31,286 discussions, 145 guides
King's College (University of London)
31,286 discussions, 145 guides
King's College (University of London)
King's College London
University of London
The Strand
London
WC2R 2LS
Tel: (020)7836 5454
1829
King's College does not have a university radio station.
ROAR
Roar is King's College's newspaper, which is published in a tabloid format every two weeks. It has a circulation of 5000. Students from a range of disciplines and backgrounds contribute to it. Although it is often an enjoyable read, the format could be better.
The University is going to re-develop disabled access in some of the older buildings. There are also plans to build a new all weather astro-turf pitch.
Rory Bremner - Impressionist
Anita Brookner - Novelist
George Carey - Archbishop of Canterbury
Arthur C. Clarke - Sci-fi Writer
John Eliot Garner - Composer / conductor
Susan Hill - Novelist
Chapman Pincher - Writer and Journalist
Desmond Tutu - Former Archbishop of Cape Town
Njongonkulu Winston Ndungane - Archbishop of Cape Town
Maurice Wilkins - Nobel Laureate DNA Scientist
There are bars on all of Kings Colleges main campuses, including the Strand, Waterloo, Guys Hospital, St. Thomas Hospital (aka Tommys), and Denmark Hill (where Kings College Hospital (KCH) is).
The Waterfront - The Waterfront is situated at the Strand site, which also has two other bars. It has a capacity of 350 and boasts superb views across the River Thames, to Tower Bridge in the east and Westminster the west. The Waterfront is busy throughout the day, and has both pool tables and a small deli.
Tutus - A nightclub on the Strand site where weekly student union functions take place. It has a capacity of 620 and often plays good old cheesy music. Tutus has a new state of the art, digitally controlled sound and lighting rig, with advanced moving lights, scans and a powerful sound system. There is also the Reach Bar by Tutus.
Penthouse and other bars - The Penthouse is located at the Denmark Campus. There are also bars at Guys, St. Thomas and Waterloo. The hospital bars tend (as expected) to be full of medics, who seem to lead separate social lives from other Kings students.
Food - The College run B1 (a refectory) at the Strand as well as the Terrazza, complete with coffee bar. Kings Hospital, at Denmark Hill has the delightfully named Hospital Canteen, while Guys Hospital have a McDonalds! The Students Union run a deli in the Waterfront Bar and Tutus sells cheap pizzas etc. and breakfast .if you are ever up in the morning!
Functions are held at all of the Kings campuses, but the majority of them are held at the Strand Campus, which has the largest facilities. At the Strand there are usually 3 or 4 functions per week. Guys also have regular events, which are mostly populated by medical students. The Penthouse Bar expands into another room to allow a capacity of 300 on club nights.
The most popular night is Friday, and during the week numerous local clubs organise student nights. Travis, and numerous other bands have performed at Tutus in the last year.
The Summer Ball is the largest black tie social function of the year, followed by the Graduation Ball. The Colours Dinner is a sporting award dinner, which last year took place at Lords Cricket Ground. Being part of the University of London, there are also numerous ULU Balls, which Kings students attend.
Kings College have more than most when it comes to sporting and non-sporting societies. Virtually all sports are catered for (including Polo), and non-sporting societies range from National / Religious societies to Ballroom Dancing. There is even a Vegetarian Society!! More information can be found on the Student Union website, and all societies can be joined at Freshers Fayre.
Kings students are quite a sporty lot. 40% of University of London team members are Kings students. Recent successes on the sports field include Jiu Jitsu, athletics and netball.
Guaranteed: 100
The Halls of Residence at Kings College are very expensive, but are, as a result, lavish. A recent survey by the London Student, ULUs newspaper, found Kings College Halls to be the most expensive in London, if not the country!! To add to the problem, the University has recently sold some of its cheaper Halls. This has prompted many first years (up to 35%) to live out.
There are seven Halls of Residence within 4 miles of the Strand Campus. The most spirited of these is Hampstead Halls. We would suggest that you avoid Kings College Hall, as they are not in the safest area of South London!
As for private rented accommodation, the Colleges Accommodation Office can be a great help, as well as the University of Londons excellent service. Although finding housing in London is not as bad as often portrayed, it is virtually impossible to find affordable accommodation within Zone 1. unofficial-guides.com suggests that you look in Zone 2, near Putney, Wandsworth etc., and remember to look in the Evening Standard or other local papers.
King's College has sites throughout London. However, the main Strand Campus is right in the centre of the city, at the opposite end of the Strand to Trafalgar Square, near Aldwych. Nearby is the HQ of the BBC World Service, the Inland Revenue and the LSE. Although the front of the Strand building is a fairly bad looking, 70s style concrete structure, behind lies some more tasteful Georgian architecture. The older part of the building is almost impossible to get around...it is like a maze!
The new Waterloo campus is just across the River Thames, and is a well located, modern building. There are also the Guy's and St. Thomas' sites just across the river. Both these sites are close to the South Bank, home to theatres, the National Film Theatre the Hayward Gallery and further east the Tate Modern. Transport all around the city is easy from all of these. Many of the College's Halls of Residence are in some of the best and most affluent areas of London.
London is the pub, club and social centre of Britain. It would be impossible for unofficial-guides.com to give a comprehensive guide to London, simply because there is not enough room and that it is always changing. What we do advise is that you buy a copy of Time Out and Time Out, the Students Guide to London. They will give you a better understanding of what London is like...from a non-tourist point of view, and it will keep you at the cutting edge of the London social scene.
Absolutely impossible!!!- This is London, very very expensive and the Wardens are like vultures.
There is a branch of Barclays Bank in the Student Union building on the Strand Campus. There are also branches of every other large bank within walking distance of all campuses.
Disabled facilties at King's are poor for most of the sites. Due to the older buildings, most noteably at the Strand Campus, it is largely a case of luck, that there will be ramps etc.
This is not the case at the new Waterloo campus, where access is good
All of the campuses have at least one general shop, selling stationery, snacks etc. The Strand Campus also benefits from an STA travel agency, Waterstones bookshop, and a branch of Endsleigh Insurance..
There is a branch of Waterstones at the Strand Campus and at Guys. There are also bookstores all over London, and the LSE Economics Bookshop is a couple of minutes away.
Although Kings has a good sporting reputation, their outdoor sports facilities are about 10 miles from the Strand Campus, at Berrylands in Mitcham! This means an annoying tube ride to and from practices and matches. However, there are indoor facilities closer to home. The Strand has a shooting range, and there is the new K4 fitness centre on Stamford Street. Guys has a swimming pool.
There is no university or student union run transport system. However, London Transport does offer cut price young person travel cards.
Kings College really is in the centre of London. As a result, there are no green spaces of any proportion to rave about. You can get a tube Hyde Park.
There are five main Libraries and two smaller ones, with over 900,000 books and 2,500 study places. Spending per student on library facilities is relatively high, at £94 per FTE student. Students do complain that there should be later opening hours though..
Kings has numerous special collections including the Enk collection (classics), Burrows (modern Greek and Byzantine studies) and the Ford collection (science).
Computer facilities, including free Internet and e-mail access, are available to every student. Some facilities are 24 hours, and some Halls have Internet access. There are over 1000 computers, but students often complain that they cannot get to a computer quick enough.
KCLSU offers a welfare department, and the University runs a counselling and medical centre, which employs a team of doctors, nurses etc. However, for many services it is best to use the University of London facilities, as they are more extensive.
