London is my favorite city in the world! Past Review

By A student (PSYCHOLOGY., Middlebury College) - abroad from 09/16/2013 to 12/13/2013 with

Queen Mary University of London Study Abroad programme

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

I learned how to be independent. It was a great learning experience. Though I was living with other students, I was essentially alone, without my parents or friends. I also learned how to travel on my own and be comfortable exploring a new place on my own.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	1 month - 6 months

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program	The University was fairly disorganized. Enrolling, choosing classes, and finding out when/where my classes were was difficult, confusing, and disorganized.
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	The flats on campus were really nice. I was mixed in with a combination of British students, as well as, other study abroad students. I had my own bathroom in my room and shared a kitchen with 6 other students.
* Food:	I cooked all of my own meals, it was great! Also, London has so many great restaurants that eating out was always an option as well!
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	Living with British students made me feel integrated with the local culture because they were all so welcoming and inviting. It was also really easy to travel around London and immerse myself in the city.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?
* Safety:	I felt extremely safe in London and on the Queen Mary campus. Queen Mary is not located in the best neighborhood, but I never felt unsafe or threatened in any way.
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	No

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)	London is veryyyy expensive.
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	$150
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	Look for ways to save money on public transportation.

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	No

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Dorm Apartment
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Local Students Americans
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	Local Students Americans
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?	easy access to central london living with a mix of local and american students having a kitchen in my flat
* What could be improved?	organization of the study abroad students providing common areas for students to meet/mingle communication between middlebury and the university
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	I wish I had known that the other study abroad students would be spread all across campus. I knew that we would be living with local students, but I guess I thought that they would try to keep study abroad students somewhat close to each other in order to facilitate those friendships as well.

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:	Language in the UK
Course Department:	Linguistics
Instructor:	Dr. Devyani Sharma
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	This class gave extremely interesting insight into current language practices, as well as, historical information about language in the UK. The instructor was very knowledgeable about the material and brought in guest speakers often to go into more detail on specific topics. Throughout the course there were two papers assigned, one more of an experiment based paper, the other more of a research paper. Both papers allowed me to look into a topic of my choice in more depth.
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Architecture in London I: 1600-1837
Course Department:	History
Instructor:	Anne Hultzsch
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	This class took full advantage of our close proximity to central London. Every other week we would go on a field trip to a different building and talk about the architecture while on site. The professor did a good job of combining historical information with technical architecture terms. I learned a great deal about architecture at the time and the historical influences. I was assessed on two papers and a slide test at the end of the semester. I found that I participated a lot in the on-site field trip discussions.
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Introduction to Marketing and Communications
Course Department:	Business
Instructor:	Darryn Mitussis
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	I found this course extremely boring. The professor would lecture in a way that was very disconnected from what we were reading in the textbook so lectures often felt useless. There were also smaller seminars in which we could delve into the material more carefully, but I found that my classmates were unwilling to do so. I talked a great deal in the seminar because a lot of the information and questions were common sense. I was assessed on two papers.
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Society, Culture, and Space
Course Department:	Geography
Instructor:	Jon May
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	This course gave me a new perspective on the social structure of the UK. The professor was extremely knowledgable and led interesting lectures and discussions that encouraged the students to critically engage in what they were learning. We discussed ideas of the English countryside, homelessness, poverty, racism, and gender issues in the UK. I was assessed on two papers at the end of the semester.
Credit Transfer Issues: