International friendships, complete immersion, and an urban experience Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The majority of the courses I took were out of my major and of an easier subject for me, so the coursework was not incredibly difficult. The seminars along with lectures for classes each week were a good setup to break out of a large lecture hall and into discussion groups.

On-site administration of your program

The study abroad group at QMUL was very attentive and easy to obtain help form. Everyone made you feel at home and the staff of the university were very helpful at the beginning of the program in orientation.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Living on campus in a 6 person flat gave me the opportunity to have my own room and bathroom but share a kitchen with 5 other international students who were first years at the university and studying for all 3 years there. I LOVED my flatmates and we still keep in touch. Through them, I met the best people from all over Europe. My flat group was diverse but also had all taken one or two gap years, so were very mature for first years. It was great to live around first years and other study abroad students from various universities because everyone was eager to meet new people and the school had many events programmed for this purpose. Living only 2 minutes away from class also was very convenient and campus felt safe and comfortable.

I cooked all of my own food in my flat kitchen and tried to only eat out for one or two meals a week due to prices. Having a kitchen in my flat, my flatmates and I often prepared group meals together and used this time for bonding as well. Groceries can be bought for discount at a couple of grocery stores nearby, but are not the freshest in terms of quality. I suggest going to markets to get fresh produce and vegetables along with pre-prepped meals.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Living around other students from various European countries and interacting with so many other British people made my integration complete and totally focused on my time there. Due to being the only Midd student at Queen Mary, I was forced into interacting with other students from my university, which made my time abroad the best that it could have possibly been.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I did not use healthcare while there...there is free healthcare for study abroad students if you stay for the whole year, but comes at a cost for single semester students.

Living in a city is not at all like living in rural Vermont. Therefore, some differences are expected. The area in which this university is located is not the best area of London, but the campus is completely gated and guarded. I never felt unsafe and the tube was extremely useful for travel into other areas of the city.

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

London is an expensive city, but is easily doable if you go about things with caution/with this in mind. Groceries were around 70$ for 1.5 weeks of food, which is a lot cheaper than eating out for every meal. Tube travel was about 4-5$ per trip (get an oyster card and link it to a student rail pass if possible). Weekends were expensive, with club/bar entry at 11-24$ a person.

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• Dorm

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• Local Students
• International Students

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• Local Students
• Americans
• International Students

• other students I lived with/met
• independence
• free time

• living costs
• professor accessibility
• online assessment submission guidelines

The Nearly Native or Trail Blazer