Abroad101: Study Abroad Reviews

Wonderful Semester in Very Student-Friendly Manchester Past Review

By (The College of William and Mary) - abroad from 01/18/2012 to 06/06/2012 with

Arcadia: Manchester - University of Manchester

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
I learned what it was like to live independently in a major city and gained a great deal from the experience.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 1 month - 6 months

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Very little class time compared to William & Mary but a lot of outside reading - a few hundred pages per hour, per class.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Housed with British students in a catered hall in which meals were provided. The rooms were singles and everyone was very welcoming.

* Food:

The food in the catered halls was what you would expect from campus food.

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

Finances

* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

Everything is pretty inexpensive in Manchester but because the pound is stronger than the dollar it was easy to spend more money without realizing it.

* Was housing included in your program cost? Yes
* Was food included in your program cost? Yes

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? No

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Dorm
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with?

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?
  • Manchester is a really fantastic city in which to spend time.
  • It was very interesting to experience the British educational system and how it differs from the American system
* What could be improved?
  • My only frustration was that the semester ended a month later than semesters do in America, thus making it more difficult to get a job for the whole summer.
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? I wish that I had been given the schedule for final exams in advance.