South Carolina is my home. I was born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina. I had spent 18 years of my life there, only to move to a city one hour and thirty minutes away to go to University. I had never even left the southeastern United States, much less the country as a whole. So when I got to uni and decided I wanted to study abroad, I was nervous, to say the least. Would I go somewhere that didn’t speak English? Would I immerse myself in a different culture? How far away would I be from my family? Would I get homesick? How would I cope in a new environment? Ultimately I decided to come to the UK and Warwick University because it was the best exchange program for History. But also, I chose Warwick because while it was in England, where everyone spoke my first language and I didn’t expect much of a new cultural experience, I liked that it was in Coventry, a city of similar size to the city of my uni here, and that it allowed me to travel and see other places in Europe with relative ease.
I didn’t have a lot of expectations coming to England, so I just did lots of Googling. How was school different there? Would I be able to measure up? What did people do for fun? Where would I live? What would I eat? How would I make friends? What clubs were offered? I became overly familiar with the University of Warwick website before I even got accepted into the program. Frankly, the application process was nothing compared to packing and moving across an ocean. I have a lot of stuff. I had to leave most of that stuff behind and shove everything else into two checked bags and a carry-on. It was honestly a miracle that I managed. When I arrived at London-Heathrow and then to campus it was a perfect day, sunny and warm with perfect blue skies - the exact opposite of what I had been expecting. Everything I had read and heard about the U.K. was that the weather was horrendous. Apparently, I just had beginner’s luck because for the next week after that it rained the entire time. I didn’t mind it as much as I thought I would have though. I grew to like the overcast days and cold nights. It made me appreciate the sun a lot more because as a girl from the South I had always taken it for granted.
Though I didn’t have many expectations when I moved, Warwick completely took me by surprise in how much I loved it. One of my favorite things about Warwick is that all of my professors provided all the materials online for any reading we had to do! (If you prefer hard copies like me, the library also has most of the texts.) I stayed on campus in Tocil and absolutely loved it and I would definitely recommend it even without the en suite bathroom. One of things I wanted to do most was see as much as possible and Warwick has a great program that goes on day trips about once a month for less than 30 pounds and I have really enjoyed them. One of my other favorite things about Coventry is the public transportation. I never learned how to drive and in the US it was always such an inconvenience. The buses were usually very reliable and once I’d gotten used to the routes I took them everywhere! As someone who loves stuff, I suppose I should’ve budgeted more for things like souvenirs and shopping in general. I thought I had brought all the clothes I would need or want but what I didn’t take into consideration was Primark. Literally my favorite store in the world. Finally, none of these things even come close to how much I loved my flatmates. They became my family and made Warwick feel like home, 3000 miles away from what had always been home for me. I was so lucky to be able to live with them and they made my experience even more incredible.
For anyone considering coming to the University of Warwick, here’s what I have to offer by way of advice. Have as much fun as you can, especially in the first term (that is if you come for the year - which you totally should). For me, University was much more laid back in the U.K. but that could definitely be because I was pass/fail. One thing I would say that I didn't do but wish I did is to really get involved and make friends outside of who you live with early on (the societies are SUPER cool and there are so many - and sports clubs too if you play any). But seriously HAVE FUN! Be who you've always wanted to be and more, because no one over here knows who you were. Coventry now has a piece of my heart because of my time at Warwick and I will always consider it my second home.
---- Lauryn Workman, Guest Blogger
