Arcadia Abroad - London Internship

Going on the Arcadia internship program improved both my college experience and my life. Before going abroad I had no work experience in my field of study. Now due to the program I have four months of work experience and a professional credit in theatre. I loved living in Princess Elizabeth House! Although the commute was longer than I was used to, It allowed me to see new parts of the city. The Arcadia staff were always very helpful and available for whatever’s needed. I will forever love this program for making living and working in the amazing city of London so seamless and wonderful!

Overall, my time in London was great, however, the internship where I was placed was horrible. I would not recommend the internship program solely because of my bosses. I worked at a public relations agency in Oxford Circus. I washed dishes for hours because everyone thought they were too good to wash their own. I was only supposed to work 20 hours a week because of my full course load, but they made me work 25-30 hours. Arcadia was really no help. A lot of personal growth happened because of this, but I learned nothing professionally.

My semester in London was probably some of the best few months of my life. I was lucky enough to intern with Simon & Schuster UK in the editorial fiction department, and being able to learn about the inner workings of a publishing company solidified in my mind that I want to work in one after I graduate. I worked closely on the publication of dozens of books, and it was amazing to get that kind of experience. My classes were all interesting, and I loved how our professors were encouraged to utilize London in their teachings. Two of my professors gave walking tours instead of lectures on different days, and we visited a museum in another of my classes. I lived in Earl's Court, which is a beautiful area, and we even had a maid that cleaned a few times a week. It was such a wonderful experience.

I really enjoyed this program-the professors are very passionate, concerned about giving you a good education but also great people and laid back (for example, we went out to the pub after our last exam.) I lived in Earls Court-the facilities were nice although the only downside was sharing rooms due to there being 6 of us. We had a basement flat in a gorgeous building, swanky area (Chealsea borough) with only about an 8 minute walk to the tube and a 5 minute walk to the nearest bus stop. I took 3 classes in addition to the internship (first with Street Kids UK) The Prince's Trust-I had an issue with placement about 2 weeks in and when I mentioned that it wasn't the experience I anticipated/I didn't think I'd get as much out of it, the staff were very helpful in helping me acquire a different, more suitable placement. As an anthropology major, working with a nonprofit organization was really great; it was a privilege to work for The Prince's Trust since it's so well-known and helps a lot of young people in the UK become employed. I love the work environment in the UK-pleasant people, lots of tea breaks, after work pub time with coworkers and a relaxed attitude. A few trips/events were offered by Arcadia such as Oxford for the day, Wales adventure weekend, Thames River Cruise and Tower of London visit. The interns also had a pub quiz night and farewell night where everyone got 2 free drinks which was nice.

If your looking to take classes and have an internship in London this is the program for you. Arcadia has a great global studies team for outside students and experience dealing with all kinds of study abroad programs. The London team is great as well and students from all over the country use the program. Compared to other programs students get more choices in terms of schools, classes, and living arrangement.

I chose to take classes at both Arcadia and City University London as well as an internship. This let me truly experience living, studying and working in London. I had a single room in central London close to my schools and work. Overall I got the most out of my time abroad and would recommend this program to anyone.

This program was one of the best decisions I've made in college. I got the opportunity to experience classes in a different environment and participate in an internship that was both educational and rewarding. Beyond just the required coursework I had the opportunity to become a Londoner. I was able to take all the opportunities provided by both the school and the city. Though I wish I had more exposure to other foreign students this can be achieved by taking courses at nearby universities. I made both friends and memories I am sure I will have the rest of my life and fell in love with the city of London and England in general.

I did the summer London internship through Arcadia University the summer of 2014. I had never left the country before and was nervous about the process. One thing I remember that made me feel better about the initial flight and arrival was that Arcadia started and invited all participants to a Facebook page. From there I was actually able to find 3 people taking the same flight as me so we could meet up and arrive together. This made navigating the airport and going through customs a lot less intimidating.

The Arcadia staff provided introductory sessions to help us all understand more about what our experience in London would be like from different customs to understanding the public transportation systems.

The internship they found for me was perfect and a wonderful experience. I went 3 full days a week. I also attended a class through Arcadia that I went to once a week. I did the photography class and I am glad I did. We went on different trips to museums and different locations around the city. On the weekends, I was able to take several trips with the people I met. We traveled to Amsterdam, Paris, and Edinburgh. I was surprised how reasonable the travel costs were! I even ended up taking a week long vacation to Malta during my last week in the program.

All in all, I would highly recommend this program! The staff is wonderful, London is amazing, and you will have great experiences!

This program left me with a summer I'll never forget. This was my first real internship and the Arcadia staff worked to make sure the job would be beneficial to me and something that would help me in the future. I was able to explore London a lot during my art class (we visited a lot of museums and different historical sites) and I learned a lot in the process. The program allows you time to travel outside of London, as well, which was something I really enjoyed. I got to meet people from all over the US and was also able to interact with the locals. Overall, I would definitely recommend this program to anyone who is considering studying abroad!