<p>My son is planning to study abroad next spring and is mainly considering England. Has anyone's child studied abroad in England? He is particularly interested in psychology and is looking at a few programs including University College London. He's not sure whether it's best to base himself in London (very expensive) or perhaps in Leeds or elsewhere. Any suggestions? </p>
<p>(I am cross posting on the Parents Forum as well.)</p>
<p>twinmom: D is going to King's in London in Jan. It's a renowned university loosely affiliated with UCL which is many institutions. It has a very good rep. in liberal arts disciplines like psychology. D did not consider anything but London because she is urban all the way, and her roommate, who grew up in London, insisted she choose Kings.</p>
<p>I don't know if Scotland is in the picture, but St. Andrews in Scotland is a popular destination as well.</p>
<p>So are Oxford and Cambridge, but it is very difficult to find one semester programs there. (There are two I know of, but they are affiliated with specific US universities.)</p>
<p>Studying in the UK is expensive no matter where you go...my college senior has been in Reading (Reading U) since Sept and although loving the experience remember that the US $ is .48 to one Pound. Makes EVERYTHING prohibitively expensive. She worked all summer to afford the semester and was hoping to do a lot of weekend excursions but her transportation to France for the weekend (tube to London then Eurostar thru the Chunnel and bus fare in France) was 200 pounds ($400)...definitely not what she was expecting. </p>
<p>She is, however, at Reading University and they do have single semester programs. She loves the country, likes the Univ alright, just struggling to make ends meet with the dollar so weak.</p>
<p>I go to University College London (not to be confused with the University of London: Kings College and University College are both colleges of the University of London, but the University of London is a waning institution with little influence over the individual London schools. For most intents and purposes, the London schools are independent.), but I'm on exchange here in the US at the moment.</p>
<p>I can't express quite how fantastic London is. It's a really wonderful city for urban types. And the university accommodation isn't much more expensive than what I'm paying for university accommodation in the US. Other living expenses will be a bit higher, but by and large the only really major differences I've noticed in prices are in nonessential items (books, music, clothes etc.).</p>
<p>Really, if he's looking at living in England, I would say he should probably just accept a more expensive year and go to somewhere in London (and not necessarily UCL: I don't want to sound like I'm encouraging someone to attend my university just because I go there). I've been and lived all over England and Scotland all my life, and London has beaten all other locations hands down.</p>