains:[EBOLD] The Institute is 1/2 mile from Bolton mainline station with [PARA]direct connections to Manchester every 15 minutes, Blackpool, [PARA]Wigan and Blackburn.[PARA][BOLD]Coaches:[EBOLD] National Express and Timeline Travel.[PARA][BOLD]Car:[EBOLD] The [ITAL]devilish[EITAL] A666, M61, M62 and A679 all serve Bolton.[PARA][BOLD]Air:[EBOLD] Manchester Airport is only a 30-minute drive away.[PARA][BOLD]Hitching:[EBOLD] [ITAL]A good selection of main roads nearby to chose from, [PARA]but students don't really try.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Local:[EBOLD] Students often use the buses which go from the Institute to[PARA]the halls every 10 or 15 minutes until 11.30pm. A nightbus from [PARA]Manchester pulls in at 1am or 2.30am on Fridays and Saturdays.[PARA][BOLD]Taxis:[EBOLD] On average, taxis cost รบ2 from the town to the halls.[PARA][BOLD]Bicycles:[EBOLD] Not many students use bikes, [ITAL]the town centre is very [PARA]busy and has no cycle lanes. Nevertheless, people still seem to [PARA]have enough incentive to steal bikes regularly[EITAL].[HDNG]FACULTIES and STUDENT NOS:[EHDNG][PARA][BOLD]Arts and Sci[EBOLD] 1,847[BOLD][PARA]Business[EBOLD] 1,667[BOLD][PARA]Civil Eng[EBOLD] 951[BOLD][PARA]Ed and Health[EBOLD] 1,054[BOLD][PARA]Engineering[EBOLD] 1,201[BOLD][PARA]Textiles[EBOLD] 405[HDNG]LIBRARIES and COMPUTERS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Books: 100,000 [BULL] Periodicals: 900 [BULL] Study places: 340 [PARA]Computer workstations: 511[ESTAT][PARA]1 library on each site. Computer facilities can get crowded.[HDNG]CAREER PROSPECTS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Careers Service [BULL] No of staff: 2full[ESTAT][HDNG]FURTHER INFO:[EHDNG][PARA]Prospectuses for undergrads and part timers.[PARA][PARA]
