London School of Economics and Political Science - LSE vs University of Nottingham - UoN vs University of Essex vs University of Portsmouth - UoP vs Liverpool Business School

Side-by-side comparison from 633 verified student reviews. Scan one row at a time — winners are highlighted

Quick verdict
Higher overall rating: Le Cordon Bleu Paris (4.70)
London School of Economics and Political Science - LSE: wins 2/7 categories
University of Nottingham - UoN: wins 0/7 categories
University of Essex: wins 1/7 categories
University of Portsmouth - UoP: wins 0/7 categories
Liverpool Business School: wins 0/7 categories
Staffordshire Business School: wins 3/7 categories
Le Cordon Bleu Paris: wins 1/7 categories
Comparing
Best programme: Economics
Nottingham, The United Kingdom
4.30
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171 reviews
×
Best programme: Chemical Engineering
Colchester, The United Kingdom
4.20
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65 reviews
×
Best programme: Marketing and Management
Portsmouth, The United Kingdom
4.20
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61 reviews
×
Best programme: International Business Management
Liverpool, The United Kingdom
Not rated
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0 reviews
×
Stoke-on-Trent, The United Kingdom
4.60
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5 reviews
×
Best programme: Business Administration
4.70
Top
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9 reviews
×
Best programme: Culinary Arts
Category ratings
Facilities
4.04
4.35
4.32
4.30
Not rated
4.60
Win
4.56
Location
4.78
Win
4.42
3.85
4.47
Not rated
4.20
4.78
Professors
4.26
4.09
4.15
4.31
Not rated
4.40
4.67
Win
Internationality
4.80
Win
4.18
4.32
4.18
Not rated
4.40
4.67
Student life
3.63
4.55
4.10
4.22
Not rated
4.60
Win
4.00
Value
4.04
4.11
4.17
Win
4.00
Not rated
4.00
4.00
Accommodation
3.78
3.92
3.89
3.77
Not rated
4.00
Win
3.22
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • +Expert and experienced faculty
  • +Supportive and collaborative community atmosphere
  • +Diverse and flexible learning and assessment methods
  • +Excellent campus facilities and supportive faculty.
  • +Strong academic programmes with a focus on practical skills and cultural understanding.
  • +Vibrant student life with diverse societies and convenient city access.
  • +Welcoming and inclusive environment, diverse community
  • +Knowledgeable, approachable, and committed faculty/lecturers
  • +Diverse programs and intuitive learning platform
  • +Excellent practical learning opportunities and resources.
  • +Supportive and approachable tutors and staff.
  • +Great city location with a lively atmosphere.

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  • +Excellent student support and friendly staff
  • +Convenient location and good facilities
  • +Engaging and practical learning experiences
  • +exceptional quality of teaching and knowledgeable, approachable instructors
  • +strong emphasis on precision, quality, and professional skill development
  • +welcoming environment and supportive alumni network
Cons
  • -Poor teaching quality and lack of structure in academic programs.
  • -Inadequate support services and limited social opportunities.
  • -High fees with perceived low value and administrative issues.
  • -Limited module choices despite high tuition fees.
  • -Inadequate support and unclear expectations from some faculty.
  • -Poor campus facilities and remote location with transport issues.
  • -Unfair feedback and marking practices.
  • -Administrative and management issues are a recurring problem.
  • -Outdated facilities and insufficient resources are frequently mentioned.
  • -Lack of clear communication and support from staff is a common complaint.

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  • -Administrative and management issues cause constant frustration.
  • -Outdated facilities are a significant drawback.
  • -The curriculum lacks relevance and practical application.
  • -Administrative and management issues cause significant frustration.
  • -Outdated facilities and technology hinder the learning experience.
  • -Lack of career support and industry relevance leads to dissatisfaction.
Rating summary
What students say

Perceived strengths of this institution lie significantly in its **Location** and **Internationality**, both receiving top marks. Conversely, **Student Life** emerges as the area with the lowest reported satisfaction. Ratings for Facilities, Professors, Accomodation, and Value fall within a moderate to good range, indicating generally positive feedback across these aspects.

This institution receives outstanding reviews for its student life, scoring a remarkable 4.55. Location also garners high praise at 4.42, closely followed by facilities at 4.35. Conversely, accommodation presents a weaker area with a rating of 3.92. Other aspects like professors, internationality, and value fall within a solid range, indicating a generally positive university experience.

With exceptional ratings in Facilities and Internationality, this institution demonstrates significant strengths in its physical resources and global outlook. Student Life and Value also received positive marks, indicating a well-rounded experience and good return on investment. Conversely, Location and Accommodations were rated somewhat lower, suggesting these areas may offer room for improvement compared to other aspects of the university.

Overall, the university garners positive reviews, with **Location** standing out as its strongest attribute. Areas like **Facilities** and **Professors** also receive high marks. **Student Life** and **Internationality** are rated well, while **Value** presents a solid showing. The weakest area appears to be **Accomodation**, which received the lowest score among the surveyed categories.

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This institution garners excellent marks for its facilities and student life, both scoring a high 4.6. Professors and internationality also receive positive ratings at 4.4. Location is rated at 4.2, while accommodation and overall value stand at 4. The university's weakest areas appear to be accommodation and value, though they still maintain a respectable rating.

This institution receives high marks for its Location, scoring 4.78, and for its Professors and Internationality, both at 4.67. Facilities also rate well at 4.56. Student Life and Value are both solid at 4.00. The weakest area is Accomodation, which received a rating of 3.22.

Reviews summary
Highlights

Most reviews (~74%) are positive, praising academic reputation, expert faculty, and excellent resources. A small percentage (~3.4%) express dissatisfaction with lecturing quality, course structure, or career services.

University reviews are overwhelmingly positive (~90%), with students praising supportive faculty, excellent facilities, and enjoyable campus life. The single negative review mentioned curriculum limitations.

The University of Essex receives overwhelmingly positive feedback, with ~98.5% of reviews being favorable. Students highlight a welcoming environment, quality teaching, and supportive faculty. A small amount of negative feedback mentioned issues with location and transport.

With 61 reviews averaging 4.23/5, approximately 93% are positive. Students highlight supportive tutors, modern facilities, and practical learning. The vibrant city location is also a recurring positive theme.

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Students highly recommend this university, citing great support, good location near the train station, and excellent facilities like the sports center and student union. The learning environment and teaching methods are also frequently praised. No negative feedback was recorded.

All 9 reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.67/5. Students highlight exceptional teaching quality and knowledgeable instructors, along with impeccable facilities. The curriculum and emphasis on precision are frequently praised.

Rating distribution
5★
34%
42%
37%
36%
0%
60%
67%
4★
44%
48%
54%
51%
0%
40%
33%
3★
19%
10%
8%
13%
0%
0%
0%
2★
2%
1%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
1★
1%
0%
2%
0%
0%
0%
0%
Most useful review
Most liked
Great Experience

LSE is a great place to create life-long connections and friends. There's a certain sense of community that is special to the university. The staff are hands-on and approachable. The facilities are modern and well-equipped.

great uni

The university of Nottingham is a fantastic Russell Group university. Even speaking objectively, the university has a reputation for academic excellence; accordingly, it is ranked 66 in the world and 10 in the UK for employability according to QS 2022 rankings. In my experience, I can see why this is the case! I can only speak for the Faculty of Arts, but the staff are great and the content they teach is generally very interesting. The lectures are well prepared, and the powerpoint slides are always provided to students - many lecturers also record their lectures for those that can’t attend. Reading lists for each module are comprehensive, with core readings, recommended readings, and further readings available, alongside many other online resources to help with your studies. My biggest piece of advice is to take full advantage of what is available to you, especially the brains of your professors! They are there to help and will happily meet with you to discuss your work; they have always been quick to respond to my own queries on email and friendly and helpful in person. As is to be expected at uni, you will not be spoon fed. While I stand-by the fact that the lectures here are interesting, you are expected to go above and beyond with your reading and research. Sometimes the lectures may not even have any relevance to the assignments; do not make the mistake of thinking the lecture materials are all you need for your courseworks. In my first year a professor reminded me that I am meant to be a full-time student, which means I need to study like one! This means at least a few hours of work outside of lectures or seminars a day - of course in first year this isn’t as necessary but in second and third year I would try to take this advice on board if you want to do well. In relation to lectures and university staff, be aware that there are a lot of strikes ongoing, and so lots of teaching and some assignments are likely to be impacted. This seems to be a nationwide issue, but staff in the Faculty of Arts here often partake in the strikes. Nottingham is a super sporty university! There are a huge number of sports and societies to get involved with, make sure you go to the freshers fair to check out all your options and sign up to trial anything that might interest you. Don’t overlook the importance of these as a source of entertainment and places to meet new people. However, I will say is that there is a big drinking culture that is especially evident in sports teams so if that doesn’t appeal to you then its something to be wary of. As far as I can tell though, this isn’t limited just to UON, and many big universities have this culture. Furthermore, uni sports are pretty expensive. If you are part of a team you will have to pay a membership subscription, some sports require you to have a sports village pass, and will have to pay for kits/uniform. Even when trying new sports or wanting to play for fun instead of for competition, you will have to pay £5-10 per session. at the moment, only catered halls are available on campus, with self-catered halls being a little more further out, although all are within a reasonable distance. If I could repeat first year, I would pick one of the catered halls - I think the shared dining halls encourage more social interaction, the fantastic facilities on campus are much more easily accessible, and of course there is the added bonus of not having to cook or clean up! Finally, the surrounding areas are lovely. The main campus is absolutely gorgeous and green, with tons of wildlife. Keep an eye out for the bunnies! There are free hopper buses between University park, Jubilee and Sutton Bonnington. Beeston and Lenton in particular have wonderful student communities, where most students will live in their second and third years, but the city as a whole feels very student-oriented given the presence of two huge universities.

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Accounting and Finance Bachelors

I studied for 4 years in UOP - First-year foundation and 3-year bachelor's. The university buildings are spread around the city which means a typical day would be attending classes in different parts of the city - depending on the lectures you take. The degree program includes several interesting modules that contain knowledge that is applicable in your everyday life. One particular module I enjoyed was Financial markets and Institutions - which generally discusses the money markets and institutions and how they interact with each other. One key skill I picked up from the latter was the ability to analyse and make an educated judgement on investing in the stock market. Other key modules include Financial Reporting, Taxation, and Management Accounting - if you plan on pursuing a career in accounting and attempt the Acca, these three modules in addition to others give exemptions to several topics in the first 2 levels of the ACCA. Generally, I did not find the lectures and seminars at the university engaging therefore the motivation to attend them was not there. However, I found that attending the lectures and getting good grades are linked. The student life in UOP consists mainly of nights out - there is minimal to do in the city and few events throughout the year. On the other hand, the close-knit community of students (which is due to the many student accommodation buildings) makes you feel very welcome as an international student. There is a very diverse sum of students from all over the world. All in all, I would recommend the university to others.

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Student in 2013

I really enjoyed my time at LCB! I've found that my skills when I entered the work force were much higher than others. I think though there was a big portion missing in recipe development and composition. True- we did learn it through memorizing the recipes, but we really were missing classes on how different ingredients affect the final textures.. how you can change them... etc. That I still am not an expert in .. and I create recipes! Ouf! Also, I don't know if you still do a month of sugar work... but that really wasn't necessary and should be either cut or minimized to just 2 lessons. It's such a niche skill to know that I would have really preferred more technical skills. I loved the old location. The "rumors" I'm getting about the new location are that it's not as good, unfortunately - that i's become more of a money focused/marketing machine. I really hope that this image can be fixed as I love LCB and enjoyed my time there! Oh also - there should be more help for students to get jobs and featuring old students accomplishments - from cookbook launches to new bakeries so that current and old students can support them.

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