<p>I’m a senior from New York, US, and was accepted to both schools (conditionally as long as my GPA remains above 2.5 or something, which it will). I was wondering if any of you had any input on these schools with regard to international student experience (academically, socially, and with consideration of being so far from home). I’d definitely consider attending one of the two, but I haven’t been able to find much of the information I’ve been looking for on either one. Thanks!</p>
<p>Regents may officially have university status, but you won’t find it in any ranking of universities in the UK. For example:</p>
<p><a href=“University league table 2015 - the complete list | University guide | The Guardian”>http://www.theguardian.com/education/ng-interactive/2014/jun/02/university-league-tables-2015-the-complete-list</a>
<a href=“University Rankings and League Tables 2024”>http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings</a></p>
<p>I would think really, really hard about what you want from this university- for $24K in tuition, plus $422/WEEK for a (triple) room & board (and you either move out over the holidays, or you pay the weekly fee). </p>
<p>Keele is at least a real university, respectably ranked somewhere in the middle of UK unis. An hour from anywhere, but they seem to make an effort to make you welcome. And you will pay substantially less- possibly less in tuition (depending on your course) and as much as 2/3 less for accommodation (b/c, well you are an hour from anywhere, not in one of the most expensive cities in the world).</p>
<p>Agree with Collegemom3717. Keele is nothing special, but respectable and a decent option if it offers a course you like. Regents is a cash cow aimed at getting your money, aimed virtually exclusively at overseas students. You might have a good time socially (if you have any money left), but you would end up with a degree no one takes seriously. Do you have any other options?</p>
<p>What are your scores? Could you apply to some other UK unis through UCAS, have you any spots?</p>
@ssswims Sorry for the late response. I wasn’t really considering doing any unis through UCAS. Also, the unis I was considering the most that would have had separate/UCAS applications instead of Common App were Bristol and Aberdeen. Also, money was a factor in my decision and since I didn’t have enough/the required AP scores in relevant subjects to get an offer from them, I decided Keele and Regents would be best as they were both free applications (and Regents was in London, where I was ideally looking to go).
I’m an American student at Regents, and can only tell you about my experience there, as I don’t know much about Keele.
First off, I love it. I received a large scholarship so I am sort of only paying for room and board. I stayed at a dorm the first semester - yes it was overpriced, but you quickly make friends who want to find a cheap apartment to split (which I have).
There are sort of 2 crowds - the rich kids (like super duper rich, like drive sports cars to school and scowl at underdressed students) who are mainly in the business department (but they just ignore everyone). That part is kind of annoying. But the other types of students are super friendly. I study screenwriting and producing, and the class has about 15 people but we are all great friends and hang out often.
The social scene is great - you aren’t expected to be a partier but if you like parties, regents outdoes themselves. There is a great student bar and a large club scene. I love that at the end of huge projects, the teachers sometimes by their students drinks to celebrate.
The location is, I think, the best location in the world. You are in a beautiful park that holds various festivals and theater events, can easily walk to Primrose Hill, Camden Town, and Abbey Road, and the Underground is only a short walk down Baker Street (whole lot of Sherlock Holmes shops) where you can quickly get to west minister, trafalgar square, pica dilly circus, ext. You can also walk to those places in under an hour - it’s really incredible.
And the campus is beautiful on the outside, small but great.
Academically, it’s not the best. I imagine it will start making ranks in the future, cause it was just given university status. I went to a challenging high school, so the work is a piece of cake. All the classes are focused only on your major (no electives), and there is only a small amount of homework. I probably had 3 big assignments to do for each class for the whole semester - and no tests. I also had only 3 days of classes next semester, and 3 classes, but this semester I have 5 days (still 3 classes).
If you’re looking for a business major, the business school graduates had the 3rd highest starting incomes in the UK.
The teachers seem very experienced in their fields, and kevin spacey is involved with the school which is pretty cool.
As with all UK schools, you get your degree in 3 years, so even though it’s somewhat expensive for Europe, it’s probably way more affordable than going to school into the US. I was accepted into NYU for film, but this was a much better opportunity that wasn’t going to put me $200k in debt 
Tell me if you have any more questions!