Farnborough College of Technology

Farnborough College of Technology

Age: 55

History: Originally established in 1957 as a training wing of the former Royal Aircraft Establishment, separating in the early seventies.

Address: Main modern campus within walking distance of town centre, plus a campus at Aldershot (construction crafts) which opened in September 2005.

Ambience: Students of all ages studying a wide variety of subjects at different levels, from foundation courses to degrees, full and part-time.

Vital statistics: 8,000 students, including around 1,000 higher education students. As one of its accredited colleges, the University of Surrey validates degrees in areas such as business, media, psychology and aeronautical engineering.

Added value: Farnborough has a strong reputation for engineering courses, due to its longstanding relationship with Farnborough Airfield and the Royal Aircraft Establishment. It is also one of the first colleges in the country to offer sports science courses. The college has three Centres of Vocational Excellence (CoVEs): engineering; business accounting and financial Services; applied ICT for business.

Easy to get into? Ranges between 120 and 160 UCAS points for foundation degrees and 160 and 240 for honours degrees.

Glittering alumni: Mike Rutherford from Genesis and Mike and the Mechanics; Jet and Trojan from Gladiators.

Transport links: Regular trains to London (journey time 40 minutes); also close to M3 and M4 motorways, and within easy reach of Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

Who's the boss? Business academic Christine Davis, who became Principal in 2001.

Teaching: State-of-the-art-equipment in a TV studio with industry-led tutors, close links with Sky television and BBC Radio. The QAA commended teaching in art and design communications, media, film and television studies.

Foundation Degrees: Include: business management; early years; education; hospitality management; learning support; photography; salon and spar management; social care; theatre, dance and film acting; tourism and events management; public services; aeronautical engineering; motorsport engineering; engineering; complementary therapies; film and TV production;graphic design, animation and interactive media; music production; radio and TV production; TV production and studio engineering; sport performance and personal training; childcare and education.

Nightlife: Plenty of local pubs; nightclubs in Fleet, Aldershot, Camberley and Guildford.

Any accommodation? None provided by the college.

Cheap to live there? A little above average - a room in a shared flat was around £80 per week in 2011.

Fees: £6,000 per year for UK students on undergrad courses starting in 2012.

Bursaries: None offered by the college.

Prospectus: 01252 407 040 / www.farn-ct.ac.uk

UCAS code: F66