Study in the UK Blog

I’m cross-posting this with my other blog, which has been used so far for travel notes and photos. I’ve kept this one separate and just covered the University and Study Abroad related things here, but if you’re interested in the travel I’ve been up to feel free to check it out here.Here are some of the I’ve differences I’ve noticed between life in Leeds and Queensland over the past few months. Some might seem a bit negative, but it’s really part of the fun and experience of living here. 

- For the same trip, travel can range from the ridiculously cheap to obscenely expensive. 
- Despite being 20 degrees colder, people still where the same clothes clubbing.
 - It really doesn’t snow as much as you’d hope.
 - Pints soon become just as easy to get through as schooners.
 - You wake up every morning knowing that it’s quite unlikely that you’re going to see the sun.
 - Dinner time becomes 6pm, on the dot.
 - Every kind of Pasty/Pastry is available, but still no authentic meat pies.
 - Newspapers are even more tabloidal then back home.
 - Accents vary a ridiculous amount considering how close everyone is to each other.
 - Metric really hasn’t taken off yet, despite conversion discussions starting in 1818.
 - Jaywalking is rampant and not policed. Glance and run!
 - A Full English Breakfast is an amazing start to the day.
 - Where ever you go, it’s likely you’ll find an old castle or church.
 - Fancy dress is a fact of life for going out.
 - Rain becomes so normal you hardly notice it.
 - Basins come with two options, scorching hot or ice cold.
 - Potatoes become part of your staple diet.
 - Libraries become much more use to students when their only a short walk away.
 - You notice all the slight differences in vocabulary
- “Hoover vs. Vacuum, Duvet vs. Doona, Squash vs. Cordial”, just to name a few.
 - There’s no limit to the amount of tea you can pack into a day.
 - Terraced houses are everywhere, no Queenslanders here.
 - “You alright?” almost completely replaces “How’s it going?”
 - There’s someone asleep in every lecture.
 - Radiators are capable of turning any cold room into an Australian summer.
 - Traffic lights go yellow through both green to red and reverse.
 - Even on a sunny day you’re bound to find a cloud up there in the sky somewhere.
 - Supermarket branded alcohol is fit for consumption.

Just a small note while I’m working on a larger post, which will be about some of my observations of the unique qualities of British life.

Lectures are usually quite helpful when needed, but might need a reminder for any action to take place. Back home I’d hadn’t needed to consult my lecturers much, but study abroad can bring issues like timetable clashes and subjects that assume knowledge that you may not have covered.

One lecturer understood the difficulty in taking a mainstream subject as an elective without it’s predecessors and kindly provided a bunch extra material for catching up on the class. Another was aware of timetable clashes for the exchange students in the class, and when requested ensured that any materials where made available.

Lecturers are generally approachable, and happy to answer any questions after class or in their office time. Sometimes lecturers can seem surprised to have exchange students present in their classes, but making yourself known to them is important. They will be more open to any requests you may have when they understand the situation.