Hi everyone, this may seem like a bit of a tough post (especially with the NYU contrast) , but I’m looking to do english literature at university. Durham and St Andrews are my two favourites out of UK universities and I’m also interested in NYU and Bowdoin. I usually prefer more rural settings but NYC is my favourite city on earth so exceptions can be made!
I’m just wondering how the universities compare in:
prestige
2)International reputation
3)the english departments (I’m accustomed in this areas for St A and Durham)
Hi British Student,
My daughter is an American studying Eng Lit at St Andrews. I can tell you that any one of the schools you have mentioned are excellent universities! They all have excellent reputations.
Here are my thoughts:
Prestige: They are all well respected. In the U.S. NYU is at the top because most people know of NYU and of course, it is an excellent university with a good reputation. Bowdoin is an excellent college but it is small and some people, even Americans (outside of the northeast) are not familiar with that school. People who know it know it is highly respected and not easy to get admitted to.
As far as Durham and St Andrews, well, I’m admittedly biased. St Andrews is wonderful but Durham has an excellent reputation for English as well. We have found here in the U.S. there are people who haven’t heard of SA but, universally, the people we’ve talked to who are familiar w/ SA (and most are) they are always impressed w/ the university and impressed that our daughter goes there. We have found the same in the UK everyone there we have talked to has been impressed that she attends SA.
2.) International reputation: NYU and St Andrews win there. You may well know that SA has a very large international population (for a small university) and therefore has a very diverse student population. That means of course you will find graduates all over the world. NYU is also very diverse internationally as well. The international reputation of NYU speaks for itself because it is NYU. Neither Bowdoin nor Durham have the same international reputation but doesn’t mean they are less universities (Bowdoin is a college but not like a UK college). NYU, SA, and Durham are all Top 100 World Ranked universities. Bowdoin is not world ranked but that is because of its size.
3.) I’m not familiar w/ the other universities but the English dept at SA is excellent and my daughter has enjoyed it tremendously. It is challenging to be sure but she’s enjoyed the lecture/tutor style of education. She also likes the Scottish modules which allows her to study two other modules of her choice along w/ her ‘major’ module.
4.) Other notable comparisons: Well, as I have already said they are all stellar universities and you won’t go wrong attending any of them as far as education and reputation. You need to decide what type of atmosphere you want. NYU is a very large university in a very large city, Durham is a large university, ST Andrews is considered medium and is located in a beautiful coastal town and Bowdoin is a very small college in a charming Maine town but there are relatively decent sized towns Bath, Freeport and Portland, nearby. (I am Bath (about 15 min drive from Bowdoin as I write this). You can use public transportation in NYU, SA and I’m sure Durham. You will need your own form of transportation (or find a friend w/ a car) at Bowdoin. The other thing you need to consider is the cost. As a British student your cost of attending either SA or Durham is fixed, both NYU and Bowdoin will cost considerably more.
Another consideration is the opportunity for student involvement at the schools. I can’t speak for the other schools but SA has a wonderful student camaraderie. Are you familiar w/ the academic families? My daughter has found that SA is large enough that there is a lot of variety of societies (clubs) and outside activities but small enough that the entire town feels like the campus of the school which it essentially is. I won’t speak for the other school as I don’t have personal experience but I will say my daughter has had friends at both NYU and Bowdoin and those students have been very happy there as well.
Also, I want to mention that if you are not already familiar the requirements for graduation are all different from each other. In the UK (Durham) you’ll just study your singular course in your case English Lit. In Scotland (SA) you’ll have your major course study (module) plus two other subjects of your choice. At NYU and Bowdoin you will have a much more comprehensive program. You will study all subjects, maths, science, English, history etc. for the first two years then narrow down to just your major (course) classes for the final two years.
So that’s a lot - bottom line is any of them are excellent w/ great reputations. You just have to find what fits your needs best. Of course, if possible, go and visit. That is how my daughter made SA her top choice.
