Abroad101: Study Abroad Reviews

Really fun school, in the best city in the world. Past Review

By (Brandeis University) - abroad from 01/02/2012 to 06/01/2012 with

King's College London: London - Direct Enrollment & Exchange

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
Learned how to live in a city by myself. Learned how to navigate random European countries without a map or any knowledge of the local language. Learned tons of British slang. I dunno, I learned a lot. Amazing trip

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.

Definitely a decent amount of work, but I only had 8 hours of class per week (and none on Thursdays or Fridays) so it was pretty easy to plan doing school work around travelling, sight seeing, etc. I thought it was a pretty good balance of me actually learning something (unlike a lot of study abroad programs), but still having a ton of free time to enjoy Europe.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

If you go to King's, live at Stamford St. Pretty nice dorm, with an absolutely amazing location.

* Food:

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

You have access to NHS through King's. Took a week to get an appointment, but it was pretty straightforward and they were nice.

* 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)

London is absurdly expensive. You'll spend a lot of money. If you cook and don't spend much on drinks at clubs, it's definitely manageable though.

* Was housing included in your program cost? No
* Was food included in your program cost? No
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? I don't even want to think about it. A lot.
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? Cook a lot, and sandwich deals. Find a big grocery store rather than a small local one, it'll save you a lot over the course of the semester. And try to spend less money when you're out. I would bring however much cash I wanted to spend, and then would leave all my credit cards at home so I couldn't spend more

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
  • Americans
  • International 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?
  • Location - I was living right on the river. Saw Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, London Eye, etc. on my way to school every day.
  • Good combination of work / play. I definitely learned a bit and had some complaints about workload, but I had almost two months off between end of classes and finals.
  • Great combination of living with / meeting Brits, but also hanging out with Americans.
* What could be improved?
  • King's bureaucracy is just awful. Incredibly confusing to figure out class schedule, what payments were due and when, etc.
  • If you want to do a lot of trips / local sightseeing, it might be worth going through an external program.
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? What the good pubs / clubs to go to are. Took a while to figure out. But I guess that's part of the fun.