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Francis Drake Hall Reviews

33 Reviews by Students
#17 out of 27 halls at University of Plymouth

3.35 / 5
3.35 / 5
322 ft from University of Plymouth - Main Campus View map
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322 ft from University of Plymouth - Main Campus View map
  • 1 min
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How do you rate Francis Drake Hall?

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Most helpful review

Plymouth University has been an extremely good experience thus far. The internet, despite patchy at times with very intense internet dependent gaming, is great for everything else; studying online is as easy as studying in person, and you do both. The staff here are very nice and very good at their jobs. More than deserving respect as anyone does, they deserve admiration. There’s a wide variety of societies, which can be fairly easy to join and fit into, and they often/almost always go to a local food place afterwards for relaxed general talk about anything and everything: I have not yet had a boring night, even if I seldom speak. The societies also end up being safe places to just approach a group of people at a social event and ask to just sit there, allowing you to slowly accustom yourself to the people there and build to confidence to actually talk to them (amazing as a socially anxious autistic person who initially planned to rely on my online friends for the full three years).

Value for money
Location
Property management
Cleaning
Social spaces
Social experience
Internet / Wifi
By member12123024
On 3rd November 24
verified Verified student
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Most helpful review

Plymouth University has been an extremely good experience thus far. The internet, despite patchy at times with very intense internet dependent gaming, is great for everything else; studying online is as easy as studying in person, and you do both. The staff here are very nice and very good at their jobs. More than deserving respect as anyone does, they deserve admiration. There’s a wide variety of societies, which can be fairly easy to join and fit into, and they often/almost always go to a local food place afterwards for relaxed general talk about anything and everything: I have not yet had a boring night, even if I seldom speak. The societies also end up being safe places to just approach a group of people at a social event and ask to just sit there, allowing you to slowly accustom yourself to the people there and build to confidence to actually talk to them (amazing as a socially anxious autistic person who initially planned to rely on my online friends for the full three years).

Value for money
Location
Property management
Cleaning
Social spaces
Social experience
Internet / Wifi
By member12123024
On 3rd November 24
verified Verified student
Read all reviews

Q&A


Q
Does it have induction jobs or normal ones?
By member633630 On 26th August 18
Q

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All the Answers You Need About Student Accommodation

What tenancy length do I need?

Some students choose to stay during the academic year, whilst others – particularly international students – require a tenancy that covers the entire year. You can also find student accommodation that is available for one or two terms, classified as a “short stay” on our search filters.

Should I stay in catered student accommodation?

This is totally up to you! Catered accommodation means you will be served meals at set times in a dining hall, and you’ll likely have access to fewer kitchen facilities than if you were to stay in self-catered accommodation.

What is a guarantor and do I need one?

A guarantor is a person who signs a contract to agree to pay your rent if you are unable to. Most university accommodation requires a guarantor, and this applies to both domestic and international students.

Will I need to pay a deposit on student accommodation?

Most likely, yes, you’ll need to pay a deposit. This will be refunded at the end of your stay as long as there is no damage to the room or property.

What bills will my rent include?

If you are staying in university-run accommodation or private halls, your rent should include any utilities such as electricity, gas, water, and internet. Students are not required to pay council tax, however you may need to fill in an exemption form so make sure you check with your local council.

What is purpose-built student accommodation?

Purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) are residential buildings designed for students. They are often located close to campus, boast modern facilities, include all bills, and often have staff on site to assist residents.

Will my student accommodation be furnished?

Student accommodation is typically fully furnished. Your room should include at least a bed, clothes storage, desk and chair. You’ll likely need to bring things such as bedding and kitchen utensils, but we have a full list here of everything you’ll need.


Read Francis Drake Hall Reviews


Student Review: 4.9 /5
By member12123024 On 3rd November 24 verified Verified student

Plymouth University has been an extremely good experience thus far. The internet, despite patchy at times with very intense internet dependent gaming, is great for everything else; studying online is as easy as studying in person, and you do both. The staff here are very nice and very good at their jobs. More than deserving respect as anyone does, they deserve admiration. There’s a wide variety of societies, which can be fairly easy to join and fit into, and they often/almost always go to a local food place afterwards for relaxed general talk about anything and everything: I have not yet had a boring night, even if I seldom speak. The societies also end up being safe places to just approach a group of people at a social event and ask to just sit there, allowing you to slowly accustom yourself to the people there and build to confidence to actually talk to them (amazing as a socially anxious autistic person who initially planned to rely on my online friends for the full three years).

Value for money
Location
Property management
Cleaning
Social spaces
Social experience
Internet / Wifi
All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.1 /5
By member8107015 On 19th April 24 verified Verified student

Fire alarms constantly, lift service breaks down every year and doesn't get resolved for months. If you need student accomodation go private. Really not worth the money.

Value for money
Location
Property management
Cleaning
Social spaces
Social experience
Internet / Wifi
All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 2.7 /5
By member11106775 On 18th April 24 verified Verified student

Reception staff and security are great when you need them, the location is helpful, but it's just not worth the ridiculous amount of money you pay to stay here. Constant fire alarms in the middle of the night, the lift being broken for months at a time, and building works that we were told wouldn't start until 8 but the builders and trucks are very loud when they arrive at 6:30 every morning. Feel that students living on this side of the building should've been warned about the building works better as they are constant and incredibly loud and disruptive. Would not recommend living here.

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 5 /5
By member649935 On 16th July 20 verified Verified student

The accomodation is incredibly welcoming and helps you with whichever problem you may have

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 1.9 /5
By Thomas On 19th January 18 verified Verified student

Definitely the worst university halls Plymouth has to offer. The management is unhelpful and seem to be in it just for the money. You will be fined for the negative actions of other residents. (Money was taken straight out of deposit for someone else vomiting outside their room. Taps do not run cold at night. No social area/spaces as well as poor security (the front door lock broke and wasn't fixed for a week). All of this for £140 a week definitely not value for money.

Value for money
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Property management
Cleaning
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Internet / Wifi
All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.1 /5
By member1325441 On 21st December 16 verified Verified student

It's ok but they'll shout at you for anything, the hot water never works. Lucky it's on campus as that's the only good thing, but it's way too expensive for what you get.

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Property management
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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.6 /5
By member425440 On 21st December 16 verified Verified student

Right on campus, lovely halls and rooms

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.3 /5
By member525152 On 17th December 16 verified Verified student

Hot water didn't work properly all year round, it's so not worth the money you pay.

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.6 /5
By member422970 On 2nd July 16 verified Verified student

good rooms and good size kitchen, got fined for a lot of things at the end of the year like wet floor signs and broken roof tiles

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 1.9 /5
By member622230 On 4th May 16 verified Verified student

Really bad value for money. WiFi is terrible. No common room. Fire alarms oversensitive.

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 4.6 /5
By L Selter On 23rd March 16 verified Verified student

Great on campus accomadation, although the wifi can be spotty in places, the wired connection is great (100mbits)

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 2 /5
By member1321065 On 16th March 16 verified Verified student

Overpriced, loud, rude RA's, everything falling to bits, abysmal Wi-Fi, poorly designed en-suites. However good location. Overall = Avoid.

Value for money
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Property management
Cleaning
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Internet / Wifi
All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 2.1 /5
By member620977 On 2nd March 16 verified Verified student

Very overpriced, too stingy to replace my mattress when it has springs digging into me, the cleaner refuses to clean when it isn't too dirty and there is no internet in the kitchen.

Value for money
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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 4.6 /5
By Scott94 On 6th December 15 verified Verified student

Without doubt one of the best halls (been to them all), right on campus, a huge number of rooms (great socially), rooms and communal areas are clean tidy and modern. Regular cleaning, lovey views from the higher floors and just an overall fantastic halls. Wouldn't have picked any other.

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 2.9 /5
By member518793 On 15th November 15 verified Verified student

Right on campus which was great but didnt have much of a community

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Internet / Wifi
All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.3 /5
By member1316176 On 1st October 15 verified Verified student

Ideal location, right in the middle of campus. Generally quiet once in the rooms and pretty good for socialising. Only little things (and although I talk about them a lot here, they are very little in comparison): very poor internet in a lot of the bedrooms and the guy 'in charge' of the halls (yes, he's a student) is throwing his weight around and trying to humiliate and create a fault between us and the older students. Not so great, someone needs to be allocated that job as a full time thing and be properly trained. However, the RAs are lovely and do make up for this. Overall, a great place and great halls and the general Plymouth Residence Life team and other staff are lovely and really prompt at fixing little things (hot water, shower heads etc.). It's just seriously pricey!

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 4 /5
By member68934 On 1st May 15 verified Verified student

It was a great experience. Right on campus too. Just get on with your flatmates and you'll have a good year.

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.3 /5
By member108932 On 1st May 15 verified Verified student

Halls are modern and clean. Rooms tidy and comfortable. Management quite poor when things need sorting. Security is quite poor but not really much of an issue as its on campus. Location is perfect. Social experience is brilliant.

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.5 /5
By member68848 On 30th April 15 verified Verified student

RA tended to be over bearing and controling

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 2.7 /5
By member58823 On 30th April 15 verified Verified student

Pros: Perfect location, unlimited heating, cosy room with a comfy bed, if anything breaks it gets fixed within 24hrs, nice views Cons: Loud, you can hear everyone pre drink, you hear people come back from nights out as the sound echos around the halls, no social space apart from kitchen, cleaners barely clean and expect it to be clean in order to clean, RAs are useless I went to straight to security to get things done. Good luck!!

Value for money
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Property management
Cleaning
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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.5 /5
By member88607 On 30th April 15 verified Verified student

An average halls in terms of its facilities, however the location is the biggest plus side. Living in Francis Drake means you can roll out of bed into lectures, and roll on the floor from a night out to the comfort of your own bed. The RA's in B block to absolutely nothing and have been no help to me what so ever. This is something that UPP really needs to up it game on, as at the end of the, you are paying for them.

Value for money
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Property management
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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 2.3 /5
By member128585 On 30th April 15 verified Verified student

Overpriced, tiny bathroom (literally a cupboard with a toilet in it, which everyone comments on), if you get stressed you can't really escape the uni, no common room (although there is a big kitchen, granted)... But you can't hear the traffic like my friends in St Thomas' can.

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited
Student Review: 3.8 /5
By member46007 On 10th April 15 verified Verified student

Love my flat mates, love the social in our block. We run the show so can do what we like

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All reviews are the views of StudentCrowd members, not of StudentCrowd Limited

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