u/Injury_Few

I just graduated from vwo and now I need to make a decision that I probably should've started thinking about a year ago.

I'm a Dutch/British dual citizen. Last year I decided I wanted to try for a top UK university, but I started the application process far too late. Lots of the courses I was interested in required entrance exams that had already taken place. The TMUA was the only one still available, so I sat it with less than a week of preparation and completely flunked it. I think that played a big part in me being rejected from my top three choices: Cambridge, Imperial, and LSE.

I did receive offers from King's College London for Computer Science and Warwick for MORSE, and I've now met both offers. The problem is that I'm just not very convinced.

In The Netherlands I have been accepted into CSE and Physics at TU Delft and Econometrics and Operations research at EUR.

I have gotten a lot better grades than I was predicted and think I could get a much higher score in the TMUA, if I had a little longer to study. For that reason I am leaning into the idea of doing Physics or Econometrics in The Netherlands, whilst reapplying to British unis at the same time, but this time only Cambridge and Imperial. If I get in, I start my undergrad in the following year and if not, and try to get into the UK for my masters.

What do you guys think would be the right thing to do? Would appreciate everyone's input and perspective, thank you.

I just graduated from vwo and now I need to make a decision that I probably should've started thinking about a year ago.

I'm a Dutch/British dual citizen. Last year I decided I wanted to try for a top UK university, but I started the application process far too late. Lots of the courses I was interested in required entrance exams that had already taken place. The TMUA was the only one still available, so I sat it with less than a week of preparation and completely flunked it. I think that played a big part in me being rejected from my top three choices: Cambridge, Imperial, and LSE.

I did receive offers from King's College London for Computer Science and Warwick for MORSE, and I've now met both offers. The problem is that I'm just not very convinced.

I can't fully explain why. Part of me likes the idea of living in London, but I'm starting to think that's actually the biggest reason I applied to the UK in the first place. Ever since I was a kid I've moved countries multiple times, and I've noticed that after about a few years I always start wanting a fresh start somewhere else. I was always good at making new friends, but terrible at maintaining them, which is something I'm trying to improve. I'm wondering if my desire to leave is more about that than about the universities themselves.

Even though I'd be on home fees and my parents have repeatedly told me not to worry about the cost, I still can't help but feel like spending all that extra money on KCL or Warwick isn’t worth it when I could study in the Netherlands for a fraction of the price.

That leaves me with my Dutch backups: CSE at TU Delft (I placed 90th) and Econometrics and Operations Research at Erasmus in Rotterdam.

I admittedly chose these almost as backups without putting much thought into them. All I knew was that I wanted to study something mathematical, but not pure maths.

At the moment I think I actually prefer the Econometrics course at Erasmus, but I much prefer the atmosphere and student life at TU Delft. Housing is obviously difficult in both cities, but if I had to commute from home for a while, Delft would be much more manageable.

My parents genuinely say they'll support whatever I choose, and I believe them. At the same time, I definitely get the impression that they'd really like me to go to the UK, and I feel like that's making it even harder to think objectively. I guess my questions are if you think KCL or Warwick are worth it and if not if what your experiences are at the Dutch unis and which course you would recommend.