Deciding where to study

With 165 institutions and over 30,000 courses to choose from you may be forgiven for wondering where to start! You can help your child decide by asking some key questions:

• What do they want to study and why?
• Where do they want to live?
• What grades do they expect to achieve?

Using this information you can then start to search through course options. Use our Choosing the right course and university guide to help you.

We highly recommend that you take your child to as many university Open Days as possible to help them get feel for the environment and assess whether it is the right place for them.

Visit Royal Holloway

Of course we recommend that you visit Royal Holloway! Sign up to one of our undergraduate events and visit our campus.

Top 10 things to look for at an Open Day

Open Days are the best way to get a feel for life at university. You and your child can look around the campus, meet current students and teaching staff, and find out more about both studying and living at university. Open Days offer prospective undergraduate students an informative, interactive and personal experience of university through talks, zones and tours. Best of all you’ll have the freedom and flexibility to experience all of this in your own time and in a way that best suits your needs. Our top ten picks for the day include:

1. Plan, plan, plan! Take a look at the programme before arriving to make sure you know when and where things are happening
2. Attend a wide range of talks – to learn more about the university’s inspiring courses and hear general advice and guidance
3. Visit the subject zones to speak to a leading academic in their field and have your questions answered. 
4. Meet current students who can help guide your future graduate and explain their own experiences. 
5. Take a student led tour. Student ambassadors will be available on Open Days to show you and your child around the university.
6. Explore university accommodation. Find out more about living on campus by exploring their accommodation.
7. Try out any interactive sessions in specific departments, such as robotics demonstrations and laboratory exercises. 
8. Get a taste of student life with hands-on activities and watch demonstrations in the student life zones.
9. Drop-in on the parent’s stand where you can pick up a handy guide on everything related to your child’s application (including key dates).
10. Pick up an undergraduate prospectus if you haven’t already, so you know exactly how to contact the university should you have any questions after the Open Day.

Specifically tailored for students who have received an offer from Royal Holloway, Applicant Visit Days are an opportunity for your future graduate to get an in-depth feel for what it’s really like to study their chosen course.

Features of the day are department-specific activities, a tour of campus, a look around our accommodation, and a talk on student life.

You will have the opportunity to visit our Advice Hub and Parents' talks, as well as the chance to speak with students about their experiences of studying here.

We have prepared this student planner to help you navigate the intricacies of the university research process.