Victoria University of Wellington

"Here’s my honest review after 4.5 years of study of why I give the uni 3/5 stars because it is overall okay for New Zealand students. The University itself lacks a lot. The culture and funding is pretty bare especially as the uni is currently going through a huge debt. Compared to universities overseas and to Auckland and maybe Otago I think our social events are pretty bare and non-passionate. This might change in the future because honestly the uni staff is pretty overwhelmed and has had poor leadership in the past years. Don’t come here and expect a strong student community where the uni facilitates that. However Wellington students are pretty cool. We have a pretty diverse range of young people both ethnically and academically. While outside of halls it can be hard to find friends the social environment is good once you find a group, also there are a decent amount of clubs at the uni. Wellington as a city is a decent place to live. Its central and offers a pretty authentic kiwi culture with music, food, and cafes. If you live outside CBD it’s a 30 min train or drive which is not the worst. You can walk everywhere if you live in the CBD. The cons is that there’s no free parking in the city and it’s really expensive costs of living, but I guess so is Auckland. Once you land a decent job it’s definitely enjoyable otherwise expect government support and still being broke. Renting is a nightmare if you have never done so before and you are disadvantaged as a young student. You compete for pretty mid student flatting that is overpriced. We call it character development. Academic - we are known for our honours and research programmes which means that if you have a strong academic performance or are interested in further study Vic might be a better fit. However saying that the uni is broke rn. (I took law and arts) Choosing your courses can be a bit of a mixed bag and choosing blindly. Generally picking what sounds interesting to me and asking around has worked well. However I have had a decent share of courses that felt pretty dead and old fashioned. Where you get assigned lots of readings and go through tedious exercises. Overall the uni will feel like a place where you have the opportunity to live out some of the best nonchalant years of your life and a launch pad to becoming an adult/entering a graduate career all while you pay upwards of 20k-60k debt. Also knowledge is power. Was it worth it definitely. Would I do it again no, I would go overseas."

"Awesome place. Love the walk. The uni is very student centric with dedicated team."

"Ah, my alma mater. One of the oldest and most prestigious tertiary institutions in New Zealand. Feels great to return to VUW for a brief visit. I even bumped into Assoc. Prof. Jonathan Newton when I took a stroll at Kelburn Campus. We struck up a conversation, and he recommended that I should take a look at the university library. Oh my, much has changed ever since I graduated."

"I recommend Victoria University for those who are interested to make a career in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. They have really good courses in this domain. Also, they are offering a good number of scholarships in this category."