"BUT I'M ENGLISH!" -Any Advice For An English Girl Coming To The USA?

Student Lounge College Life
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<p>Sooo, I'm studying at the university of Maine for a year 2012/13</p>

<p>My fresher (freshman) year at lancaster university, england, has been an alcohol-fuelled whirlwind of bars, fun, hard work but mainly a lot of parties. (Its kinda what you do as a fresher in the UK... I dont know about the USA)</p>

<p>I'm 18 now and will be 19 in april. And OMFG, the drinking age is 21 where you people live?? Whyyyy?! (I'm sure thats a topic for a different discussion haha. but for now i just want college advice)</p>

<p>So basically, i'm no alcoholic, but im sure you can understand it would be a bit of a shock going from being treated like an adult, to being treated like a kid again! Is there still a drinking/ party culture in US collages? What kinds of things do people do for fun at college? (I know thats a vague question...) </p>

<p>And is it true that americans like the english accent? Or will I stick out like a sore thumb haha? What do you think the reactions will be (if any) to an english girl?!</p>

<p>(Another point: I'm dyslexic, and I get loads of really great support from my university and the government here in the UK. What's the attitude to dyslexics like in US collages? Is it taken seriously, if so, how seriously?)</p>

<p>I know these are really weird, vague questions, but i literally have no concept of what goes on in american universities! ANY info is appreciated, even if it's just your opinion of englsih students in the USA haha.</p>

<p>Thanks for reading! x
(P.S, If anyone is considering studying in the UK, im more than happy to talk to you and answer your questions about our unis if you want!)</p>

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<p>I’m 20. I have a drink almost every night (nothin’ wrong with a beer at dinner) and usually drink more on the weekends. I regularly go to the nearby liquor store (with my 21+ friends) and we buy booze. I don’t have a fake ID but a lot of underage kids do and they get into a couple of the bars with ease. So yeah, if you wanna drink then you’ll definitely be able to. The only unis where it might be rare are the super conservative Christian colleges hahah. As for what kinds of things people do for fun, that is indeed difficult to answer since it depends on who you surround yourself with. Sadly most of my friends just like drinking and partying so that’s what I do :expressionless: but I know folks who go rock climbing every weekend with a group.</p>

<p>Judging from my conversations with folks my age from the UK online, the US college experience and UK college experience are not too different except that we can’t get into bars and clubs until we’re 21. There are always house parties though!</p>

<p>Yeah most people like the accent. I think dyslexia is taken seriously here, all unis have a disability support service and I assume they are familiar with dyslexic students. My uni does for instance:</p>

<p>[Counseling</a> Center at University of Maryland](<a href=“http://www.counseling.umd.edu/DSS/registration.html#learn]Counseling”>http://www.counseling.umd.edu/DSS/registration.html#learn)</p>

<p>Also… college, not collage ;)</p>

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<p>One of my best friends last year was an exchange student from Leeds. She said people really did like her accent (I thought it was cool) but just be warned that when you get here people may not be able to understand you. She was originally from Newcastle so she had a Geordie accent (hopefully I’m making sense here, I’m just saying what she told me lol) and apparently when she first got here no one could understand her, apparently she talked too fast and used too many England-specific words, lol. I don’t know what your specific accent is, but you’ll figure it out though, and people will always find you interesting :slight_smile: We just have different words for a lot of things that you might not think of so there might be some confusion, but you’ll definitely get it fairly quickly.</p>

<p>There’s DEFINITELY a party culture at almost all college, can’t give you specifics on Maine though. People get alcohol from older people and usually have a pregame, which involves drinking/having a few shots before you go out, and then if you have a fake ID you go to bars and if you don’t you go to house parties. My British friend last year really liked house parties - they are a little sketchy, could get broken up by cops, etc. but there’s a certain charm to them that I think you might like if you are new to it and enjoy partying. It does get old though but since you won’t be here that long it probably won’t matter. My friend was actually also dyslexic too, lol, and she said she got a lot of stuff from the British government/her university but here there isn’t a whole lot of stuff available for that as far as I’m aware…you’ll probably find the US a bit odd in the way the government approaches things. But there should be a disability center of some sort that’d be willing to help you, or even the study abroad office maybe.</p>

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<p>Lots of people drink before 21, though underage consumption is riskier at some colleges than others. Just be aware that it is illegal, and use your head. A lot of cops understand that college kids drink and don’t go out of their way to arrest people who aren’t causing problems.</p>

<p>English accent is pretty neutral. Some people like it, some people don’t. It’s not as good as Italian, at least.</p>

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<p>I love British accents! I think a lot of people do.</p>

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<p>People love British accents!</p>

<p>I wouldn’t stress too much about alcohol, as long as you’re at a big school, there’s going to be somewhat of a party culture.</p>

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<p>You’re a girl, so you probably won’t have any problems getting into bars or clubs either. My friend uses her library card as a “fake.”</p>

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<p>Well, first of all, I live in the American South, which is about as different from Maine as Maine is from the UK, so this may not apply in your situation, but here:</p>

<p>1: Around here, lots of people drink underage, but you’d better not get caught. The police pretty much actively try to not catch you, but if they do bad stuff happens. This is especially important for you as an international student, since criminal offenses will cause you issues with visas and what not that a native doesn’t have to worry about. So basically, don’t drink while you’re here, or at least don’t get caught. Incidentally, this issue runs both ways: American students who have studied in the UK have a tendency to be all “hey guys I got drunk while I was over there and it was totally legal!” when they get back.</p>

<p>2: Yes, we like your accent. As a matter of fact, we will ask you questions that we know the answers to just to hear you talk. Also, anything you say will be automatically considered credible, because we tend to associate British accents with documentaries and news anchors. For the above reasons, everybody who isn’t in awe of you will be annoyed by your unreasonable popularity.</p>

<p>Hopefully that was helpful, it’s too late at night for me to fact-check my post very well…</p>

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<p>It depends on the person. Some Americans are impressed by any English accent, even if it’s incredibly common (I once heard people go on about how cultured a guy from East London sounded). Others might have a narrow idea of what English accents are like and be very surprised if you don’t match it.</p>

<p>Anyway, American college students are generally intrigued by any foreign students.</p>

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<p>Yeah, a Geordie is basically a person from Newcastle (or the surrounding area).</p>

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<p>Most people love the accent, others might find it a bit pretentious, especially if you talk too much. If you talk super loud, it would stand out and the whole room might feel like listening.
My opinion is that it sounds very pleasant, interesting to listen to.</p>

<p>Also, note we don’t call it “fresher” here…English slang will just confuse us since we don’t know what it means and some slang terms might come off as old fashioned.</p>

<p>I think you won’t have a problem of having access to alcohol, if you make those kinds of friends. There is a party culture with some people, but (in my general opinion) I think it is kind of lame…you might find you like it or it might turn you off because of the character of people who flock to do this illegal activity…
If you’re here studying abroad I have no idea how strong the consequences on your program will be if you break a US law or if you would get sent back if you got arrested for underage drinking. I would say best not to push it…try to abstain from alcohol while here. There are much more interesting things you can do while here.</p>

<p>I go to an American university but I’m not sure what kind of support they offer for dyslexics, since I’m not myself, I never looked into it. But there is definitely lots of support (study, health, and mental health) typically offered here and often advertises in flyers around the university. So, I think you will not have much trouble finding at least some kind of support for it, if you are willing to seek it.</p>

<p>Ok…so my questions for you!</p>

<p>I was thinking I might want to go to graduate school in England after completing an undergraduate degree here in the US.

  1. What do you think of our accents?
  2. Is the University of Manchester considered hard to get into? 3) What are the best semi-prestigious universities? (not like Oxford)
  3. And, is the student population very diverse at universities there? Is there a good deal of East Asian people (like Japanese, Korean, etc) there (I’m wondering since I am myself)? And what other ethnicities are common there, and are people friendly with other races, or do they just stay in ethnic cliques?
    I feel like in the US we’re very open, but I have no idea how it is in other countries that have a more dominant white population
    Thanks~</p>
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<p>Yes we Americans LOVE British accents. Most people will talk to you just to hear that accent. </p>

<p>Find some good friends, and you might be able to get alcohol through them. Just don’t get caught, or you’ll be in TROUBLE!</p>

<p>About the dyslexia, U.S. colleges do make a big deal about it. All schools should have a disability office so you would have to go through them to get help. You might be able to get extended time on tests or free tutors to help you.</p>

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<p>@naokifresh</p>

<p>1) People will love your accent and be excited to meet a ‘real life’ American
2) Here’s a league table to give you some idea - [University</a> guide 2012: University league table | Education | guardian.co.uk](<a href=“http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2011/may/17/university-league-table-2012]University”>University guide 2012: University league table | Education | theguardian.com)
Manchester is 41 there but it’s a good uni.
If you have good grades it’s not too hard to get accepted, but it’s popular/competitive because it’s in a big city and is the largest university in the country (About 40,000 students) and has a big party scene.
3) Durham, Warwick, Exeter, York are all prestigious… they’re better for humanities, for sciences etc look at LSE/UCL… but they’re all hard to get into.
Anything top 30 will be a good quality university.
4) Diversity depends where you go. Manchester is a large city and has 7,500 international students - London is like that too.
In England as a whole, the largest ethnic group is probably South Asian… I’m white and go to a pretty white uni in East Anglia, so you should get other opinions!</p>

<p>A UK version of college confidential is called “The student room” where you can ask better informed students.</p>

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<p>@naokifresh
I pretty much agree with Sunsloth’s advice there. However i’d just like to add that there are a lot of asian (chinese mainly, but vietnamese, korean etc as well) students in england at the moment. Britain is a small island with a lot of international connections, and our proximity to mainland europe means that there are a great deal of international students studying here. You’ll be fine :)</p>

<p>Your accent: Im sure most english people love it haha. I remeber being about 7 years old, (getting very excited at hearing an american accent, as the only american we hear when we’re young is on the TV) and asking an american tourist ‘Whats it like to be in films?!?!’ -Americans are still very much a novelty here haha.</p>

<p>And RoxSox, YES! You’re right. My boyfriend’s a Geordie and when I first met his family, he pretty much had to translate for me. I had no idea what they were saying. However I am now fluent and a bit of it does creep into my prim-and-proper english every now and again. And if you are anywhere near your friend/ speak to her again, ask: Aye pet! Gan dan tha toon tha neet? translated it means: Hi! Are you going to town tonight? (I love Newcastle…)</p>

<p>I’d say I have a fairly generic english accent. However im sure I’ll pick up US slang pretty quickly (In fact, im a little bit worried that I’ll visit home at christmas and sound like an american! I pick up accents soooo quickly.)</p>

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<p>@ ProbablyLucy - I’ve been here since August and I still sound English, but if I haven’t got the accent, I am using the slang. It might take a while to go away!
Soda, sidewalk, couch, pants, zucchini, purse (for handbag), Mitt Romney…</p>

<p>I went back at Christmas and my brother was the only one who said I had a bit of a twang, everyone else said he was hearing things.</p>

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<p>Everybody in USA likes English people. But there’s 2 words (and others likely) that we don’t use the same way. And they are f@g and bloody. You can’t ask people for f@gs in USA. Well, you can, but you mite not get what you think. And bloody is a gross word and we don’t say it unless something nasty is going on, like medical issues and such.</p>

<p>I just thought of another word. Mate. Or is that Australia? </p>

<p>But you need to learn some of the cool USA slang words. Like if you are near Philly, you say yo. Yo is like hi or they say that when they want something from you. And if you are in south USA, they say y’all all the time.</p>

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<p>I have a friend that moved here several years ago from England, and she had a really hard time being understood and even understanding those from here in the US. Like others mentioned, many people here LOVE the British accent, but they can’t always understand it (you could probably curse people out and not even have them realize it). For example, a consistent issue for my friend is ordering a glass of water when we are out to eat- for some crazy reason no one can ever understand her saying “water”. Also, she had an issue when she was separated from a friend while shopping… They called each-other to find out where the other was, and she just kept saying she’s in the queue… Her friend had no idea that a queue was what we call a line here… It’s all stuff she laughs about now, but there is definitely some confusion initially communicating. It’s all stuff you’ll learn to cope with- it’s a different culture here for sure. And while we may both speak English, it’s not the same… lol.</p>

<p>As for drinking, just make sure you don’t get caught. My friend’s parents were on her for drinking here before she turned 21 because of the risk of deportation. I’m not sure if it would really go that far, but it’s something to keep in mind when you do drink. </p>

<p>And for dyslexia, you won’t have any trouble getting help for that here. I’m not sure if our disabled student services are identical, but they will work with you nonetheless. I have several friends who have to use their services and they are doing just fine with college here. </p>

<p>Only thing I’d add: make sure you are patient with people you talk to… It may take time for them to get used to your accent (though you will find many who understand it right away as well). It will help if you make a friend who can understand you easily that can “translate” as needed (my friend had to take advantage of us a lot for that). Anyway, I think you’ll enjoy the experience regardless!!!</p>

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<p>@ 15 & 16</p>

<p>Y’all, yo, ■■■, bloody, and queue were all words I knew about before looooong before coming here. We watch too much American TV, mostly American movies, and American news/showbiz dwarfs our international news.</p>

<p>Frankly, the only times I’ve had a communication problem were not particularly everday words.
Like mildew/damp, saran wrap/clingfilm… and some other obscure ones I can’t remember.</p>

<p>The main problem I have is telling people my name! It’s Natalie, with a “t”, and this throws some Americans lol…
Oh and I remember when we went to California when I was 10, and the waitress could not understand my mum saying “water.” (She tried to do an American accent, oh the shame)</p>

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<p>And im a cheerleader</p>

<p>Sent from my SPH-D700 using CC</p>

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<p>Thanks for all the advice peeps!</p>

<p>Another, slightly stupid question:
The uk is a small island. I live in the most northern part of england, and i could (if i wanted) drive to london and back pretty much within a day. The USA is HUGE and im struggling to get my head around it’s actual size. If I’m in maine, would it be realistic to expect to be able to visit NYC a few times? is it expensive to travel within the US? Obviously i want to see as many cool places as I can when im there, would it be realistic to go on weekend trips traveling by aeroplane? Let me know your thoughts. I’m especially interested in whether it’s realistic for me, being in maine, to visit the west coast for a couple of days. I want to see as much of the USA as is humanly possible!</p>

<p>thanks again x</p>

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<p>aeroplane? what’s that? lol… we call it an airplane here</p>

<p>Umm, it’s hard, but certainly doable. The US is about 50 times larger than the UK, so to travel from one side of the country to the other will require an airplane trip. It’s about a 5 hr flight (at least) from Maine to anywhere in the west coast, primarily Los Angeles (the major city of the west. It’s where the movie stars live). It would be hard to fit a trip out west unless you go over spring/winter break.</p>

<p>To go to NYC, it’s a little easier. If you get a long weekend (like at Thanksgiving, in November, or Christmas in December) it would be no problem. To make either of those trips, you just need to find a time when you will be out of school for more than Saturday and Sunday.</p>

<p>Is it expensive to travel? By car, yes, because gas prices are insane. By plane is expensive at times as well, you just need to shop the sales.</p>

<p>Or, you could come down south to Atlanta and visit me! lol Atlanta isn’t such a bad place.</p>

<p>Lucy, I do have a question for you though. Will you be staying on campus at the school or staying with a family who will keep you?</p>