Exploring London and Europe Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The university is much bigger than Wellesley, and many of the classes are large lectures. The learning style is more independent than in the US, and students are expected to do a lot of research outside of the classroom. Overall, though, the courses I took were well taught and interesting.

On-site administration of your program

The administration was not particularly helpful. Sometimes they simply didn't give us the information we needed as UCL students, and other times they were difficult to contact. If I had a question, I had to email them multiple times or drop by their offices in person to get a helpful answer.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I stayed in Ramsay Hall, which is a big complex quite similar to a dorm. While the rooms were small, I stayed in a single. Since there are so many people (especially first years) in the hall, it can get loud on the weekends. However, the location is hard to beat- 5 minute walk from campus and 10 minute walk from Oxford Street. I also liked the catered meals, because I didn't want to worry about cooking every day.

Ramsay Hall is catered, and they provide breakfast and dinner Monday through Friday. The actual food quality varied, sometimes alright and sometimes not the best, but the convenience made up for it. I didn't have to spend an hour or more every night cooking dinner, and I think that I saved money living in the catered hall.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Living in a university hall definitely helped me meet new local people. I found that I mostly spent time with other international students at UCL because we had similar interests and wanted to do the same activities (we wanted to travel, explore the city, etc.). However, I did become friends with a few UK students. Most of the British students on my hall were first years, though, and while they were very friendly, we had different priorities.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

The healthcare center on campus was very accessible. As an exchange student only there for the fall term, I couldn't register for a GP but I could be treated as a guest. It was slightly difficult for me to get set up in the system, but once I was I had no problems. The doctors were very helpful and it was easy to get prescriptions at a local pharmacy.

I felt very safe on campus and in the area that I lived in (Fitzrovia/Bloomsbury). I also felt safe traveling on public transportation around London. However, some of my friends who lived in Camden (about 30 minutes north of UCL's main campus) didn't always like to walk around after dark because of safety concerns. Luckily, nothing happened to any of them. My biggest concern was petty theft, and you always have to be vigilant with your bags, phones, and debit cards when using ATMs particularly in touristy areas.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

London is expensive. Everything from food to clothing to housing to transportation is a lot more than I was used to, plus the exchange rate made it even worse. You can easily spend $200 a week especially if you want to travel (note though that internationally travel is relatively cheap and easy once you are in Europe).

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• Dorm

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• Local Students
• Americans
• International Students

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• Local Students
• Americans
• International Students

• Location in London
• Rigor of the courses
• Opportunities to travel Europe

• Administration
• More professor-student interaction
• Less weight placed on the final exam

The Academic or Linguist