Abroad101: Study Abroad Reviews

ISA London 10/10!!! Past Review

By (english and history, University of Tennessee - Knoxville) - abroad from 01/08/2016 to 05/28/2016 with

ISA Study Abroad in London, England

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
absolutely, you can't study abroad for 4 months and not come out of it a better person for it.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? None

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

university not challenging, but the courses were interesting and professors approachable and knowledgeable. 3/4 assignments per semester and lecture once a week.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

i was with ISA. they tried to be very helpful and usually succeeded. in the beginning they had these weekly check in meetings that were quite annoying as you had to go into their office, and the buses for excursions were usually late. overall, though, they did a fine job.

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

obsessed with my flat. great location (notting hill), lots of windows, so lovely.

* Food:

anything you want to eat can be found in london. you can eat super cheap or Michelin star, all depends on your budget.

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

i didn't make many local friends, but i also didn't try very hard. it's easy to feel british, though, just by going to local pubs and chatting with people.

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

i didn't have any experience with this, but people who did said it was easy. went to a doctor that worked with the program, cost 100 pounds per visit i think.

* Safety:

never felt unsafe walking or using public transport at night. i don't know anyone who was pick-pocketed here or anything like that.

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

there's good and bad in everything, but overall i don't think it could get much better than my time abroad.

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)

london is really expensive, but you can live rather cheaply. produce and store brands are pretty cheap (i spent like 20/30 pounds per week on food), oyster is expensive (but less if you get a student discount-87 pounds per month unlimited travel). lots of bars have covers and ubers are expensive around the city, but tons of places have student discounts and drink nights. it really just depends on how much you want to spend.

Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? 50 pounds (not including any traveling outside city-i also rarely ate out)
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? spend money on what's important to you. i didn't really eat out or go shopping, i spent most of my money on going out at night and traveling.

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? No

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Apartment
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Americans
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
  • Americans
  • International Students
About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? 0

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?
  • london
  • ease of travel
  • university schedule
* What could be improved?
  • cost (can't change that though)
  • ISA being a bit late to everything
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? take half of what you think you'll need clothes wise (a big jacket and a lighter one are 100% necessary) & prepare yourself for the dollar/pound exchange rate

Reasons For Studying Abroad

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The Outright Urbanite
A social butterfly, you're happiest in bustling cities with hip people, and took advantage of all it had to offer. You enjoyed the nightlife, and had fun going out dancing, and socializing with friends. Fun-loving and dressed to the nines, you enjoyed discovering new restaurants, shops, cafes, and bars in your host country.