Student Guide to Living in Dundee
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Living in Dundee as a student is a lot of fun. There are over 10,000 students living in the fourth-largest city in Scotland, located along the beautiful Firth of Tay estuary.
This is a student guide to help you get the most out of your time in Dundee or to give you a flavour of what you can expect if you are looking to move to Dundee to one of the two universities – The University of Dundee or Abertay University.
From the student nightlife and the football to the best pizza in Dundee and beautiful nature to explore, there’s so much to look forward to in Dundee as a student.
Nightlife in Dundee
There’s a vibrant student nightlife in Dundee, as you would expect with so many students living there. One of the biggest is Club Tropicana & Venga, which is split over three floors, a home to retro 80s music nights and live music from up-and-coming artists.
Fat Sams is home to some great live music throughout the year, and for a smaller live music venue, Conroy’s Basement/Roots Music Venue is a great place for an intimate yet busy music scene.
For those of you looking for something a little quieter from your nightlife, do not worry, Dundee has you covered with plenty of beautiful pubs and bars where you can sit and chat with your mates around a pint and a packet of crisps. Some of the standouts include The Phoenix, Duke’s Corner (a really cool venue with live music, barbecues, and late nights), and The Tinsmith.
Braes does a good pub quiz (and great chips!), and The Art Bar is atmospheric and has great live music and DJ sets. The pub scene in Dundee is vibrant, and you’ll find that many of them have live DJs and bands on regularly, along with good pub grub, pool tables and TVs to watch sport on. Everything you need as a student.
Food in Dundee
There are quite a few lovely cafés and coffee shops in Dundee that we’ve helped you find in the past, but there is plenty of good food in Dundee.
The Liar at the Students Union is a great choice for good when you’re on campus, hearty, delicious food that’s pretty cheap and gives you an excuse for a break from the library or in between lectures. The Parlour is another fantastic place, and one to impress when your parents or friends are visiting, with great cakes and pastries, freshly squeezed juices and smoothies, full breakfasts, and juicy burgers, to name just a few staples on the menu.
If you fancy a takeaway, there’s plenty to choose from, such as The Tandoori Hut for an Indian fix, dim sum from The Manchurian, or tacos from Mexican Grill. Medina is a good spot for a burger and a cocktail to start a night off well.
Events in Dundee
Dundee has loads going on for you to book into your calendar, including this spectacular dance event. One of the best events that students and locals look forward to each year is the Dundee Dance Event, which is the largest multi-venue dance music event anywhere in the UK.
All the venues around the city are free to enter, during the event (apart from the closing party at Fat Sams and the DDE Outdoor Stage), where you find almost every pub, bar, and club in the city has been taken over by DJs.
If you love dance music, this event which has been running on and off since 1998 has over 200 DJs, over 28 venues, across 13 hours. There are up-and-coming DJs and some big names.
Sport in Dundee
If you love playing or watching sport, Dundee has a lot to offer.
There are beautiful areas of the city and the coast for running and hiking, Dundee University has over 40 different sports clubs and teams to join during your time as a student, and there are two professional football clubs in the city.
In fact, the homes of Dundee (Dens Park), and Dundee United (Tannadice Park) are the two closest football stadiums in the UK, just 0.2 miles apart.
Transport in Dundee
The city is relatively small and compact, so it is easy to get around on foot, but if you do ever need or want to use public transport it is pretty cheap and easy to do so.
A student ticket on the bus costs just £1.60 for a single, and if you do find yourself using the bus every day a monthly pass is £50.
Travel close to Dundee
The local railway station provides fast and direct travel to other towns and cities in Scotland and further afield. You can easily get to Edinburgh, Glasgow, St Andrews, and Aberdeen, as well as really pretty places such as Perth, Forfar, and Arbroath.
There’s a lot to see in Scotland, such as big, beautiful country parks, awesome castles, as well as the sheer force of nature all around.
The airport in Dundee also gives you the chance to fly relatively cheaply further afield, so if you want to head down to London for instance, there are direct flights from Dundee, as well as to Belfast.
The Arts in Dundee
Dundee is home to the world class V&A, a design museum that leaves its mark on the landscape of the city with its exterior design and is fantastic inside too.
The McManus is an art gallery and museum with fine art exhibitions and an extensive natural history collection.
Dundee is also the comic capital of Britain, as it has links to The Beano and The Dandy, you’ll find bronze statues of the characters from both around the city!
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Nature in Dundee
Dundee is also home to a whole host of beautiful green spaces where you can relax and unwind away from your studies.
The Botanic Gardens in the university are very popular, providing a calm space in the middle of the busy city, whilst Dudhope Park is a great place to clear your head with a walk in the morning.
A good day-trip out of the city can be found at Camperdown Wildlife Centre, home to some exceptional birds and animals. Dundee Law provides stunning views of the River Tay and of the city as a whole, a great place to sit and rest.
The best thing about living in Dundee?
There are loads of great things to do and see in Dundee, but one of the best is the local people and the atmosphere.
It is one of the most welcoming cities you can go to as a student, a city that is not pretentious at all, and has a small, community-like feel when compared with big student cities in Scotland like Glasgow and Edinburgh or the refined student city of St Andrews.
You can still visit those places easily enough from Dundee, but by living and studying here there’s a good chance that you’ll love it so much that you want to stay beyond your graduation or be accepted as an honorary Dundonian.
