My name is Emma Lipka, and this summer I had the opportunity to study abroad in London, England for one month while I completed two courses. These courses included Thermodynamics with professor Andrew Dickerson, and Circuits with Micheal Berry. One of the reasons I was interested in this program was because it gave us the chance to immerse ourselves into two classes and their required coursework on their own in order to gain a full understanding of them and connect better with our professors. Throughout our time, we were able to go on excursions with our classmates and professors around London. These trips allowed us to see the practical use of what we were learning in each of the classes and how people have used the subjects in the past. Examples of these educational excursions include Bletchley Park and its Museum of Computing, and the British National Science Museum.

Besides the courses that we were taking, we were given the freedom and ability to explore London after our classes each day, along with a three-day weekend in the middle of the trip giving us the chance to travel further outside of England. While staying in London, I was able to see Big Ben, the London Eye, and even attend a service at Westminster Church. For the longer weekend that we had away, I chose to travel to Paris and Versailles in France. The main thing I have taken away from this experience is that your relationships with your professors and classmates is a key factor in how you can succeed in a course. Besides having the general knowledge of the subject, being comfortable asking your professors for help and forming study groups with your peers can go a long way, especially in such an untraditional environment.

---

Additional Photos