Type of housing: Hall of Residence, not on campus

Arranged by: Host university

If returning, I would choose: Apartment/House

Why? Sharing a house with other students or working people must be very different : housework would not be done by cleaners, and we would have a real living-room to share (in the hall of residence I was living, rooms were grouped in flats - 7 rooms per flat - with 2 toilets and 1 kitchen : we missed a living-room with a couch or a comfortable chair to rest and talk together)

Personal comments:
The accomodation fees were a bit expensive (£ 200/month for a 9 m2 bedroom) but the atmosphere was fantastic. The majority of my hall of residence's students was international : there were students from Spain, England, Italy, Greece, France, Germany, Turkey, India... I met lots of different people, from different cultures, but also from different educational backgrounds. I am a scientist ( I have an aerospace engineering diploma), even if I am doing a further degree in High Technology / Industrial Marketing at HEC (Paris), and it was really interesting for me to talk and meet law students, litterature or drama students. I learnt a lot there, by living alone (I mean without my home friends and family) in a foreign country, in terms of ways of thinking and mentalities which are differents for each culture, but also in terms of socialization by living a whole year with the same people in the same "big house".

Describe host city: Student life dominates the city

Activities: Takes place mostly within the university/student environment

Nightlife, Travel: Takes place both within and outside of the university/student environment

Personal comments:
I do not remember the names of the cafes and bars I was going to, except for some, for example : - Lennon's for a drink in a "cool" bar with live bands playing (rock, celtic music...) - bridge on water (candles and jazz atmosphere for a pint of guiness or/and a romantic dinner in a corner of this cosy restaurant !) - the bar along Highfield Road, very big and familial, with several fire places (very nice during English winters !) - the one in front of Lennon's, an Irish Pub

Course recommendations:

Personal comments:
No, I really enjoyed my academic life. I was following academic courses (Astronautics and Spacecraft Engineering Design) and I was doing a research project for the Astronautics Department of the University at the same time. I was very free to organize myself. I had to do marketing researches and then provide a design solution for a micro-spectrometer to be mounted on a nano-satellite. The aim of the nano-satellite constellation (several nano-satellites on orbit) is to make measurements of the ocean colour and radiations.

Language of instruction: English

Main source of funding:
Family

Other sources of funding:
Personal savings
An ERASMUS grant
my home university

Work opportunities:
I worked during my study abroad experience

Personal spending habits:
Because LIFE is more expensive in England than in France (food, accomodation, money...etc...)

Food, Travel, Overall, Telephone, Housing: was more expensive than at home.

Nightlife: was the same price as at home.

I wish I had known...
That the weather was so bad in England ! No, I am joking, I knew it before, but it was sometimes difficult to cope with it, especially because I had to ride my bike 20 min to go to the University from my hall of residence, so when it was raining or snowing, it was a bit difficult to be motivated ...

In my opinion:
Most people loved it.