A great international experience. Past Review

By dylan.hurwitz (Middlebury College) - abroad from 01/08/2014 to 06/13/2014 with

University College London (UCL): London - Direct Enrollment & Exchange

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

I learned a ton about being independent and being able to do everything on my own. It was an incredible experience traveling around Europe and living in London on my own. I now feel much more confident in being able to do whatever I want after college.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	2 weeks - 1 month

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	The academic rigor was great, but I felt the resources available were lacking. I wasn't able to get into classes I wanted to because study abroad students have lower priority.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program	The administration for the Economics department was not very helpful, but the overall administration was okay at helping to get me settled into London.
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	I was very satisfied with my housing arrangements because I was able to find an apartment with a friend.
* Food:	The food was good but expensive.
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	I felt pretty integrated into the local culture. I went to a lot of football matches and experienced the British life. Most of this I did on my own though, the school could have done more to help students integrate better.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?	I had no health issues.
* Safety:	I felt very safe at all times in London.
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 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)	It was not easy to keep on a student's budget in London. It was particularly hard to find decent food for cheap in London.
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	250$
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	Try to live in a cheaper neighborhood and learn to cook!

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	No

Direct Enrollment/Exchange

* Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university?	Direct Enrollment

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Apartment
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Americans
* 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?	Being in Europe. Challenging coursework. In London.
* What could be improved?	Getting students into the classes they want. Better information when settling in. More instructor help in classes.
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	I wish I knew that it would be difficult to get into certain classes, and about the specific mathematics required for general economics courses.

Reasons For Studying Abroad

To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you.	The Outright Urbanite A social butterfly, you're happiest in bustling cities with hip people, and took advantage of all it had to offer. You enjoyed the nightlife, and had fun going out dancing, and socializing with friends. Fun-loving and dressed to the nines, you enjoyed discovering new restaurants, shops, cafes, and bars in your host country.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:	Economics of Education
Course Department:	Economics
Instructor:	Pedro Carneiro
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	The class was challenging and the instructor was knowledgable. He was a leader in the field of study in education, but the class involved no participation, very few assignments, and the entire grade was based on the final examination.
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Experimental Economics
Course Department:	Economics
Instructor:	Terri Kneeland
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	The course was particularly challenging in the mathematics that were required. These prerequisites were not made clear at the start of the course, and the math was not taught by the instructor but was expected. The class had 4 assignments, but the grade was based entirely on the final exam. Additionally there was a decent amount of participation due to experiments that we ran in class.
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Robotics Programming
Course Department:	Computer Science
Instructor:	Mark Handley
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	The course was challenging but a lot of fun. It involved programming robots to perform different tasks using advanced algorithms. The class had a lot of participation with it being almost exclusively lab classes. The assessment was based on weekly assignments, a midterm, and a final.
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	History of Parliament
Course Department:	History
Instructor:	Dr Robin Eagles
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	The course was challenging because it covered a lot of material, but was interesting. We studied the History of Parliament through time, and used field trips to aid the learning process. The teacher was very knowledgable and well prepared. There was a lot of participation in the class and the assessment was completed through two essays.
Credit Transfer Issues: