Syracuse in London was great Past Review
By Halley D (Journalism, PR/AD, University of Arkansas - Fayetteville) for
Syracuse University: London - Syracuse University in London
It was so worthwhile. I learned so much about myself, and being able to really live for a while in another country was amazing. I became more independent and confident in myself.
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | Syracuse University |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
| The term and year this program took place: | Spring 2010 |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The academics were great. I loved my teachers, and they really worked with us to make sure our overall experience was great. They were very well educated in what they were teaching and were very available if I had any questions. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
They had two administrative offices and someone was always available during the day to talk to. They were also very easy to contact by email if any questions arose. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I lived in the Pre-Arranged housing in a apartment run by a company that Syracuse has worked with for years. It was very close to our school building, a 3 minute walk, so I loved that. Students also had the option of finding their own apartments with friends and working with a landlord. This option was very popular, and most of my friends that did it loved it, and would recommend finding your own. <br /><br /> Our location was excellent, close to school and a quick walk to Covent Garden, Picadilly Circus, and other fun areas of London. We had some issues with the heating in the beginning and the cleaning crew was not very good, but I have been told that Syracuse is changing the location and company that they work with in the next year. |
| * Food: |
Great food, there are all different types of restaurants to choose from. Also, the grocery stores were great and it was cheaper to go buy food and make it on your own. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We had a great social scene with everyone in our program. All the pre-arranged students mostly went out together, because we all lived on the same block. There tons and tons of great clubs, dance clubs, bars, and pubs. You can really find any type of social scene your looking for. The pubs closed around 11 or 12, so we mainly went to clubs on the weekend. There are tons of great student nights and student discount nights too all over London, and most clubs have this. For example, Tuesday nights we always went to this bar/club called Sports Cafe. This was their student night and tons of American kids are always there. I saw people I knew from high school that I didn't know were abroad often. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
They gave us a full list of doctors that they use that were great. If you got sick, you knew who to call and where to go. My friends visited the doctor a few times, and while it was expensive, it was worth it. And yes, I always felt safe. The city itself is safe, yet I would not recommend walking around late at night by yourself. Always have someone to walk home with. Also, lock all your doors all the time, there were a few instances of break in's. It becomes obvious too when a whole bunch of American students are living on one block, so really make sure your just aware of your surroundings and lock your doors. |
| 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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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | London is a very expensive city, anyone should know that going into it. I would say I probably spent around 300 pounds a week, which is about 500 dollars, give or take a hundred pounds. Also, the pound to dollar ratio was about 1.7 while I was there, so we basically had to double everything that we bought to get the amount in dollars. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Going out is very expensive, probably around 50 pounds a night, but it just depends on how much you drink and what the cover is to get in. I would recommend Pre-gaming going out, so you spend less money on drinks at the clubs, because they can get incredibly expensive. Food is expensive so I would recommend getting pasta and salads or anything from the grocery store, it was way cheaper. |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
Since I was in London, I did not have a issue with language. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Go for it. I absolutley loved going through Syracuse. The other students were great, I made so many amazing friends, and I wouldn't change anything about it. |
