As August came to a close and September dawned, my new classmates and I started our first day of classes on a comfortable Monday morning. Standing outside on the main steps of Atlantic House, ten of us stood, smiling excitedly at a camera, unsure of exactly what we would be getting ourselves into.
I expected my classes at Richmond University to be more difficult than the ones that I was used to; however, I nevertheless strode somewhat naïvely into my classes that first week in early September. Since some of what I learned in this first week as it relates to the university education system in the UK took me off guard, it took me a fair while to get used to the differences that I experienced when compared to America. Through interviews with friends that came from the US to Richmond University and my own experiences, I have compiled a list of key factors, tips, and warning that will help any study abroad student planning to travel to the UK:
1. Read and keep your syllabus. Although you have no doubt heard this since middle school, syllabi are going to prove themselves to be particularly important in being successful in your UK courses. They will outline what is expected of you and the schedule/ goals of the classes that you are taking. Many of them will have a homework or even a field trip schedule in them as well as a guide for how assignments are meant to be handed in. For one of my history classes, we would go on field trips on about half of the classes in the semester. Often, I would find myself unsure of whether we were meant to meet in the classroom or at a location in London. Luckily, I held on to my syllabus and was able to look at the calendar for the answer, rather than constantly emailing my professor. Additionally, the syllabus will also most likely have the citation style that you are meant to use with your assignments. In the US, I was used to using almost exclusively MLA format with the occasional APA. With some of my classes at Richmond, though, we needed to use Chicago—but a very specific type of Chicago— and sometimes needed a cover page or an honesty statement. One of the most important things that the syllabus will have on it is your professor's email. Used to writing somewhat informal emails to my professors, I found that starting each email with "Dear Professor Greenwich,..." was the way to go, rather than my usual, "Hello Professor Greenwich,..." It is always good to air on the side of politeness.
2. Class Structure. It will be important to come to terms with the fact that classes are much longer than the ones that many of us are used to in the US. This could be both good and bad because although three hours is a long time to be in the classroom for, these long classes only meet once a week which gives you lots of free time in the week. Adding to the free time is the fact that you cannot work (unless you have a work visa) and each class will only have about 2-4 assignments, including midterms and finals, for you to complete for the semester. For example, for a class, you may have a midterm, a final, and a final project or paper, and that is all that you will be graded on. When I learned that for my classes, I only had to do three assignments for the whole duration of the class, I was shocked. Yet again, though, there are both pros and cons to this. On the one hand, fewer assignments means more free time to explore. On the other hand, however, fewer assignments means fewer things to be graded on, making it imperative that you do well on each one of those few assignments. The first of my assignments for my classes were due around midterms in the October, so for the first month or so, I had hardly any class work to do outside of class. This left lots of time to explore London and walk in the park down the street, getting to know my new friends and our new city. As midterms near, however, papers start to become due and it is time to buckle down and get things done. On the topic of assignments, one of the main differences between the US and the UK is that your professor is not the only one grading your work. Tests, projects, papers, and anything that is graded is first graded by your professor and then passed to two other professors at various schools throughout the UK before returning back to your professor. These alternate professors have the power to change the grade that your professor gave you, making sure that there are never any biases.
3. The mechanics of writing. Although you will be writing in English, the punctuation and spelling in the UK can be different from the US. Professors know this, however, and from my experience, will not penalize you for spelling "favorite" as such rather than as "favourite."I found that when reading British books as well, there are fewer commas used, and the Oxford comma, one that I am sure to always use, is nearly never used. While in London, I made friends with a guy my age named Danny. Danny was born and raised in London and he told me that in schools, they are taught never to use that comma. The mechanics of writing should not pose too much a problem, although it is a good idea to be aware of the differences, as well as when coming back to America. One aspect that still trips me up is that while in London, I began using the single quotation mark that the British use rather than the double quotation mark that we use in the US. Even now that I've been in the US for over four months, I still find myself doing that.
4. Final Exams. In my first few years of college, final exams were not necessarily a big deal. Most of my classes didn't even have them and those that did were just like an ordinary test, although perhaps weighted more. In the UK, final exams are very much a big deal. Even if the test itself won't prove to be that difficult, the fanfare around final examinations is daunting. When I went in to take my finals, I was instantly reminded of taking the SATs. They are taken in a room with students form many classes and are facilitated by about two or three staff members. Test booklets and answer sheets are purposefully spread out along the room and you must leave all of your possessions at the front of the room. The testing period is timed to the T and rules around speaking, leaving, or standing are extremely strict. On the whole, the entire experience mixes into a confusing concoction of terrifying yet also exciting.
And so concludes a small list of a few things to keep in mind while studying abroad in the UK. Getting used to a new class structure can be difficult, but there are other study abroad students that are going through the exact same thing. I found that professors were understanding and happy to help with any confusion that there might have been. Although many of the things I listed above did not appeal to me in the least, by the second month I was there, I was wondering why I ever had a problem with them in the first place and miss some of the methods used. Just remember to put time and effort into those few assignments that are given, because there really is little to no wiggle room with grades. Those first few weeks of the semester are precious ones filled with lots of free time. Use them well and explore your new city.