[HDNG]INTRODUCTION:[EHDNG][PARA][BULL] Formerly Staffordshire Polytechnic[EBOLD][PARA]Remember, Staffordshire University is named after the county [PARA]not the town of Stafford - students might find themselves in either[PARA]of 2 towns depending on where their course is based. Stafford is[PARA]one of them and Stoke the other [ITAL]and never the twain shall meet. [PARA]They may as well be separate institutions, having their own [PARA]identities and loyalties. Both look down on the other,[EITAL] but what [PARA]they have in common is that they are towns in the north-west [PARA]Midlands, 16 miles apart. The Stafford campus on a green field [PARA]site in the outskirts of the small and [ITAL]pretty [EITAL]county town. It is a [PARA]former technical college made of 1960s concrete. [ITAL] It's a bit bleak [PARA]in winter, but great for lazy days in summer marred only by the [PARA]looming doom of exams.[EITAL] The Stoke part of the University is on 2[PARA]sites at College Road and Leek Road in the town centre of [PARA]Stoke-on-Trent. [ITAL]Leek Rd has more of the feeling of a [PARA]self-contained campus with playing fields and accommodation on[PARA]site. [EITAL][HDNG]ATMOSPHERE:[EHDNG][PARA]Many students are on part time or professional courses[ITAL] and the [PARA]University as a whole is developing very rapidly. Stoke and [PARA]Stafford have totally different atmospheres despite attempts by [PARA]the University to unite them:[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Stafford: [EBOLD](2,800 students - Engineering, Computing, Business) [ITAL][PARA]The site is small and students mix between subject groups and [PARA]across other boundaries often imposed elsewhere. It can get [PARA]claustrophobic since there's nowhere to escape to. Everyone [PARA]knows the colour of everyone else's underwear, their genital [PARA]diseases and so on. [EITAL] [HDNG]STOKE:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Population: 244,800 [BULL] Manchester: 34miles[ESTAT][PARA]Stoke has suffered for the last couple of decades from urban [PARA]decline and the closure of many local industries. In Hanley, there [PARA]is a new shopping centre and Festival Park, once the site of the [PARA]National Garden Festival, now has an [ITAL]excellent[EITAL] swimming pool [PARA]and various other attractions. [ITAL]Most Stoke students here love it, [PARA]but they didn't apply for the scenery[EITAL]; [ITAL]whoever painted this place [PARA]forgot to wash his brush out between colours[EITAL]. The University [PARA]has its own art gallery, the Flaxman, on site. See also [ULNE]Keele [PARA]University[EULNE].[HDNG]TRAVEL:[EHDNG][PARA][BOLD]Trains:[EBOLD] Stafford and Stoke are on the Merseyside and [PARA]Manchester services to London. The Stoke site is right next to [PARA]the station.[PARA][BOLD]Coaches:[EBOLD] National Express services to and from Stafford (ú2.75,[PARA]30mins, 2/day), Birmingham (ú4.25, 1:20hrs, 13/day), [PARA]London(ú14.00, 3:35, 5/day).[PARA][BOLD]Car:[EBOLD] The M6 and A34 connect the 2 towns. Stafford is also [PARA]served by the A518 and A513.[PARA][BOLD]Hitching:[EBOLD][ITAL] In Stoke a hike may be hitched from the nearby ringroad[PARA]and the M6 provides a launch pad for both towns.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Local: [EBOLD][ITAL]Buses are regular, cheap and reliable[EITAL] and run between the [PARA]towns and all round the region. The University runs a free [PARA]minibus between sites 6 times a day.[PARA][BOLD]Taxis:[EBOLD][ITAL] With many firms working in both towns, prices are [PARA]competitive. [EITAL] Some offer student discounts[ITAL] which are worth [PARA]remembering for late nights.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Bicycles:[EBOLD] [ITAL]For those with thighs like tree trunks, bikes are useful. [EITAL][ITAL][HDNG]NOS and REQUIREMENTS:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Arts[EBOLD] 1,600 12-14pts[BOLD][PARA]Business[EBOLD] 1,769 14-16pts[BOLD][PARA]Computing[EBOLD] 1,454 8pts[BOLD][PARA]Design/Ceramics[EBOLD] 631[BOLD][PARA]Engineering[EBOLD] 802 8-10pts[BOLD][PARA]Law[EBOLD] 642 20pts[BOLD][PARA]Sciences[EBOLD] 1,537 8-18pts[BOLD][PARA]Soc Sci[EBOLD] 852 14-20pts[BOLD][PARA]Surveying[EBOLD] 234 12pts[BOLD][HDNG]LIBRARIES and COMPUTERS:[EHDNG][EBOLD][PARA][BOLD][STAT][BULL] Books: 300,000 [BULL] Periodicals: 2,200 [BULL] Study places: 1,118 [PARA]Computer workstations: 2,300[ESTAT][EBOLD][PARA]3 libraries: Leek Rd, College Rd and Beaconside (Stafford). At [PARA]Stafford, [ITAL]which is renowned as a centre of computing expertise, [EITAL][PARA]the new, [ITAL]well-equipped[EITAL] Octagon Centre has opened - home of [PARA]the School of Computing[ITAL].[EITAL][HDNG]CAREER PROSPECTS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Careers Service [BULL] No of staff: 6full/6part [BULL] Unemployed [PARA]after 6mths (1992): 13.7%[ESTAT][PARA]Many find work in computing.[HDNG]SPECIAL FEATURES:[EHDNG][PARA][BULL]Students here are far from typical. Many are [PARA]industry-sponsored part-timers with which the University [PARA]maintains good links. Many others are mature students and [PARA]mothers. Emphasis is placed on encouraging unconventional [PARA]applicants, including students with disabilities, and any student [PARA]under 21 who is resident in Staffordshire, Shropshire or Cheshire[PARA]is guaranteed an offer, provided they meet the normal entry [PARA]requirements.[HDNG]FURTHER INFO:[EHDNG][PARA]Prospectuses for undergrads (including diplomas and [PARA]certificates) and postgrad, professional and post-experience [PARA]students.
