[HDNG]INTRODUCTION:[EHDNG][PARA]Northampton Square, 13/4 miles north-west of Trafalgar Square, [PARA]is just too far north of the square mile of the City of London - [PARA]Britain's financial heartland - to be part of it and is just too far [PARA]south of Islington to be part of that either. This is the site of City [PARA]University's main buildings with the rest dotted around the area, [PARA]fragmented but all within a mile of the Square, which is [ITAL]the [PARA]University's most attractive part[EITAL]. Its redbrick buildings surround a [PARA]small tree-lined grassy patch, space enough for students to [PARA]sunbathe in summer (if they can find room between the dog [PARA]turds). The University's other buildings are[ITAL] less good-looking:[EITAL] [PARA]urban concrete.[HDNG]ATMOSPHERE:[EHDNG][PARA][ITAL]The work ethic is strong at City University. Number one priority is[PARA]to get a degree and preferably a good one (although the flunk rate[PARA]suggests the pressure doesn't work for everyone). Other [PARA]activities, such as entertainments, take second place and political [PARA]posturing comes last and definitely least. With the University [PARA]physically fragmented, a broad diversity of students with more [PARA]interest in their books than each other and competition from the [PARA]strong draw of London's own entertainments, the social profile is [PARA]poor. But the common cause does create a certain sympathy [PARA]and a lot of friendliness around the halls of residence. [EITAL][ITAL][HDNG]LIFE IN LONDON:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA][ITAL]Samuel Johnson wrote 'When a man is tired of London, he is [PARA]tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.' [PARA]Obviously, he wasn't living on a student grant at the time; for there[PARA]is only a certain amount in London that a student can afford. SJ [PARA]was right in that London is second to none in its diversity, but you [PARA]can't do it all. It's easy to feel that you're not making the most of [PARA]London if you're not spending every waking minute at the theatre,[PARA]ballet, opera or cinema, in clubs or fashionable markets, and in [PARA]museums and galleries, sports grounds and parks. However, if [PARA]the truth be known, even taking advantage of the many freebies [PARA]you can dig up if you try, you'd be broke within a week if you tried[PARA]to keep up with the tearaway pace. When it comes to [PARA]opportunity, choice and life in the fast lane, London is the [PARA]turbo-boosted Porsche. London is supposed to be the city that [PARA]never sleeps, leaving the bright lights burning all night long. In fact,[PARA]as international metropolises go, this one tends to shut down [PARA]when the pubs close. Getting more than a cheeseburger after [PARA]midnight can be as difficult in London as it is in a Turkish jail. Not [PARA]everyone likes the pace or the impersonal atmosphere that many[PARA]find in London. Whilst it's hard to be alone, it's easy to be lonely, [PARA]and most students in London find this at some time. London can [PARA]be oppressive and if you're not streetwise, or at least street [PARA]sensible, it can be a dangerous place. Bomb scares are usually [PARA]just that, but violent crime is on the up. [EITAL][PARA][ITAL] There are a number of responses to the high cost of living in [PARA]London: (1) burst into tears; (2) mug someone; (3) live on credit; (4)[PARA]ask daddy for lashings of cash. Alternatively, if these don't [PARA]appeal, you can always use the following methods: (1) Limit your [PARA]spending by only going out when and where you can afford it [PARA](ULU fits the bill, offering cheap events for students). (2) Buy [PARA]second hand - for books, there's ULU, Charing Cross Road and [PARA]Waterloo and, for clothes, try Camden Market, Greenwich, Brick[PARA]Lane and Portobello Road. (Many a London student falls prey to [PARA]fashion, but not always at vast expense.) (3) Get a job - [EITAL]more [PARA]London students have part time jobs than anywhere else.[ITAL] [EITAL][PARA][ITAL] London also has more overseas students than almost [PARA]anywhere else, which, in Britain's most international city, is an [PARA]appropriate addition to the already spicy variety of life. The extent[PARA]of London's cosmopolitanism is unique. Nowhere else are there [PARA]as many students of every different shape, colour, vintage, creed[PARA]and flavour.[EITAL][PARA][ITAL] To be young in London and have flexible demands on your [PARA]time is an ideal recipe. The daily downers such as the time spent[PARA]travelling have a minimal effect, whereas the opportunities are all [PARA]there. If you happen to live in London, it's good to be a student, [PARA]but if you're a student, London isn't necessarily a good place to [PARA]happen to live.[EITAL][HDNG]THE CITY AND ISLINGTON:[EHDNG][PARA]The City is full of big business and big buildings, Britain's closest [PARA]competitors to Manhattan's skyscrapers. The Bank of England, [PARA]the Lloyds Building, the NatWest Tower - they're all here. [ITAL][PARA]There's money lust in full spandex body-suited underwear: power[PARA]dressing and cell phones.[EITAL] The City is so busy making money in [PARA]phallic towers, that property prices are too sky-scraping high for [PARA]anything else to get a look in. There is the barest minimum of [PARA]extremely expensive wine bars, East End [ITAL]theme park[EITAL] pubs and [PARA]sandwich bars which provide so much packaging you never [PARA]know whether it may be part of the sandwich. Recent [PARA]developments like the Broadgate Centre (near Liverpool St [PARA]Station) are[ITAL] urban playgrounds for pinstripes on their lunch break[EITAL].[PARA][ITAL]But to get right away from stocks and shares, the shocks and [PARA]stares of the West End are still the best bet. Thankfully[EITAL], it's just [PARA]a bus ride or brisk walk.[PARA]Islington, on the other hand, is a horse of a very different hue. It is[PARA]one of the [ITAL]trendy [EITAL]bits of north London: wholemeal cafes; antique [PARA]shops; the Chapel Market; hip pubs. It is largely residential and,[ITAL] if [PARA]students keep their ambitions on a leash, even affordable[EITAL].[PARA]Other local attractions worth noting are the [ITAL]labyrinthine[EITAL] Barbican [PARA]Centre, one of the largest arts centres in the country, and,[ITAL] for a [PARA]good hard laugh at capitalism up the proverbial creek[EITAL], Canary [PARA]Wharf and Docklands.[HDNG]TRAVEL:[EHDNG][PARA][BOLD]Trains: [EBOLD]London is the centre of the network: Bristol (1:40hrs, 1/hr); [PARA]Birmingham (1:40hrs, 3/hr); Manchester (2:30hrs, 1/hr); Glasgow [PARA](5:20hrs, 12/day); Edinburgh ( 4:20hrs, 1/hr); Newcastle (2:45hrs, [PARA]2/hr); Leeds (2:30hrs, 1/hr); Norwich (1:49hrs, 1/hr). Trains come [PARA]into the 8 mainline termini and if passing through London (for [PARA]example from Canterbury (Kent) to Manchester), it is often [PARA]necessary to travel by tube (at extra expense) between mainline [PARA]stations .[PARA][BOLD]Coaches:[EBOLD] London is also the centre of the National Express [PARA]system and a whole variety of other national bus services (Green[PARA]Line, Blue Line and so on). Some example National Express [PARA]journeys: Birmingham (ú9.50, 2:30hrs, 1/hr); Bristol (ú12.50, [PARA]2:15hrs, 1/hr); Edinburgh (ú25, 7:50hrs, 3/day); Glasgow (ú25, [PARA]7hrs, 7/day); Manchester (ú16, 3:30hrs, 7/day); Newcastle [PARA](ú17.50, 5:10hrs, 7/day).[PARA][BOLD]Local Trains: [EBOLD]Network SouthEast operates local overground [PARA]trains [ITAL]which are a speedy and sometimes pleasant way to travel [PARA]and are moderately efficient. The main problems are the ease of[PARA]use (a fair level of understanding is necessary), the high fares [PARA]and the early closing[EITAL] (last trains between 11pm and 1am).[PARA][BOLD]Underground:[EBOLD] The 'tube' is the largest underground train system [PARA]in the world and generally,[ITAL] it is fast, easy to use, efficient (well, [PARA]maybe not the Northern Line) and takes you just about anywhere [PARA]you want to go, although South-East London is a bit hard done by.[PARA]However, it is often crowded,[EITAL] shuts down at midnight,[ITAL] it's often [PARA]disrupted by bomb scares[EITAL] and the minimum fare is 90p. [ITAL]Talking [PARA]to other tube passengers is tantamount to threatening their [PARA]mother - the only people who do it are tourists and people who [PARA]want to talk to you about Jesus.[EITAL] Nearest tube to Senate [PARA]House/ULU Building: Goodge St (Northern Line).[PARA][BOLD]Local Buses: [EBOLD][ITAL]In the tube you can't see the real sights, so why not [PARA]take the buses which are just as efficient,[EITAL] offer even more [PARA]destinations and are slightly cheaper (50p minimum). [ITAL]But buses [PARA]are slow and, until you know your way around, it's difficult to [PARA]know which ones take you where.[EITAL] After midnight, buses come [PARA]into their own - Night Buses are London's only form of all-night [PARA]public transport and[ITAL] if you don't mind how long it takes,[EITAL] you can [PARA]go almost anywhere within 10 miles of the centre.[PARA][BOLD]Travelcards:[EBOLD] For a legal way of dodging the expense of tubes, [PARA]buses and trains, Travelcards are available at ú2.60 for a daily [PARA]pass for the central 2 zones of the network.[PARA][BOLD]Taxis: [EBOLD]There are 2 types:[ITAL] the classic black cabs which are well [PARA]regulated and enormously expensive, and dodgy merchants in [PARA]Ford Escorts which are almost as expensive. There are now [PARA]also some run by and for women. Basically though, forget all [PARA]taxis, except late at night when all else fails and/or you're in a [PARA]party of 4 or more.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Car:[EBOLD] [ITAL]Parking in Central London is impossible, and, although there[PARA]is only one rush hour every day it lasts from 6 in the morning to [PARA]midnight. Driving in London is excellent training for being a [PARA]volcano.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Air: [EBOLD]Served by 4 airports, including Heathrow, the world's [PARA]busiest. Regular flights to anywhere and back.[PARA][BOLD]Hitching:[ITAL] [EBOLD]Not possible from Central London, but get out a little [PARA]way on to the city's escape routes or beyond the M25 and a [PARA]thumb's a first class ticket.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Bicycles: [EBOLD][ITAL] A popular form of student travel given the pros: it's [PARA]cheap and you can get through traffic. But there are the cons: [PARA]London is big, full of exhaust fumes, lacking in cycle lanes and a [PARA]Houdini-proof lock is advisable. It's also an easy way to die.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Trains:[EBOLD] Liverpool Street and King's Cross mainline stations are [PARA]both within 20 minutes walk of the University.[PARA][BOLD]Buses:[EBOLD] 4; 19; 30; 38; 43; 55; 56; 73; 171; 171A; 196; 214; 243; 279; and[PARA]505. Night buses: N19; N21; N73; N92; and N96.[PARA][BOLD]Car:[EBOLD][ITAL] Parkers beware: a whole clump of clamps.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Underground:[EBOLD] Angel (Northern Line), Farringdon or Barbican [PARA](both on the same lines: Hammersmith and City; Circle; [PARA]Metropolitan; and Thameslink).[HDNG]NOS and REQUIREMENTS:[EHDNG][PARA][BOLD]Engineering[EBOLD] 645 20pts [BOLD][PARA]Business[EBOLD] 763 22pts[BOLD][PARA]Maths[EBOLD] 215 20pts[BOLD][PARA]Informatics[EBOLD] 209 18pts[BOLD][PARA]Law[EBOLD] 146 20pts[BOLD][PARA]Music[EBOLD] 83 20pts[BOLD][PARA]Journalism[EBOLD] 106 20pts [BOLD][PARA]Health[EBOLD] 314 18pts[BOLD][HDNG]LIBRARIES and COMPUTERS:[EHDNG][EBOLD][PARA][BOLD][STAT][BULL] Books: 325,140 [BULL] Periodicals: 68,000 [BULL] Study places: 565 [PARA]Computer workstations: 230[ESTAT][EBOLD][PARA]2 main libraries - the Skinners Library and the Frobisher Crescent[PARA]Branch Library - as well as various departmental libraries. [HDNG]CAREER PROSPECTS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Careers Service [BULL] No of staff: 5full/1part [BULL] Unemployed [PARA]after 6mths (1992): 10%[ESTAT][HDNG]SPECIAL FEATURES:[EHDNG][PARA][BULL]City University got its name not merely from its physical [PARA]proximity to the City, but also because it grew up (and finally [PARA]became a university in 1966) with strong attachments to high [PARA]finance and big business. 70% of courses are professionally [PARA]accredited. Its motto is 'To Serve Mankind' - [PUSH]push[EPUSH][ITAL] wonders how [PARA]the women students feel about that.[EITAL][PARA][BULL]Free language training is available for all students.[HDNG]FAMOUS ALUMNI:[EHDNG][PARA]Eric Ambler (writer); Tim Devlin MP; Michael Fish (weatherman); [PARA]Charles Farnecombe (conductor - musical, not bus); Dermot [PARA]Murnaghan (newsreader); Jack Warner (Dixon of Dock Green). [PARA]The University also runs one of the country's top postgrad [PARA]journalism courses and so a lot of hacks are City alumni.[HDNG]FURTHER INFO:[EHDNG][PARA]Prospectuses for undergrads and postgrads.
