[HDNG]INTRODUCTION:[EHDNG][PARA]Loughborough is a small, industrial market town, set amongst [PARA]wandering countryside and small suburban villages. The [PARA]University is set about a mile west of the town in green and [ITAL][PARA]pleasant [EITAL]parkland. The campus buildings are mainly [ITAL]inoffensive[EITAL], [PARA]low-rise blocks on a landscaped, 216-acre site. [ITAL] It's perfect for[EITAL] the[PARA]various playing fields and sporting facilities, [ITAL]the University's chief [PARA]extra-curricular preoccupation.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][ITAL][HDNG]ATMOSPHERE:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA][ITAL]Don't believe what they say about 'it's not the winning but the [PARA]taking part'. At Loughborough University, it's the winning that [PARA]matters, and the training beforehand and the celebration and [PARA]analysis afterwards. A pity, then, that the teams aren't quite [PARA]hitting the heights they managed over the last few years, although[PARA]this hasn't dampened the mood of raucous, towel-flicking [PARA]blokedom. Half of Loughborough students are engineers or [PARA]scientists and students feel more at home with calculators and [PARA]computers than with easels or grease-paint (although the Arts [PARA]School is significant). The powers that be have indicated that [PARA]they would like [EITAL][PUSH]push[EPUSH] [ITAL]to put less stress on the sporty side, which [PARA]we'll do when the students do it. Let's just say that if you're not [PARA]particularly sporty, you can have a good time, but if you're [PARA]actively hostile to the whole idea, think hard before applying.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][ITAL][HDNG]THE TOWN:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA][ITAL][STAT][BULL] Population: 51,000 [BULL] London: 100miles [BULL] Leicester: 15miles[PARA][BULL] Nottingham: 20miles[ESTAT][EITAL][PARA][ITAL]Loughborough is not big enough to fit in more than a few sites of [PARA]historic interest, but it gives its money's worth[EITAL], including a few old[PARA]churches and museums (eg the Bell Foundry Museum - which [PARA]makes bells - the Military Museum and the Ancient Monuments [PARA]Museum). Apart from all the usual shops and public amenities, [PARA]there is a twice-weekly street market, some [ITAL]good [EITAL]independent [PARA]record stores and some ethnic jewellery shops. The town is [PARA]surrounded by the ancient Charnwood Forest - so ancient that [PARA]there's not much forest left - and various waterways flow through[PARA]the area. Of local note is the Grand Central Railway, still [PARA]steaming its way cross-country and there's the Quorn Hunt, the [PARA]group of fox-killers who were embarrassed by having their antics[PARA]caught on video. Ladybird books also have their HQ here, [ITAL]which [PARA]should give a warm feeling to anyone brought up on 'Peter and [PARA]Jane', although it's not much help if you've got an essay crisis.[EITAL][HDNG]TRAVEL:[EHDNG][PARA][BOLD]Trains:[EBOLD] Loughborough station, on the main Inter City line north [PARA]from London King's Cross (1:25hrs, 1/hr) to York, Newcastle and [PARA]Edinburgh, is 2 miles from the campus. Direct lines also to [PARA]Leicester, Sheffield, Nottingham, Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham.[PARA][BOLD]Coaches:[EBOLD] Served by local coach company 'Paul Wilson' and [PARA]National Express, which offers services to, among other places, [PARA]London (ú11.25, 2:45hrs, 4/day), Nottingham (ú1.70, 30mins, [PARA]3/day), Manchester (ú10.75, 2:50hrs, 3/day).[PARA][BOLD]Car:[EBOLD] The A6 goes straight through Loughborough, and the M1 is [PARA]less than 2 miles west of the campus.[PARA][BOLD]Air:[EBOLD] East Midlands Airport (inland and European flights) is 51/2 [PARA]miles from the campus.[PARA][BOLD]Hitching:[EBOLD] [ITAL]The M1 is good, but it's a bus ride to the junction.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Local:[EBOLD] Local buses skirt the campus. For 45p students can get [PARA]across town, or for a bit more they can catch a ride into Leicester[PARA]or Nottingham.[PARA][BOLD]Taxis:[EBOLD] ú2-ú2.50 from the campus to the station (2 miles).[PARA][BOLD]Bicycles:[EBOLD] [ITAL]Useful for getting into town. The theft situation is [PARA]improving, but don't bring an expensive mountain bike; you won't [PARA]take it back.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][ITAL][HDNG]NOS and REQUIREMENTS:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Engineering[EBOLD] 2,250 20pts[BOLD][PARA]Science[EBOLD] 1,325 20pts[BOLD][PARA]Human Studs[EBOLD] 3,000 22pts[BOLD][PARA]Educ/Humanities[EBOLD] 925 20pts[HDNG]LIBRARIES and COMPUTERS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Books: 600,000 [BULL] Periodicals: 4,000 [BULL] Study places: 420 [PARA]Computer workstations: 1,500[ESTAT][PARA]The large white library is in the centre of the campus. There's [PARA]also a fibre-optic network, linking all those computers.[HDNG]CAREER PROSPECTS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Careers Service [BULL] No of staff: 8full/3part [BULL] Unemployed [PARA]after 6mths (1992): 9.5%[ESTAT][HDNG]FAMOUS ALUMNI:[EHDNG][PARA]Steve Backley (javelin chucker); Sebastian Coe MP (Con, [PARA]ex-athletics hero); David Moorcroft (athlete); Carole Tongue MEP [PARA](Lab); Bob Wilson (commentator, ex-Arsenal goalie).[HDNG]FURTHER INFO:[EHDNG][PARA]Prospectuses for undergrads, postgrads and some individual [PARA]departments.
