The Oxford Experiment August 05, 2022
By A student (Politics, Wellesley College) - abroad from 01/09/2022 to 06/24/2022 with
Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford - Visiting Students Program
Knowledge, perspective, a greater respect for academic rigor and a better ability to communicate my position on academic and social topics. It was worthwhile to learn and write in a different style.
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. |
Some courses were more legitimate than others |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The international support offices were very responsive but the academic advisor who schedules the tutorials was not. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Lovely room except for the first year students who leave the postage stamp kitchen literally unusable with food waste and grime. Oxford students have scouts clean up after them every week and yet this is still an issue. This is an issue in many halls with first years that I found from talking to other international students. In the future putting visiting students in halls with first years could be amended. Also, having one toilet and one shower for an entire 6/7 person floor of students isn’t ideal for the price of accommodation, but is generally sufficient. |
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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? |
Good except no counseling available, was told to discuss with the school nurse if I had mental health issues arise |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
Despite the areas it could improve, Oxford is a really unique place to learn and to live. I do feel I grew as a person even in my short time there and learned quite a bit about the world and my subjects—especially from other international students and the communities I became involved in at Oxford. |
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? | $180 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Oxford is the second most expensive city in the UK (after london) |
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? | It will take a lot of effort to meet people who aren’t also starting in the spring. |
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 Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
