Semester in London - University of Roehampton

Words cannot even describe my experience. I don't want to leave and if I could do it over I would do it a heartbeat. It was the best decision of my life and I don't regret a second of it. The University of Roehampton was fantastic. I will never forget the experiences I had and the people I've met. I do not want to leave. Words cannot describe such an experience, only doing it does. Academics: Overall good school with decent professors but not comparable to the education I received in America. But who is there for that? Living Situation: Overall good. Not a bad place on campus. Really enjoyed living with both sexes and people from around the world. Cultural Immersion: Made tons of English friends. Did a lot of things normal students don't get to do like spend time and holidays with English families. Program Administration: Good and friendly people. Big thanks to Nadia, Alex, and Maggie. They were never far away and I hate I couldn't spend more time with them. Health and Safety: Walls and security guards. Even though it's in a nice part of London, still comforting to see them. Social Life: Roehampton really does a great job with their students. They schedule nights out and have tons of events on and off campus.

When I chose to come to London for my study abroad experience, I wasn't entirely sure why I was coming here instead of somewhere else. I had no idea what I would spend my time doing. I shouldn't have worried about how to fill my time, because I quickly learned that living so close to a theatre district was dangerous for my wallet. I spent most of my time here seeing plays: in five months I saw 13 of them. I had also made the decision to buy the social program that was an option for all study abroad students, and it was one of the best decisions I made here. I got to see some tourist attractions that I wouldn't have thought of going to on my own, and it gave me the opportunity to meet some other study abroad students. Another great thing about my experience here, is that it allowed me to be entirely independent for the first time, in a way that I was 100% confident in. I don't have a car back home, and Colorado does not have the best public transport system, so being able to get around the city on my own without needing to walk everywhere was very freeing.

Whether you're going through CIS, some other study abroad programme, or just traveling on your own: get out of your country! Go experience different cultures, people, and food. You won't regret it. Academics: The classes were longer than I have at my US university, but the content was great and the majority of my professors very nice. Don't let work pile up. Even though you may only have 3 assignments due at the end of the year, you're going to need the time in between to do outside research. Your grade is very dependent upon how much work you put in outside of the classroom. Living Situation: My room was nice with an en-suite shower and sink, but my flatmates were the exact opposite of me in terms of socialising. I'm not a big partier, but they went hard core every wednesday and friday, and sometimes other days as well. They displayed immaturity that's common in freshman though, and you are living in a dorm setting, so it's just something to be aware of and prepare for. Cultural Immersion: Once I joined a society I met a lot of new people, but most of my friends ended up being other study abroad students (from the US and other countries like Norway and Sweden). If you want to be immersed, you have to put yourself out there and go to different events. There is so much to do in London; take advantage of it. Most of the venues/events that I went to though were not through CIS. The Oxford trip CIS sponsored was nice, but I planned many of my own trips and found things to do myself. Program Administration: I felt that the facebook page that kept CIS students updated on things going on in London could have been better run. Events that were posted were always for the day of, and so I usually had something else planned. If I had known about things in advance, then I would have changed my schedule to go to them. Some of the events the CIS staff linked us to looked really interesting too, and I was sorry I had not heard about them sooner. I also did not care for how little information I received about Roehampton and the process of getting from the airport to the Uni prior to my departure date. I understand they do not want to overwhelm students with a massive amount of information all at once, but I felt like I was constantly emailing a CIS representative in order to get more information. It would be better to send out the information packets sooner. Health and Safety: I always felt safe on campus, and you just have to be smart in London. Don't go to sketchy areas at night (Camden) and always travel with friends. Keep in mind the tube shuts down at midnight. Social Life: I'm not a big partier or drinker, so I didn't make friends with my flatmates. I did however befriend some great people from the volleyball team and from my courses. There are so many societies on campus, join one and you're bound to make some friends. You have to put yourself out there a bit if you want to meet people.