Now that you’ve been a Royal Holloway student for a while, you might think you know all the best study spots on campus. But we’re here to tell you that studying on campus is so much more than the library. Read over our favourite spots to study on campus to try out this week!
Now that you’ve been a Royal Holloway student for a while, you might think you know all the best study spots on campus but we’re here to tell you that studying on campus is so much more than the library. Read over our favourite spots to study on campus to try out this week!
For the past few years, there’s been very little competition for a seat in the library. However, this year, with everyone back on campus for in-person teaching, it certainly feels busier than ever! To help you search out the best secret study spots, we’ve put together a list of some of our favourite places to work on campus, including some you might not even have considered!
Group Study
Whether you're working on a project or presentation in a group, or just prefer working with your friends, there are plenty of great group study areas across campus!
Most people like to book a group study room in the library. There are 15 group study rooms which you can book for 2-hour slots. They’re great for doing group revision as they’re equipped with smartboards and whiteboards which you can use to share your ideas. However, they’re also very popular, and if you’ve left it to the last minute to organise, they’re often booked up.
Alternatively, you could head to Tommy’s Kitchen. There’s plenty of space for group work, and you can grab a tasty lunch or a coffee whilst you’re there. Similarly, The Packhorse is open from 12pm every day and is a great place to work during the day.
Crosslands, Café on the Square, Imagine, and Boilerhouse Café are also great places to meet and work in groups.
Independent Study
If you’re after somewhere quieter to study, there are plenty of places on campus to tuck yourself away in.
The first place to go is, of course, the silent study areas in the library. Located on the first and second floor (look for the purple signs), silent study is great if you’ve got a stack of reading to get through or an essay that requires complete focus. However, they’re also very busy during exam season. So, to ensure you get a seat, it’s better to arrive earlier than later in the day.
If you’re not an early riser, Founder's Reading Room is another silent study area open 24/7. If you’re not sure how to get there, follow the signs in the South Quad, check the campus map, or download the Royal Holloway app and listen to the audio tour.
Another quiet study space that you might not know about is your School’s common room. Lots of the buildings across campus have a dedicated room for students to use as a ‘common room’. These tend to be quieter areas with comfier seats so they’re good places to use if you want to take a quiet study break or read a couple of chapters of your book. If you’ve never been to your School’s common room before, why not check it out this week? Just ask your School Helpdesk if you don’t know where it is!
As well as your School’s common room, there are lots of tables, chairs, and sofas dotted around campus for you to study in – you just need to search them out! And remember, if you’re using these areas to work in, it’s best to work on your own quietly as there’ll be teaching going on around you.
Hopefully, this has given you a few more ideas about where to study on campus. We know how frustrating it is when all the seats in the library are filled up and you can’t find a good place to do your work. We also know that sometimes, when you’ve spent too many hours in one place, it’s nice to switch things up. Searching out new places to work on campus is one of the best ways to take advantage of everything it has to offer.