Loved City Life in London Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I liked how all the classes offered related to British culture, history, politics etc. however I did not feel like I learned much in my classes. There was no review of my work, simply a number placed on a midterm paper & final paper. Class discussions were not very well directed by faculty or supported by the students. The level of effort was just low all round, on the part of the faculty and my fellow students in the classes. I just wish my thinking was stimulated a bit more.

On-site administration of your program

Sara is amazing. She does extremely well managing all the girls on the program. It would have been nice if the trip to Bath had been much earlier in the semester because towards the end of the program students want to travel on their own. Also the trip was a bonding experience that would have been helpful in the beginning of the program. Also if we would of had a choice (similar to the out of country trip)that would have been nice.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I loved my housing situation. I always had lots of privacy but I never completely bonded with the family, but I was okay with that. The commute from the far edge of zone 3 in the north was very long (especially since my internship was in zone 2 in the south) but I was very thankful that Hollins covered my public transportation costs.

The food was excellent. The only difficult part was knowing when dinner was going to be served. Every night it ranged from 6pm-8:30pm so I never knew when to come home by and I felt really bad for making it home too late some nights. But my family was nice enough to make me a plate.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

The trip to bath was nice. I liked that Sara picked our roommated but I wish that she didn't pair us with our housing room-mates. It would have been nice to be paired with someone else for a change. I found the semester to be very challenging social. At time I felt very isolated in my homestay and with my internship being 20 hours a week. It was also tough to only be on the trip with Hollins students.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I thought the city was very safe. My only advice is just to be smart. City life can be dangerous but you can avoid those dangers by being logical. I did have a health issue while abroad but I found the clinic simple and inexpensive. It was scary at the time but I was very satisfied with my treatment.

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

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• Host Family

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• Host Family