Fordham Abroad - London Centre

For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to study abroad in London during my college career. So when my first semester of junior year was finishing up and I still hadn’t done this, I had a minor freak out; how can I study abroad before I graduate?

“Have no fear,” Fordham’s International & Study Abroad Programs (lovingly known as ISAP) website seemed to tell me last November as I scrambled to find out what I could do. And then I discovered I could study in London before my senior year at Fordham for four weeks in the summer. Perfect!

Big Ben in typical London weather

And it truly was perfect. I was required to take one liberal arts course, and I chose Writing for Magazines. For a few days a week, my class met at Heythrop College, where Fordham London Centre is located. We got to do so many incredible things for the class, including seeing a play called “McQueen” and interviewing the show’s stars afterwards. We also got to meet up with Fordham alumni who are now living and working in London, and they gave us tours of their neighborhoods. We got to see a whole new side of London that most tourists don’t get to see.

Of course, I also partook in the traditional touristy London and English activities; I rode the London Eye, visited Windsor Castle, stopped at Stonehenge, saw a couple West End shows, and ate lots of delicious pub fare. It was everything I wanted out of my study abroad experience and more.

Stonehenge rocks!

Additionally, spending four weeks abroad turned out to be the perfect amount of time for me. A semester would have had me missing my family, friends, and Fordham, so four weeks gave me just the right amount of time away to get me acquainted with London without feeling so homesick.

Notting Hill's adorable houses

Even if you can't spare a semester to study abroad, Fordham's ISAP allow you to spend a short time in a foreign city that could fulfill all your study abroad dreams!

Studying Abroad With Fordham London (Is The Best)

Kensington Palace- A 5-minute walk from Fordham's campus!

The best experience I have had at Fordham University was my semester abroad in London through Fordham’s London Centre. For four full months, I spent my weekends traveling around Europe and my days exploring the ins and outs of London- and of course, going to class. As a marketing student, Fordham offered all the business classes and marketing electives that I need, which allowed me to continue my studies and while expanding my horizons, growing as a person, and mastering all forms of European public transportation. I also made so many new Fordham classmates through the program, many of which I am still very close with now that we are all back in the Bronx.

Gabelli School Trip to Rome

While I technically speaking had a “semester abroad in London”, I prefer to think of my experience as a semester abroad in Europe with London as my home base. London is where lived, studied and explored Monday through Thursday and anywhere else in Europe is where you could find me on the weekends. During that time I travelled to 10 different countries including France, Switzerland, Spain, Germany, Denmark, Italy, and the Czech Republic. I ate traditional Czech goulash, clinked beer steins at the largest German festival in Munich, and climbed the rural mountains of Scotland. I ate potatoes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in Ireland and dined in the mountains of Gruyere, Switzerland with, of course, gruyere cheese fondue. I learned how to navigate almost any public form of transportation and have mastering the art of being comfortable with being uncomfortable.

Our Flat

And while traveling on the weekends was always exciting, returning to London, to Fordham’s campus was always something to look forward to. My flat (British for apartments) was my home and my classmates were both my best friends and family. Classes were hands-on and field trips exploring the city and its treasures were common. Our professors were both encouraging and understanding about traveling, but still expected us to work hard and really learn in our classes.

London Centre Fall 2014 Farewell Tea Party

I cannot stress how great my experience in London was and I encourage every Fordham student to study abroad in order to discover it for themself.

Check out the the Fordham London's Facebook page and website for more information. Happy travels! 

Seeing the World One City at a Time!

London's Big Ben

When I came to Fordham, I had never left the country before. I dreamed of seeing the world, but I never expected to start traveling the world so soon. However, Fordham has allowed me to travel across continents. By the time I graduate, I will have visited four countries in three different continents. I have been able to do this by taking advantage of Fordham's Study Tour programs, which are short study abroad programs. Rather than spending a whole semester abroad, the study tours last about two weeks.

In my freshman year, I took advantage of a Gabelli Study Tour to Europe. With a group of twenty-three students, I visited London and Paris.  While in these cities, we visited several companies from a range of different business disciplines. Each visit gave us a sense of what it was like to conduct business in Europe, which was very valuable. 

The Great Wall of China!

In my sophomore year, I went on a Study Tour to Beijing. Although Beijing was certainly different than New York, I thought it was an amazing experience. We visited many of the major companies in Beijing and attended several lectures at a Beijing university. I especially enjoyed the lectures at the university since they covered historical and business topics from a very different perspective than I had ever experienced before. 

In two weeks, I will be leaving for my third Study Tour. This trip will be to Santiago, Chile. I am currently taking a Business Practices course that is preparing my class for this trip. We have been learning about the political and economic conditions that are affecting the business climate. Spending so much time preparing for this trip is really making me antsy to go! Like the previous trips, we will be visiting various businesses and attending lectures at a Chilean university in Santiago. My Spanish is pretty rusty, but hopefully I will remember enough to get me around the city (It's a good thing that the lectures and company visits will be in English!).

Fordham Study Abroad: London Dramatic Academy

I spent last semester at London Dramatic Academy (LDA), one of Fordham's study abroad programs. I love acting, but I didn't want to get my undergraduate degree in theatre. Still, I wanted to get some kind of training before college was over. LDA was the perfect compromise. I got to spend three months focusing solely on acting—a rare opportunity for any college student who isn't a theatre major. Even better, my LDA class was quite diverse for a Fordham program. Two of us were from Fordham Rose Hill, four were from Fordham Lincoln Center, and the remaining ten were from a variety of schools including Cornell University, Loyola University Chicago, and the University of Pennsylvania. My roommate Julia and I, both of us from Rose Hill, were the only non-theatre majors.

LDA is a conservatory acting program, with a full week of classes that last, on average, from 9 AM to 5 PM (though ending a bit earlier on certain days of the week). It sounds like a lot, but the weeks actually flew by because 1.) I enjoyed virtually everything I was learning, and 2.) There are a several different modules within each course, so no one class became tedious. For instance, one of the four courses you register for at LDA is "Physical Training for Actors," but under that course we had four classes a week: Period Dance, Stage Combat, Movement, and Physical Theatre. (Check out my Instagram below to watch an excerpt of me and my classmate Tim rehearsing our final presentation for Stage Combat!) We also had interesting master classes with London-based theatre professionals, as well as a "Casting for Camera" workshop with Polly Hootkins Casting.

My classmates rehearsing the famous lovers' quarrel from Midsummer Nights Dream.

Aliyah and Tim performing as Hermia and Lysander in Midsummer Night's Dream rehearsal.

A video posted by Vanessa Anne (@vanessa_avocado) on Dec 18, 2014 at 6:40pm PST

Most of our teachers were trained at England's finest drama schools, and some even teach at those schools now in addition to working at LDA. For example, my acting teacher Kathryn Pogson (who also happens to be director of LDA) spent her years at Drama Centre alongside classmate Pierce Brosnan. My voice teacher currently teaches at the highly prestigious Guildhall School of Music & Drama. Several of my teachers have acted on the British theatre scene with the likes of Alan Rickman, Ralph Fiennes, and Mark Rylance. My one-on-one audition coach was a prominent drama teacher at Eton College for fifteen years, where he taught both Eddie Redmayne and Tom Hiddleston. (He actually still keeps in touch with Eddie.) Needless to say, we were in very good hands at LDA.

Me and two of my roommates, Julia and Jasia, take a final photo with our LDA director and Acting teacher, Kathryn Pogson. Excuse our teary looks--this was taken at the LDA Farewell Party!

We had several walking tours of London built into our class schedule, as well as two day trips to Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon. LDA also booked about fifteen shows for us to watch as part of our Dramatic Criticism module. No exaggeration, I saw some of the best theatre of my life during my short time in London. The theatre culture there is wildly different from the culture in New York, and I firmly believe that training in the British tradition has its own merits that can't necessarily be reproduced in American acting schools.

Tim, Julia, Maryn, and Courtney amid the beautiful architecture of Oxford!

Between a full class schedule, day trips, and over a dozen shows to watch, it sounds like we never had time to travel, but in fact, I visited four different countries while I was abroad. Some of my classmates saw even more. LDA has one week-long fall break, and it ended a week earlier than the other Fordham programs. Ending early was nice because we were able to travel afterwards without having to worry about homework or getting back in time for my next class.

LDA gave me confidence, posture, and practical tools for approaching my craft. No matter what artistic projects I may undertake in the future--whether on stage, on screen, or simply an audition--I feel like I have an actual method to return to whenever I'm not quite sure how to begin. And LDA isn't just for actors; past LDA students include future lawyers and people who simply wanted to get out of their comfort zone.

Even if I don't continue acting after college, I am thankful for my time in LDA because it has immeasurably improved my critical thinking skills, the way I carry myself, my ability to follow direction and take criticism, and the way I communicate with others. All of these skills will serve me well in whatever career I pursue.

To learn more about LDA and how to apply, click here!

Our Acting class in a cast photo for our final presentation of the play Mixed Doubles.

Study Tours with Fordham!

On every campus tour I went on during my college search, I heard about the study abroad opportunities that the school offered. However, I knew that it was pointless to get excited about the study abroad options since my parents were completely against the idea of me leaving the country for a full semester. When I heard about Fordham's Study Tour options, however, I finally found my opportunity to study abroad! 

Fordham offers many Study Tours throughout the year for all different subject areas. The Study Tours vary in length, but they are shorter versions of studying abroad while still counting for course credit. These Study Tours usually take place over the Winter, Spring, and Summer breaks. Many of the Study Tours fulfill core and major requirements. This means that you get to see another part of the world while still staying on track with your studies!

The British Crown Jewels

I have participated in an International Business Study Tour to London and Paris, and I am participating in another one to Beijing next month! I absolutely loved my Study Tour to London and Paris. It was an amazing learning opportunity both about international business and the local cultures of London and Paris. I am really looking forward to experiencing Chinese culture and business in Beijing next month! I am taking some basic Mandarin classes to prepare...hopefully they help!

I also have friends who have participated in some other really fun Study Tours. 

One of my friends took an International Finance course in Turkey over Spring break. He actually loved it so much in Turkey that he is planning on spending all of next semester there on a semester-long study abroad opportunity. 
  
Another offering that my friends are taking advantage of is through the Theology department. In July, the Theology department is running a two-week Reformation Texts Study Tour to Italy, Germany, and Switzerland. This Study Tour also counts for a Sacred Texts & Traditions core requirement! 

We climbed the Eiffel Tower!

I have only highlighted a few of Fordham's many Study Tour options, but they are really great opportunities for students. For me, they allow me to study abroad on shorter trips so that my parents are willing to let me experience studying abroad. For my friend who participated in the International Finance Study Tour, he was able to decide whether or not Turkey was where he wanted to spend an entire semester. Many of my friends, however, just hear about an awesome Study Tour that is being offered and decide to take the course. 

I know that my experience with Study Tours has been amazing, and I would definitely recommend it to every student who comes to Fordham!

Rams across the pond!

 Today officially marks my one-month anniversary in London! I can’t believe that I’ve already been studying and living on a different continent for four weeks. Time flies when you are having fun!

The city of London is like New York; a huge public transportation system, endless museums to visit, and any type of food you can find (yes, there is even a Shake Shack and a Chipotle here in London Town).  One thing I love about London is all of the history this city has to offer, especially surrounding the Blitz of World War II.

Of all the sites I have seen, one of my favorite places in London has been the Churchill War Rooms, located up the street from Big Ben. This museum has documents and artifacts on display about the life of former Prime Minister Winston Churchill, but it also a wartime bunker that served as Churchill and his government’s headquarters during the Blitz. The museum is all underground, and the rooms, including a map room, living quarters, and meeting rooms have been virtually untouched since the war ended.

After leaving the museum, I was greeted with a clear sky (it had been raining all day!) great view of Big Ben. Only in London town!

I can’t wait to keep exploring what this city has to offer the next few months!!

A Summer in Florence

While many students traveled home after finals last spring to see their families and start their summer jobs, I hopped on a plane to Florence, Italy to have arguably the best four weeks of my life. While the study abroad program was not specifically through Fordham, my dean, the department chairs, and the study abroad office were so all helpful and encouraging throughout my application process (even as only an incoming sophomore!). 

In Florence I took two 3-credit classes, one of which on the famous Italian poet Dante and the other on Cross-Cultural Psychology. Fordham accepted both classes for credit. The courses really integrated the history and culture of Florence into the classroom, which made the experience all the more worthwhile. Field trips included visiting the Baptistery where Dante was baptized, a multi-cultural middle school, an ex-asylum, and we even had a trip further out into Tuscany to Siena and San Gimignano. I also read Dante’s famous Inferno and conducted ethnographies on different cultural experiences in Italy like going to a pizzeria. 

But besides interesting classes, simply living in Florence was an amazing experience. I stayed in a four-bedroom apartment in the center of Florence with four other girls, who are now some of my best friends. We both grocery shopped and cooked, but most of the time went out to dinner and had authentic Italian pastas, sauces, meats, and gelato. We also travelled every weekend to different parts of Italy including to Rome, Pisa, Milan, Venice, and the Cinque Terre. Each city was beautifully unique but they all had one thing in common- amazing food. Some of the Italian foods I tried are buffalo mozzarella, veal scaloppini, duck, panna cotta, and of course brick oven pizza like no other. 

Studying abroad was such an eye opening and worthwhile experience for me that I intend on going abroad again for the fall semester next year. Fordham has its own business school in the heart of London where I can continue taking marketing classes for my major.  In addition, studying abroad at Fordham is not limited to one experience and is encouraged for all majors and to all classes. I was able to study abroad as an incoming sophomore and will soon have a whole new experience as a junior in London. I also plan on traveling to visit my other Fordham friends studying abroad that same semester in countries like Poland, Spain, and the Czech Republic. And who knows, I may just have to pop back to Florence just to taste the gelato again! 

Adventures Abroad Part 1

Familiar Faces and Frozen Fingers

Here I am, sitting in a lecture hall. Watching the other students file in, eyes darting, searching for a familiar face. Thankfully, I had my own sitting right next to me. You see it is an odd thing, having your roommate from home be your roommate abroad, but I am grateful. I remember what it was like being the new girl, trying to make connections with people you barely know, while in the back of your mind the constant question remains, “Will I ever see you again?” Being new is hard, even when everyone else is new. Now although I know someone already, I’m still new too; same nerves fluttering in my stomach, which are actually now starting to make their way to my fingertips. Or perhaps that’s just the numbness subsiding.                                                                       

Another fantastic reason why having a built in support system is helpful, is because when you get lost, you’re lost together. Remember that lecture hall I was telling you about? Well, that little bugger was harder to find than the campus map the University sent us would have you believe. It took us about 45 minutes to make it from our apartment-or flat as it’s called here-to campus; a journey that should’ve only lasted, at the most 20.                                                                                    

Luckily, there is a bus stop right out side of our building, and being the jaded Upper West Side-er that I am, I assumed that all public transport would bring you to within a couple of blocks of your destination. However, when the bus dropped us off at the nearest stop and the Uni was nowhere in site, I began to see the differences between London and New York.  And as the bitter British winds of January cut deep into my gloveless, iPhone working hands, the one simple, reoccurring thought in my head was, “Fordham take me back!”                                                                                                        

You see, at FCLC there is no need for residents to be caught up in the silly inconveniences of the weather in order to get to class, no need for umbrellas or coats. The dorms are connected to the class buildings by a nifty underground hallway. Furthermore, there is no real need for alarm clocks really; I once timed myself and it took me seven minutes to get from my bed to my class. Now luckily there were no mirrors on my route, but nonetheless, seven minutes.  And there is no getting lost to class, I mean honestly, I think it might be impossible. Think about it, every hallway leads you to the escalators, which leads you to class.                                                

 “Ello new students,” bam! Snapped back to reality, no more daydreaming of the fruits of the past. I am here at the City University of London orientation, listening to the head of the Study Abroad Department speak about adjusting to different cultures, how excited they are to welcome us and something else that I can’t concentrate on because I can’t decide if I want my coat on or off. Coming in straight from the insane cold to the insane room temperature is confusing my anatomy. It’s like my body can’t decide if it’s trying to stay warm or trying to cool off.  So as I attempt to regain control of my body temperature and try my hardest to concentrate on each and every speech of the day, I look ahead to my next few months abroad and the unexpected adventures that are sure to find me.