IES Abroad London

London is an amazing city to study abroad in because it exposes you not only to a local culture, but an international culture. As one of the international capitals of the world, London is absolutely massive and is home to an ethnically diverse population. This dynamism is part of the reason I fell in love with the city. You could walk from the Tower of London, an iconic British and ominously medieval emblem of dark ages, across the Thames to the colorful Borough market, which overflows with food stalls from all corners of the world.

IES and the IES staff did a really excellent job of making sure that we didn’t leave London without having explored all rich deposits of culture that the city had to offer. The program often offered free trips to different neighborhoods in London. One of my favorite day trips was to Camden Market, in Camden Town. The streets leading to the market are lined with brightly-colored store fronts housing eclectic vendors. The market itself is home to some of the best food I have ever tasted. Literally I don’t think I could even name every country represented by the all the different culinary options there. At one stand you get can get traditional paella, at another they have Jamaican jerk chicken, or you can go to the curry cart and enjoy some of the best Indian food you will ever eat in your life. The food in London is amazing and I don’t think I will ever again have the chance to try Mesir Wot from Ethiopia and Thai green curry in the same place again (just one of the many reasons I love London). If you love food, trust me, you will love London too.

These outings were led by student assistants, whom are British university students working with IES. I really liked having these trips because it gave you an opportunity to talk with the student assistants in a more relaxed setting and ask about things like nightlife or their favorite restaurants.

My study abroad experience in London was better than I could have imagined going in. The IES Study London program offered a good balance of structure as well as freedom to let the experience be shaped by each student. Through this program I was placed in an awesome internship, took classes from professors who were experts in their fields as well as genuinely great people, and went on some incredible trips organized by IES such as an excursion to Scotland where we got to feed reindeer. The staff in the IES London program are all incredibly nice and welcoming and provided so much support throughout my four months abroad.

I’m being completely sincere when I say that study abroad was a truly enriching, eye-opening, and transformative experience that allowed me to not only discover more about myself but gain worldly perspectives. I was not only able to explore London culturally but also take classes at the prestigious University of Oxford, where I was challenged to think beyond what I've been taught and excel academically.

With regards to the academic aspects, students aren't really given a choice in choosing their classes for the Health, Practice and Policy program mainly because it's already a highly specialized program that is focused more on the health aspects. This makes this program perfect for anyone already with a major in public health, pre-med, biology, psychology, or just with an interest in these kinds of fields. I took classes on social welfare, comparative healthcare systems, health and disease and human rights - all of which I can surely say I gained something I probably never would have gained from classes back at my home university. These classes are very English-style in that they are highly discussion-based rather than being lecture-focused. As a part of the class, students also took many outside tours and went on field tripos that supplemented the coursework and allowed us to truly gain that outside-the-classroom learning experience. Additionally, the professors were excellent, passionate and knowledgeable in their fields, making the classes very open to thought-provoking discussion. The health and disease class was held at Oxford along with a discussion tutor session led by lecturers. The Oxford class was without a doubt the most challenging part of the program in that there is a high amount of workload and expectation for the student to achieve highly. Nonetheless, the lecturers are also improvement-focused so just because you do poorly at first does not mean that you will fail the class. Rather, they want to see you improve and they do help you out during the way to help you do better, which you will as long as you put in the effort.

My service learning placement was a very unique and enjoyable aspect of the program. I worked with an organization that works toward helping the homeless population, and it was an extremely humbling and rewarding experience to say that I was making a difference in another country through the small work I was doing. For example, I washed dishes and prepared food for the homeless, but also had the opportunity to work in the office for more behind-the-scenes and logistical work (which is not the most engaging or fun). Through this experience, however, I learned so much about social issues plaguing London and the stereotypes I had about the homeless, which was truly eye-opening. I feel as if I'm a much more enlightened and passionate student due to my experience doing service in London. Likewise, other students were matched with other organizations that were not just social service/volunteer based but also towards the medical field, etc. and I know from their personal accounts that they also learned and enjoyed their time with their service learning placement. That being said, 8 hours of service a week definitely added to the stressful workload of HPP program students. A lot of times, most of us were doing homework, essays, or doing service that we didn't have time to enjoy the culture or travel as much as students in other programs may have. Nonetheless, this doesn't mean we have absolutely no time at all - it's mostly about how one manages their time and how ambitious they get with what they want to do, see, or travel.
In fact, even with all the stress and sleepless nights, I still managed to plan and travel to Spain and Scotland, two places that I absolutely loved. It's a matter of what YOU want and how you make that desire happen even with all the obstacles you'll face.

Lastly, Jamaica was probably the best part about the program. This is where you really get to bond with some of your professors/IES staff who tag along and truly immerse yourself in the culture. The people are kind, the settings are beautiful, and the work that you do at clinics and at the Missionaries of the Poor... it's a priceless experience. It's a short week full of cultural immersion, learning, and working but it will, without a doubt, be the most wonderful and rewarding week of your life.

IES Abroad London- Health Practice and Policy was such a great opportunity. I'll be honest, London was never a place that I was dying to go to. But the program fit with my major and school and had a lot of great aspects of it. The staff at IES, both within the Health Practice and Policy program and outside of the program, were great! They help you to feel accommodated and comfortable with being abroad. Although the orientation at the beginning of the program was a little boring, it was very helpful and helped me to feel more at home in this new city. London itself was amazing. I am not much of a city person, but I really loved living in central London. You live at a residence hall called Kings Cross Student Accommodations. The rooms are SMALL, but everything is in Europe! The building itself is very modern and really nice. There is also a gym in the building that I took advantage of every day. The location is really what is great about Kings Cross. By the name of it, you can probably predict that it is right near Kings Cross Station. Being near such a large station made transportation extremely easy. The IES academic building is only about a 20 minute walk or you can take the tube. The academics were great and the professors were all very experienced and helpful in any way you may need it. Through the health practice and policy program, you will take two HPP classes at the IES center as well as an elective course at the center. The classes are really interesting and the work is very manageable. One thing that I would suggest is to start working on things early! You will have your prompts for your final papers when you start the class. Start working on it as soon as you can (especially before Oxford starts) so that you are not stressed at the end of the semester. The other part of this program is a course at Oxford University. This is an 8 week program, so you will not go for the first month and a half or so, so take advantage of your three day weekends while you can! Oxford was a great opportunity and a cool experience. But I'll be honest, having to travel there and spend the day on Fridays was a little bit of a drag as it makes weekend travel a little bit harder. The course also requires a good amount of work. You will have about a 1500 word paper due each week so make sure you don't procrastinate! The class itself is pretty interesting but it certainly was not my favorite part about the program. Even with Oxford on Friday's, I was still about to travel to 7 different countries! One being Jamaica which you will go to at the end of the program. Jamaica was probably one of my favorite parts of the program. It is a really great opportunity and gives you a chance to really see first hand some of the things you have been learning about and see how the healthcare system works. Overall, I really loved my semester abroad. One thing that I would suggest is to travel around Europe, but also don't forget about London and other parts of England! Take advantage of all the opportunities you have and enjoy the time you have because the semester goes by so fast!

I travelled abroad to London for 8 weeks as a part of IES Abroad's 2015 UK Today program. I had the time of my life, with so many amazing new friends! I had the experience of fully immersing myself in a different culture and meeting people from all over the world. I got to take in an incredible amount of beautiful art, and try new foods that I never would have tried before! I was able to travel outside of the UK and extend my experiential learning in other countries. I came back to New York a changed person with a refreshing new outlook on life, and it's all because of studying abroad. I couldn't be happier to have had this amazing experience.

Spending my summer in one of the best cities in the world is an opportunity I will always be grateful for and always remember. It was without a doubt one of the best summers of my life. I chose to study abroad for several reasons, however two of the most important reasons would have to be to find a sense of myself and to immerse myself into another culture. However, I did find comfort in England because there was no language barrier.

I believe that traveling the world is the best form of education one can receive. IES Abroad gave me so many opportunities to explore England, especially in the summer months. London has so much to offer such as music festivals, activities in Hyde Park, free museums, Wimbledon, and so much more. IES staff also takes several trips with students including Stonehenge, Bath and Brighton.

The academics in London definitely pushed me because it was more informal and discussion based compared to the lectures I receive on my home campus. I liked the challenge though.

Studying abroad through the IES Abroad London and Jamaica programs was one of the best decisions I have done in my life. I chose this program because I am a Public Health major and I am interested in learning about people's behavior and how different cultures deal with public health issues. This program was the right fit for me because the classes further my knowledge in public health, allowed me to take a class at Oxford, gain internship experience through a service learning portion of the program, and a week long hands on experience in Jamaica!

I would recommend this program to ALL public health majors. It is a great program to further your interest and provide different perspectives on what exactly you want to go into in Public Health. I also believe that if your not a bit interested in Public health you should not enroll in this program because it is very public health based. Psychology majors and other majors might not enjoy this program as much since its all public health.

London is a great location to study abroad. It's very a modern city so for those traveling from small towns, this will be a change of atmosphere! It also has a lot of history and culture. Its also very expensive since the currency is the pound sterling. Be sure to have some savings before going on this program as you will need money to enjoy all the city has to offer. Since I was on this program I will share some advice... take advantage of the free museums, free events and festivals held as well. Take advantage that you will also be in Europe, so travel to many places but also leave some room to enjoy London.

This program includes a Service Learning Placement and a course at Oxford University. The Service Learning Placement is another feature to this amazing program. I was at a homeless shelter and it really helped shaped my views of homeless people in London. I met people from all over and I was able to learn about their stories and tell them my story. My advice is to try to get a placement that fits you and your future goals. The course at Oxford has its ups and downs. On the plus side you will be able to say you took a class at the famous Oxford University as well as get a feel of what their teaching styles are. For example, like having a tutor (you'll learn all about this). Taking the course at Oxford was amazing but having class on Friday while everyone was out traveling was not fun. The long commute and waking up really early was also not fun. But again, this program is what you make of it so although Oxford has some negatives overall, it was a really valuable experience.

What I believe is the best cherry on top of this program is the one week ending in Kingston, Jamaica. The program attendees spend one week volunteering at health clinics and learning about the health system in Jamaica and the Caribbean. I must be honest and say that although I was in London for 3 months and Jamaica for only one week, this part was my favorite and what I believe to be the BEST part. The hands on experience and interactions with the culture, people, and the health systems is something I cannot put in words. Ill end with this.. if you want to have a public health adventure that includes taking a course at Oxford University, having hands on experience in London and Jamaica, all while studying abroad in one of Europe's best places, then I say this program is for YOU.

When I arrived back in America after my study abroad experience, I was bombarded with the same question from friends and family: "How was it?" I struggled to come up with an adjective, even a few adjectives, to succinctly describe my experience in Europe. Turns out it's impossible to; I don't think I'll ever be able to put into words how amazing and challenging and transforming my semester in London was.

From the location to the academics to the living situation, everything about the IES program exceeded expectations. London is such a vibrant city, with so much to offer. It was too easy to fall in love with the unique combination of history and growth. The location of the program's residence halls was incredibly ideal considering it was within a five minute walk from the largest Tube station. I consider my academic experience abroad to be extremely beneficial to my education. England does school quite differently than traditional American schooling and it was a pleasure to be a part of such a dynamic interaction for a semester. IES provided engaging courses with equally engaging professors. I truly walked away with much more knowledge than I came with. Further than just an increase in knowledge, my semester in London allowed me to gain a vast appreciation for different cultures and experiences. For that I am beyond grateful.