A wonderful experience Past Review
By katie s (Psychology, Other, University of Tulsa) - abroad from 09/13/2014 to 12/21/2014 with
ISA Study Abroad in London, England
I just loved going around and seeing all the different cultural aspects of london. I had been there before but that had only been for a few weeks so living there was much different.
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Everyone at the kingston study abroad office has been very helpful. Also the London ISA offices are very helpful as well. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I lived in a 6 bedroom flat (dorm) with two other girls and three other guys. We all had our own rooms and bathrooms (though they were very small, think airplane bathroom sized). I got a long with the majority of my flatmates and we all lived together well. One issue though is that when we had issues with technical things the housing staff was not very quick to help us. |
| * Food: |
I only give this a low rating because the actual school package did not come with a meal plan. However the food in London is excellent, but expensive. Cheaper places to eat around there that are good are places like Nandos and Pret a Manger |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
It was really hard to make friends. I think it was mostly because I took higher level classes and so my classmates in those classes were more used to sticking to talking to the people they had been in class with and knew rather than some random new girl. However when I was taking first year classes I bonded with a lot of my classmates and made friends that I still talk to even though I'm back home. Also I made friends with my roommates really fast. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't have an experience with healthcare. |
| * Safety: |
London is a very safe city. Every so often there would be terror threats but there was nothing that ever happened. I think that it is good to go out and explore the city and see things you wouldn't normally see. |
| 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) |
I worked two jobs this summer to save up money for the trip and I probably spent the majority of it in the first month and a half. London is a very expensive city to live in but I was also trying to fit in a lot of theatre and trips into my trip and I probably would not have spent as much money if I wasn't trying to fit all of that in. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | probably about 100 dollars or more. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Eating at your flat is really useful. Going to stores like Sainsburys and getting things to make stir fry because it's really delicious and can last you a while. Also some plays have student discounts for them which was really nice. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
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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| 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? | There's a doctor who museum in cardiff wales, I didn't know that until I was on my flight back home But also just how to budget better. |
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 UrbaniteA 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. |
