four months of tea, pubs, and football Past Review
By A student (English, Presbyterian College) - abroad from 01/09/2014 to 05/04/2014 with
Edge Hill University: Ormskirk - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
The experience is definitely worthwhile, as I made some amazing friends and traveled to some amazing places. I learned more about myself and became more independent in my time abroad.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
My courses were challenging and interesting, yet I felt like a burden to the professors in some of my courses since I came into the academic year halfway through the year long courses. Thus, the expectations for the study abroad students were different from the expectations for normal students, and I didn't appreciated having different deadlines and more/less work to do than other students. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The study abroad office was extremely helpful and accessible whenever I had questions or concerns. However, I feel like they could have better informed us of different aspects of being a student at Edge Hill, such as the dining options on campus, etc. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The room I was given came with a bed, bookshelf, desk, closet space, and sink area. I shared a toilet room, shower, and kitchen with six other students. I enjoyed having my own space, but the building was quite old and the furnishings were outdated. |
| * Food: |
The food was good for the most part, but the options were limited as they seemed to repeat meals week after week. There were multiple different options for food on campus, but we had to find them on our own as our study abroad coordinators did not inform us of all our options when we arrived. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I made British friends by having British hallmates and joining an on-campus society. However, I wish the program had organized more experiences for the study abroad students to meet Edge Hill students, as I spent most of my time hanging out with the other American study abroad students. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I used the on-campus Health and Wellness Center once, and the assistance was both thorough and quick. Other than that, I did not come in contact with the local healthcare system. |
| * Safety: |
I felt safe at all times in Ormskirk. Walking from campus into town alone never concerned me, even at night. Also, security officers would patrol campus at night. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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Finances
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* 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) |
Since food was provided by the university, most expenses on a week-to-week basis came from groceries, laundry, travel, and weekend trips. I had few issues managing money while there. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 25-40 pounds |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Utilize the food provided by the university. Re-use water bottles and use up all the money on the meal card to buy snacks for the next week. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| 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? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | I wish I knew how quickly the four months would go by, so that I would have spent less time talking to people from back home and focused more on enjoying every moment I had abroad. |
Reasons For Studying Abroad
| To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you. |
The Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
