CIEE Open Campus Block in London, England

CIEE London is a great learning experience. Since I participated in the Open Campus program, I had the option to move between cities every 6 weeks but I decided to stay in London to get a feel for the city and do some in depth exploring. CIEE offers plenty of opportunities to adventure around the city you are studying in and with the weekend long excursions you learn even more about your host country! We went to Liverpool, York, and Cardiff (Wales!) while I was here and these trips were the things that I looked forward to the most. The staff is very helpful and friendly, which made the transition into living in another country quite inviting and welcoming. I highly recommend this program to anyone looking to study abroad but also be around Americans at the same time.

I did have a great time abroad and met a lot of fun amazing people. Although this program could of been run a lot better. Compared to other CIEE global institutes that my friends told me about this one seemed to be run very poorly. I had a very hard time getting assistance from CIEE staff members and on occasion when I would ask them questions for help they wouldn’t even respond to my messages. In addition I felt that they avoided helping students in the program when they could’ve and did the least they could do to improve the experience for students. They were overall very hard to work with and it made my study abroad experience a lot harder to enjoy. Although London was a great city to study abroad in, I would not recommend doing it through CIEE. If you do wish to study with CIEE it might be better to study at one of their other global institutions that have better supporting staff.

The best part about studying in a global city like London is that there is something new and exciting around every corner. You don't always have to do the most touristy things when studying abroad. There are a plethora of places to explore outside the main attractions. I had the most fun wandering around with friends and getting lost. Try exploring places like Ealing, Shoreditch, Hackney, Brixton, and Camden Town to start!

My experience with CIEE was particularly unique because I participated in the program as my last semester in college. For me, that meant I was giving up the opportunity to walk at my graduation in order to spend some time overseas. And let me tell you, I have absolutely no regrets. The CIEE London Program afforded me every opportunity I wanted during my last semester of college. I got to take awesome classes that challenged my perspectives, with instructors that treated us more like colleagues than students. The administrative staff was supportive and fun, and I got to know many of them very well because I was on the Student Representative Council. Additionally, London has so many airports surrounding the city, it made travel extremely easy. I got to celebrate my official graduation day at the Colosseum in Rome, Italy. Like I said... no regrets. London itself was a crazy, vibrant city. On any given day you could go to a pub to watch a football match, or listen to live music, or go experience the nightlife at some of the tallest buildings in the city. I could go on and on about all the different opportunities that CIEE gave us to experience the city and the rest of the UK, but to sum it up, there were many and they were all exciting and entertaining times. I would definitely recommend the CIEE Open Campus - London program if you're considering study abroad!

Studying abroad was honestly the best thing I ever did for my life. The best decision I ever made & I am so happy I was able to be around such great people. London was the perfect start and the staff was just amazing. The environment was ever more amazing. I met new people every day, I built friendships easier, because we all shared a commonality. I truly wouldn't have changed my experience for the world & I hope to be of help to anyone considering going abroad.