University of Wisconsin–Madison

United Kingdom: Makayla Cole (Learning Environment)

I found some key differences in the British vs the American University experience. The lectures are typically in a room that looks like the one below. Workshops and seminars are like the American version of discussions; there are usually only about 15-20 students and it is led by our seminar tutors (TA’s in America). At UW-Madison a number of the lecture halls have the mini desk that you have to pull up from the side of the chair, but here a table just expands across the whole row.

A lecture hall with cushioned blue chairs and wooden, curved tables that sit taller the further back they are in the lecture room.
My Gender Studies Lecture Hall

Lectures and most workshops/seminars are only 1 hour long. One thing that I found pretty interesting is that everything starts at the top of the hour. I have not seen a lecture or workshop start at 12:30 or 1:20 like they do at UW-Madison. Some people have classes back to back, so often times lectures end 10 minutes before the hour to give them a chance to get to their next lecture. Since I have been here I learned that exams with multiple choice questions are very rare as most of the exams are just timed essays. That being said I have been writing the most essays I have ever written in a single semester, but luckily I did not have midterm and final exams to study for.

Makayla stands in the archway of a small stone tower in front of a large body of water.

Makayla Cole

Hometown: Chicago, Illinois

Major: Social Welfare; Cert. Gender & Women’s Studies and Criminal Justice

Program: Lancaster University Exchange

I chose the Lancaster University Exchange program because the University offers courses that aligns with my interests and academic career. I can take courses that satisfy my degree and certificate requirements while being abroad.