England : Reviews (Leicester)

My favorite part of my study abroad program was having a full month off for spring break. This maximized the time I could spend traveling around Europe, and I was lucky enough to have had the opportunity to travel to four countries, seven cities, during that time. Even though I wasn't going to classes for the month of April, I learned the most culturally.

Learning in a different educational experience is the most rewarding part of my academic experience. Although the UK and the US are very similar in many ways, they are also very different in a numerous of other ways, especially the educational system. I believe I became more adaptive student from learning in a different environment.

The element of the University of Leicester study abroad program that I found most rewarding was being fully engaged in an entirely new culture. Although there was no language barrier with living in England, the culture is still very different from America and I got to observe that for four full months. It was especially rewarding to be living in England while Brexit was going on. Although the decision date kept getting pushed back, and I wasn't there for a decision to be made, being a political science major living in England during Brexit was very rewarding.

Having knowledge about the educational system of the country that you are visiting is crucial before going I believe. However, with a small amount of knowledge I think I did fairly well academically. As a student you just need to be open-minded for an entirely new experience academically as well as culturally.

I learned that America is very fast-paced in comparison to all of Europe. It felt more relaxed in England. Most places are closed from 3pm-5pm for a break for the workers, and stores/restaurants hours on the weekends are often very different from America in that they close early or aren't open at all. The food is much less processed in Europe, and although it is more carb-based, Europeans walk everywhere, so there isn't a weight problem like in America.