StudentMediaWire

Newcastle is rated the best place in the UK to be a student, according to new research from accommodationforstudents.com.

A recent online survey of 36,000 students put the Geordie capital on top with an overall rating of 64%.

Equal second, with a score of 62%, came last year’s number one, Aberystwyth.

Following behind were Brighton, Exeter, Manchester and Sheffield.

A total of 56 UK university towns were included in the questionnaire.

In their reviews, students rated their university location across five criteria: going out (restaurants, pubs, clubs), shops (supermarkets, corner shops, book shops, video shops), transport links (buses, trams, train, underground), community (safety, student population, surroundings) and facilities (gyms, libraries, parks).

Scottish universities scored well. Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow all made the top ten.

Surprises in the table include London and Cambridge with scores of just 56%. Hatfield would appear to be the least popular with a score of just 44%.

Simon Thompson, co-founder and director of accommodationforstudents.com, said:

“This represents students’ real opinions about where they study and is, of course, helpful to students going to university for the first time.

“It is also useful for existing students who are looking to move as it also provides a breakdown of the best areas within cities. For instance, in Newcastle the area of Jesmond comes out as the top place to live for students, whilst Benton, Sandyford and Heaton are also rated highly.

“Likewise, our student rental analysis shows the average cost and availability of student accommodation in over 80 locations throughout the UK, again broken down by area within towns and cities.”