As a small-town girl, enrolling in Columbia University in the City of New York was my first opportunity to live in a huge city, and as a consequence, I am desperately in love with New York. When I decided to study abroad here at Queen Mary in London, rather than being nervous I would miss … Continue reading “You drink tea?” Alexis Buncich, Columbia University (Sep-Dec 2019)
Getting to know my new home city: ...when the opportunity arose to get as far out of my comfort zone as possible and study in London fall semester of my final year, I dove right in! Even in a jet-lagged haze after about twelve hours of travel, powered by granola and countless coffees, there was … Continue reading I Think I’m Going to Like It Here. Sharon Hammer, Hamilton College (Sep-Dec 2019)
After first visiting London as a tourist five years ago, I returned this year to live and study in the city for the semester, and oh what a different experience it has been! Here are five lessons I have learned over the past four months living in London… Location: Along River Thames near Tower Bridge. … Continue reading 5 Years Apart, 5 Lessons Learned – Sierra DeAngelo
As a junior, it is expected that I will have an internship the summer before my senior year to prepare for life after college. However, I never anticipated I would be abroad when trying to apply for these jobs. I realized I would need to put in 10 times as much effort as I would … Continue reading Applying to Internships While Abroad – Isabel Lohr
When I first got to London I hated it. It was gray, super busy, and no one really seemed to talk to each other. I was crazy jet-lagged, and spent the first two weeks in bed napping or trying to gather enough motivation to do my homework. I struggled to make friends, and I was … Continue reading The Little Things – Lelosa Aimufua
On the build-up to moving to study at Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, I encountered every stereotype you could think of when Colombia comes to mind: “Isn’t that really dangerous?”, “You must be looking forward to the hot weather!”, “I hope you know how to dance salsa!”. Whilst these comments came from very well-meaning … Continue reading Misconceptions about Colombia – Flora Medford
It is a country so far away from us and a culture that we know so little about. Half-way through my year abroad I feel I've gained a greater understanding for Chinese life. However, Shanghai with its lofty towers could be mistaken for most major modern cities around the world; bar the throng of neon … Continue reading Studying in China – Holly Pickerell
Going abroad can be a very exciting time. Even just the beginning process of researching cities, talking with other students who may have traveled before you, organizing which other trips you’ll make with your friends can be a bit of a whirlwind. But what do you do when you finally selected your perfect location? For … Continue reading Do’s and Don’ts for studying abroad – Lelosa Aimufua
About a month after my friends and I left France to go to different countries for our year abroad, my two non-single girlfriends announced back-to-back that they had broken up with their boyfriends. Living in a foreign country, making new friends, discovering a different university, speaking another language than your mother-tongue every day, all of … Continue reading Being in a relationship while studying abroad – Delphine Martineau
As the end of the semester approaches, I wanted to talk about feeling down during your time abroad. Of course at the beginning most of us were beyond excited, seeing every part of the daily routine as new and interesting since it differs so much from the one we had back home. However, when novelty … Continue reading Feeling blue during your time abroad – Delphine Martineau
When I first started talking about my Year Abroad my preferred phrase seemed to be: ‘I won’t be back until September!’ I was adamant that if I was going abroad, I would be staying abroad: for why would I want to waste my time and money going back to England? This year I have understood … Continue reading Going Home – Tiffany Maria Christopher-Ward
