Hello everyone! I was accepted as a Hamilton Jan and would love to connect with other people so I decided to start a new thread 
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@Happyhamster1. Many congrats on your admission to Hamilton as a Jan. Our daughter is a Jan also. If you check out the Hamilton ED 2025 thread there is good info / feedback in there if you are interested in the Arcadia Program in London.
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Congrats! Our D also a Jan (ED1). She is also interested in the London program. Also, a little anxious about what it might be like due to COVID but we are hoping things will be more ānormalā by then!
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As a suggestion, Jan students who might like to study Shakespeare in London (LONS DTSH 280) should consider taking the AP exam in English Literature if they havenāt done so already.
Congratulations! My son was a Jan in Fall 2017 - he chose to go to London. It was the absolute best decision for him; we think it was better than being a Fall admit actually. He is very close with the friends he made there, but of course they all branch out when they come to campus. If it is happening, I recommend having your student participate in the Fall Orientation trips at Hamilton. Many of the Jans going to London met up there in August - made everything less scary when arriving in the UK and when coming to campus later. Also, we were surprised that a semester in London was cheaper than a semester on campus.
Whatever your student decides about the Fall, they will be welcomed at Hamilton and find their way and their friends once there!
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My son was a 2018 Jan. Heās a current junior and loved his time in London.
Thanks - we were wondering about the August orientation and whether many Jans show up there?
If my memory is correct, about 15 of them met up during the orientation. It could have been more. One of the students organized it, probably on facebook. I wasnāt there, I just remember my son showing me a pic of the group.
There were probably more Jans there who didnāt come to that meeting. Itās really helpful to go to orientation!
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There were over 40 Jans in my sonās class ('22) and a good number of them went to orientation in August. My son did attend the August orientation and was glad he did. He was able to meet some other Jans prior to going to London. The Jans get a mini orientation in January prior to the start of classes. Itās certainly not necessary for a Jan to attend the August orientation.
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ok - very helpful to hear about the August attendance. My D says Facebook is not āa thingā for her age group? Instagram seems to rule the dayā¦ 
What do you think @Happyhamster1 ?
Thank you everyone for your responses!
I would have to agree, but I think that the current facebook group will be helpful to get in contact with other Hamilton admits :)) Do we know if there is a Hamilton Instagram group?
Also does anyone know if programs such as Arcadia in London are still happening due to Covid-19? It seems like an amazing experience but Iām just wondering if it will have an affect. Thanks in advance!
Programs that may be of interest to you have been planned as if they will occur in the late summer and fall of 2021, for example Programs - Sea Education Association and Arcadia Course Offerings for January Admits - Admission - Hamilton College.
Weāve exchanged some email with the Arcadia London program manager and she is very hopeful that the program will be on as intended (in person full time in London).
As per last year it will be split into two blocks. (A then B). Last year block A was remote but block B was in person.
She is very helpful / responsive and you can find her contact info if you click on the Arcadia link on the Hamilton Jan admits page.
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Thanks - good info. We found the link below for the Hamilton/Arcadia program. Looks like you have to apply with an essay, HS transcript etc. Another application - yay! 
Any information on what the expectations are for the essay to minimize stress? Apply | Hamilton Freshman Semester in London | Arcadia Abroad
My communication. With the Arcadia program manager leads us to believe that the Arcadia application is more of a formality as the kids have essentially already been āvettedā by Hamilton but Hamilton doesnāt share that info with Arcadia hence the need for another application process.
The essay shouldnāt be stressed over apparently. Just have your S or D write a couple of hundred words responding to the three questions. They just want to know a little bit more about the kids motivation for selecting that program.
Fees for this years program will be set in March apparently. Last years fees (not including travel) was about $19k for the semester (tuition and boarding). Which is very reasonable compared to Hamilton, however itās important to note there is no financial aid for the Arcadia program.
My daughter just submitted her initial application information and is setting up an interview. (Again not an evaluative interviewā¦ just a two way conversation to ask questions). Will let you know if anything interesting comes out of that.
excellent insight - thank you!
Most of the students would be housed at the Princess Elizabeth house in Highgate (thatās a pretty nice mostly residential area on the north side of London). The nearest tube station is about a 15 minute walk (Archway). The tube ride to downtown is about 20 minutes to Holborn (with one change in between). Then itās a 5 minute walk to the academic building on Southampton Place. So not a terrible commute and most likely the students would be traveling in groups anyway.
Looks like Thereās plenty of shopping and restaurants walking distance from the dorm building for all the essentials.
For any students nervous about using āthe tubeā itās pretty safe (plenty of transit police around) and (my opinion) is its easier to navigate than the NYC subway for out of towners.
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My son stayed in Highgate. He made the āmistakeā of signing up for all 9:00 am classes. The students tend to go out at night, so a suggestion is to have your student sign up for classes that start later in the day, should she/he feel that getting up early to ride the tubes might be an issue. He said door to door commute took about 45/50 minutes.
When my son attended the London program (Fall of '18), there were no classes on Fridays so the students could travel on the weekends.
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Iām also a Jan this year and strongly leaning towards the London program! We should connect!
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Since it came up, note that Hamilton states āArcadia offers limited financial aid for this program.ā