England: A Place You Will Never Want to Leave Past Review
By Jane F (Art History, Criticism and Conservation., University of the Pacific) for
USAC England: Brighton - Undergraduate Courses
The most worthwhile thing I have ever done in my life. Without a doubt.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Much easier than the US, although classes were still interesting |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Mary and Zoe were like my second mothers, they genuinely cared about my well being and made sure I was doing well while abroad. They were supposed to help with just classes, but provided so much more. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
You will be living with all Americans, so if you want to meet British people, I would suggest getting an apartment with them. Or try and arrange to live with Americans and Brits. |
| * Food: |
You cook for yourself! Which I really enjoyed, because my flatmates and I would all cook our meals together and it was a good way to bond with each other. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Brighton has an amazing nightlife, music and arts scene. It is really the San Francisco of England. If you are at all interested in music, Brighton has a great scene with lots of dubstep and indie music shows which are a unique to Europe and especially England. Brighton has a lot of great contemporary art galleries. England in general has clubs and pubs, which is nice because different people like different ways to drink. I loved the people I lived with, we all (for the most part) got along really, really well and that definitely made the trip for me. It is easy to get to London Gatwick airport if you want to travel to other parts of Europe (highly recommend it!) |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Doctor's office was easy to get to, I personally did not go, but had a lot of friends who did and it was easy to deal with because of the insurance card USAC gives to students. Brighton felt really safe, I would even feel comfortable walking around lowly populated streets at night by myself. |
| 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? | I ate in a lot because I was on a budget, so I would spend anywhere between $25-$45 a week on food. I also like shopping (the shopping is great in England!) and probably spent $300 on clothes while I was there. If you want to eat out a lot then it can get really expensive, so definitely just plan on grocery shopping. Although you can find cheap and good food for cheap (go to "Foodilic" on North St, the best organic food in Brighton!) |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | None |
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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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Someone who is outgoing and willing to do things! Be interested in getting to know the area you are living in, and break away from the Americans now and then to get a feel for British culture, because while it is similar, it has wonderful differing nuances. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
History and Theory of Film |
| Course Department: | LZ311 |
| Instructor: | |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | Interesting and manageable work load |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
