Learning in London Past Review
By A student (Presbyterian College) - abroad from 01/11/2012 to 05/20/2012 with
St Mary's University: Twickenham, Greater London - Study Abroad + Internship, Semester or Full Academic Year
I learned to be more independent and to stay on top of my academics. I did not feel that I learned as much as I could have though, simply because of the class structure. Having class once a week makes it more difficult to make connections between lectures, and it is harder to stay focused. I loved traveling, but even in London it takes an hour or more to get to the airport 12 miles down the road.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I did not think the materials required for out of class review correlated with the amount of time we spent in class. I read ALL of Native Son and we talked about it for an hour. It took me about 7 hours to read, so I was very frustrated. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
I saw the International Program Director once after I got to the university and it was because we were walking down the same street together going into town. We got two emails from him the entire semester, and I felt that he only tried to be of assistance after something bad happened in order to cover his tracks. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The dorm was great, but it was very loud. |
| * Food: |
For cafeteria food it was good, but the British eat entirely too many potatoes. The cafeteria staff was NOT friendly in the slightest. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
My friend had bedbugs and it took them a week to address the situation. I too started to feel itchy, and it was only after she reported and was asked to fill out a complaint that they came within 12 hours to inspect my room. Socialized medicine is not cool, because I was charged 28 pounds for the school nurse to tell me to take Sudafed (which I already was doing). And I had to pay in cash! So I had to walk into town while sick to withdraw money so she would evaluate me |
| * Safety: |
Campus safety was about the only organization that acted like they cared about us. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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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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| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | Yes |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 50 pounds |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Always eat in the cafeteria because it saves you SO MUCH MONEY! |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| 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? |
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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? | How expensive and cold it is! I would also bring my own medicine with me since they would no prescribe me any real medicine. |
