London: A Second Home Past Review
By Daniel S (Theatre, Middlebury College) for
King's College London: London - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
Absolutely. I definitely grew as a person first and foremost. You really get a glimpse of what your life could be like once you've finished university living.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The workload was what you made of it. Participation in most of my classes wasn't assessed and it was very possible to simply skip some classes while continuing with the readings and still learn. Once again, it's almost a complete individualized study. Teaching methods were different in that I had a few lecture based classes without smaller discussion group sections. Classes sizes could be between 50-150 students which is largely not the case at Middlebury. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The study abroad administration at King's tried to give a general introduction to the academic environment but when it came to dealing with students one-on-one they were pretty disorganized. I found out upon getting to my first day of classes that two of them had been sealed off from study abroad students enrolling. But this was after I was already enrolled in them, so nothing added up. I found that by going directly to the professors, I was able to enroll without the help of the administration. In addition, some of my friends from other European countries (who were also studying abroad) were forced to take classes about their home countries or even in their home languages which was really frustrating for them. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Everything in the room was provided for me, bedding, lamps, etc. It was a beautiful place to call home and in a great neighborhood, Hampstead. |
| * Food: |
There were no dining services. Everyone had to provide for themselves. Independent living. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
All of the excursions I did were independent. Went to Amsterdam, Brussels, Barcelona and many cities in the UK all with friends. Amazing experiences. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
You just have to be smart. The tube closes at around 1 am everyday except some weekends when it could be open a little later, and Sundays when it closes earlier. It helps to think ahead, but London is very accessible and nowhere in central London is too far. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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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) |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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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? | The type of student that doesn't rely on the university to provide them with a social life would most benefit from this program. You have to be the kind of student that is outgoing enough to make their own experience. |
