Summer A-Term in London | Department of English

Summer 2016

Program Dates

June 18, 2016 - 12:00 pm - July 23, 2016 - 12:00 pm

Application Deadline

January 29, 2016 - 12:00 pm

Description

During Summer A-Term* 2016, the Department of English will again offer a five-week version of its highly successful program of study in London. We have found that by keeping our numbers small, by tailoring our courses to what is immediately able to be seen in London and in England, and by asking students to actively participate, everyone emerges feeling fuller, as students, as tourists, as people.

The program will consist of three courses: London's Contemporary Theater taught by Dr. Carrie Matthews, Art, Architecture, and Society taught by British Professor Peter Buckroyd, and Contemporary Britain taught by British Professor Michael Fosdal. Professors Buckroyd and Fosdal are our London faculty, and have been teaching our students to rave reviews for more than ten years.

*Students should note that the program begins earlier and ends later than A-term classes in Seattle, Bothell, and Tacoma, which run June 20-July 20, 2016.

Students in the program will maintain their UW residency and any financial aid eligibility already established. Credits and grades earned will be recorded on students' UW transcripts and apply directly to UW graduation requirements. Credits earned in English courses may be used to satisfy requirements for the English major.

Housing and board (two meals per day) for students will be arranged with families in London. A London Transport pass, good for travel on subways and busses, will be supplied.

Homestays

Since 1986, Janet Dunlop has been our London Homestay Coordinator. She screens prospective homestay families for our program, and matches students up with London families. Homestays are an integral part of the program, giving students a unique opportunity to live like a Londoner, a cultural experience that dorms and apartments just don't provide. Janet Dunlop lives in London, and she is available to assist students throughout the program.

London is a large city. Few people can afford to live in the very center of town, and commuting is a way of life. Students should expect a commute to and from class of about 35-45 minutes, via The Underground or bus. All students will receive a London Transport Pass, good on underground trains, over ground rail, and busses between the homestay zone and central London (included in the program fee.)

SCHEDULE NOTE: As noted above, the program begins with a required on-site orientation in London, scheduled for all day Monday, June 20. Students will be expected at their homestays Saturday and Sunday, June 18 and 19, and must plan their travel so they arrive in London no later than Sunday, June 19 so they will be ready to attend the first on-site orientation on Monday morning. They will be expected to leave their homestays on the morning of Saturday, July 23.

Teaching Style/Classroom

Courses in the London Program are taught as much on the streets and in the museums, theatres, and art galleries of London as possible. Thus all the courses in the program include travel and walking to various London destinations. To successfully participate, students must be able to take a physically active role in the progam.

While much of the program will take place on the streets and in the buildings of London, there will still be time spent in our classroom on 6 Great James Street, which is located in the Holborn neighborhood in central London. Credits and grades earned on the London Program will count toward UW residency and degree totals. Students receive regular, numeric grades that are factored in to their UW GPAs. Contact Bridget Norquist in English Advising with questions about registration, credits, or grading, and/or visit the UW Study Abroad website.

Excursions/Group Trips

Some excursions and group trips are included. Transportation for field trips will be via chartered bus with professional drivers. During overnight trips, students are housed in established hotels or bed and breakfasts. Some typical destinations include Stratford-Upon-Avon, Warwick Castle, Stonehenge, St. Paul's Cathedral, museums, and historic London pub tours, but please note that the Summer 2016 excursions have not yet been finalized.

Eligibility

The London program values diversity. Any UW student from any campus, including Evening Degree, is eligible to apply to the program. We try to provide as much information as possible on this site and in our printed materials, but that is no substitute for human interaction. We strongly recommend that interested students attend an Information Session or meet individually with Bridget Norquist, Carrie Matthews, or John Webster.

Enrollment is limited to 30 students.

Application Process

To apply, please use the online application on the study abroad website.

Application Deadline: January 29, 2016.

The application includes

Personal Statement,
3 short answer questions,
2 Faculty recommendations** and
Electronic signature documents related to University policies and
expectations for study abroad.

**In most cases, we require that letters of recommendation come from UW Faculty or Teaching Assistants. However, if you are a new transfer student we will accept letters from faculty from your transfer school(s) in lieu of (or in addition to) UW Faculty recommendations. Letters from family friends, employers, high school counselors, or high school teachers generally will not meet the requirement. If you have any questions about this or any other part of your application, you are more than welcome to contact Bridget Norquist.

Following the on-line application process, students may be contacted by the Program Director for an in-person interview.

Depending on the applications submitted, we may maintain a waiting list for the program. Students who are invited to participate in the program will be required to return a signed payment contract and risk form before the deadline indicated in their acceptance email.

Questions? Contact Bridget Norquist in English Advising for more information.

Online application link coming soon

Courses

London's Contemporary Theater

ENGL 344/444, VLPA
5 credits
Taught by Dr. Carrie Matthews, UW English Department Faculty

For theater--from Shakespeare to modern fringe productions--London is hard to top. More than ten million people a year attend performances in the West End alone! In this class, we'll see one play a week to become active and better-informed consumers of contemporary theater. We will make a pilgrimage to Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's hometown, to see an RSC (Royal Shakespeare Company) production, which we will compare to London's own Globe Theater’s staging of another play by the bard. And we'll also see productions of some more modern plays.

We will try out a few theatrical exercises in class to get a sense of what, exactly, actors do, and you’ll write a brief critical review of each production we see together. These reviews will be based on the notes you take in your theater journals and on class discussion. I will ask you to read some, but not all, of the texts of plays before we see them, and the course will conclude with a self-reflective essay.

This course can meet the Forms, Genres, and Media requirement or the Senior Capstone Requirement for English majors.

Art, Architecture, and Society in London

ART H 399, VLPA
5 credits
taught by Professor Peter Buckroyd, British Faculty

This course is interdisciplinary. The material is London itself. The course is taught entirely on the streets and in buildings, ranging from medieval, Elizabethan and Jacobean to Victorian, modern and post-modern. As well as equipping students to look more carefully at buildings, pictures and sculpture, the course encourages them to do some imaginative re-creation, considering what it might have been like to have lived at different times in the past as a member of different social classes. Field trips, to locations like Stratford Upon Avon, are included, typically via chartered bus with professional drivers. Students usually stay in established B&B's for any overnight trips.

Contemporary Britain

HSTEU 490
5 credits, I&S
taught by Professor Michael Fosdal, British Faculty

This course introduces students to various aspects of life in Britain, from royalty to the homeless, from politics to sport. There is a major emphasis on direct contact with the people and institutions of contemporary Britain, including meetings with homeless people and politicians, visits to Parliament and the media, and individual research projects which encourage students to follow up their own interests. The course also looks at issues such as race, crime, the family and the problems (and delights) of being young in Britain today. The course should enable students to gain a deeper understanding of contemporary Britain and equip them better to understand their own society.

Cost

The program fee will be $4,600 (based on current exchange rates). This fee includes: instructional costs, room, two meals per day (breakfasts and dinners), a London Transport pass, excursions, and some textbooks. No additional tuition payment is required, resident and non-resident students all pay the same fees.

Fees do not include: the $325 non-refundable Study Abroad Office fee, airfare, weekday lunches, mandatory health insurance and other health-related expenses, or personal spending money.

So how much might you spend on airfare, weekday lunches, and personal expenses?

Airfare is even less predictable than exchange rates, but you might spend up to $1,500 for a plane ticket. Personal expenses can be a tough thing to estimate, since they can vary so much from person-to-person, but considering that participants will already have paid their basic expenses (room and two meals a day, London transport pass, excursion tickets) as part of the program fee, we’re really talking about lunch money and pocket/shopping money. You can lunch reasonably on £ 7 ($11) or less a day if you are economical; other costs will vary immensely depending on what you like to do, and whether you like to shop. London is a fairly expensive city with lots of good things to spend money on. A ballpark figure for a moderate spender has been about $1,000 for the five weeks ($200/week); if you like to shop and eat out a lot, it will be more, but if you are economical, you can get by with a little less.

Payment Schedule

Program fees will be posted to participants' MyUW student accounts and can be paid the same way that you pay tuition and other fees.

$325.00 non-refundable Study Abroad Office fee due July 8, 2016.
$4,600 (based on current exchange rates) remaining program balance due July 8, 2016.

Total fees: $4,925 (based on current exchange rates).

Note: Program fees are paid in dollars; most program expenses are paid in pounds. The English Department program in London reserves the right to modify the program fee based upon dollar devaluation or severe inflation. In this unlikely event, students will be notified of the increase and an adjustment will be made to the final program payment.

Scholarships and Financial Aid

Matriculated UW students can apply most forms of financial aid to support their study abroad costs. You can verify that your financial aid award will apply to your program costs by contacting the Financial Aid Office. Financial aid or scholarships awarded as tuition waivers or tuition exemptions might not apply so you will need to verify that these funds are eligible for use with study abroad by contacting the funding office.

Financial aid and most scholarships are disbursed according to the UW academic calendar (at the beginning of the quarter). If your program starts before the start of the UW quarter, your financial aid will not be available to you prior to your departure. If your program starts after the first day of the quarter, your financial aid will be disbursed at the start of the program. In either of these cases, you will have to finance any upfront costs such as airfare, health insurance and the start of your time abroad on your own. Please take this into consideration when you are making plans.

Revision Request:

In some instances you may qualify for an increase in your financial aid award (typically in loan funds). Check with the Financial Aid Office about your options. To request a revision in your aid, you will need to submit the following paperwork to the Financial Aid Office:

1. Revision Request Form

2. Budget of student expenses for your program: available under the "documents" tab on participants' study abroad accounts after a payment contract has been submitted to the Study Abroad Office.

Disbursement:

Please remember that financial aid and most scholarships will be disbursed according to the UW academic calendar (beginning of the quarter). If your program starts before the start of the UW quarter, your financial aid award will not be disbursed until after the start of the program. If your program begins after the start of the UW quarter, your financial aid award will be delayed until the start of the program. In either of these cases, you will have to finance any upfront costs such as airfare and health insurance and the start of your time abroad on your own. Please take this into consideration when you plan your foreign study.

Short-term Loans:

The Financial Aid Office does have a Short-Term Loan Program to assist students with temporary cash flow problems. To be eligible, students must be currently enrolled in regular classes in the UW Student Database. Students studying abroad during Summer quarter will need to apply for a short term loan before the end of Spring Quarter.

Scholarships:

Fritz Undergraduate Scholarships provide competitive funding to undergraduate students in the Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Washington through the Chester Fritz Endowment.

GO! Scholarships are funded by the Washington State Legislature and provide students with significant financial need access to international learning opportunities. The scholarship is limited to UW students who are Washington State residents.

The UW Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships and Awards is an excellent resource for additional undergraduate scholarship advice and options.

Health Insurance

The University of Washington has a mandatory comprehensive health insurance plan that is specifically for students studying abroad on UW programs like the Department of English Summer in London Program. It has a very low premium: approximately $62 per month for the duration of the program.

Please visit the Study Abroad Website for more information.

Mandatory UW Study Abroad Health Insurance Plan

Withdrawal Policy

$350 of the total program fee and the $325 Study Abroad Office Fee are non-refundable once a payment contract has been submitted. Students withdrawing from the program will be responsible for paying a percentage of the program fee, determined by the date of withdrawal. More details about the withdrawal policy will be included in participants' payment contracts. No part of the program fee is refundable once the program has begun. The date of withdrawal is considered the date (business day) a withdrawal form is received by the Study Abroad Office.

Notice of withdrawal from the program must be made in writing, completing the following steps:

1. Provide notice in writing to the program director that you will no longer be participating in the program for which you have signed a contract and accepted a slot.

2. Submit a signed withdrawal form to the Study Abroad Office, 459 Schmitz Hall.

Dates & Deadlines

Important Dates and Deadlines

Information Session: January 14, 3:30-4:30 in Thompson 135
Application Deadline: January 29, 2016.
Required Seattle Pre-Departure Orientations:
#1: To be held in Spring Quarter (dates and time TBD)
#2: To be held in Spring Quarter (dates and time TBD)
#3: General Study Abroad Orientation, available dates TBD (see the study abroad website to register for your orientation)
Arrival in Homestays: Saturday, June 18th and Sunday, June 19th, 2016
First Day of the Program: Monday, June 20th, 2016
Last Day of the Program: Friday, July 22nd, 2016
Departure from Homestays: Saturday, July 23rd, 2016

Pre-Departure Orientations

Participants will be required to attend a total of three pre-departure orientations in Seattle during Spring Quarter (dates and times TBD).

Program participants must also attend an in-person pre-departure orientation facilitated by the Study Abroad office.You must register for this orientation through your online study abroad account in order to attend scheduled orientations. Please visit the Study Abroad website for more information.

Any problems or financial losses that occur as as a result of not attending the orientations are entirely the responsibility of individual students.

The Summer A-Term in London program begins with a required on-site orientation session in London scheduled for all day Monday, June 20, 2016.

SCHEDULE NOTE

As noted above, the program begins with a required on-site orientation sessions in London scheduled for all day Monday, June 20th. Students will be expected at their homestays Saturday, June 18 or Sunday, June 19, and must plan their travel so they arrive in London no later than June 19 so they will be ready to attend the first on-site orientation on Monday morning. They will be expected to leave their homestays on the morning of Saturday, July 23.

Travel

Passports/Visas

You will need a passport to travel to the United Kingdom. It can take time for your application to be processed and your passport issued, so it's a good idea to apply for (or renew) your passport as early as possible. As of September 2015, according to the U.S. government's passport services website, the total cost is $135 for a 10-year passport, and the University Neighborhood Service Center, 4534 University Way NE, is the passport acceptance facility closest to campus. The most extensive passport information, including application procedures, fees, office locations, and even printable application forms you can download, is available from the State Department's passport services website. Some general information on applying for passports is also available by calling the National Passport Information Center toll-free number: 1-877-487-2778, while an automated appointment line and some general information is available at the Seattle Passport Agency: (206) 808-5700.

If you are not a U.S. Citizen, a visa, or additional documentation, may be required for your period of study in the United Kingdom. If a visa is required, international students participating on the program are encouraged to obtain their student visitor visas and/or any other required documentation no later than April 30, 2016. It can take the UK Border Agency several weeks to process your application and to issue your visa. Participants should begin the application process as early as possible (but no earlier than 90 days before your arrival date in London).

We will assist students with this process in any way we can, but please remember that we are not immigration experts. Obtaining a visa (should you need one) is your responsibility. If you've been accepted to the program and you think you need a visa, contact Bridget Norquist in English Advising for more information.

Travel Arrangements

Participants make their own travel arrangements - there is no group flight to London. Airfares fluctuate too often and too much to make any estimates here, but we encourage students to begin shopping for flights as soon as they are officially enrolled in the program. Council/STA Travel is a student-friendly travel agency we recommend, but students often find great deals on their own by taking advantage of frequent flyer miles and individual airline promotions.

NOTE to participants: Please be wary of some of the cheap airfare websites. Read all the fine print. Tickets may not be changeable, and flights may not always fly as scheduled. Students have run into problems with these sites in the past. Just use your best judgment and consider your options carefully.

IMPORTANT: As noted above, the program begins with a required on-site orientation sessions in London scheduled for all day Monday, June 20. Students will be expected at their homestays Saturday, June 18 and Sunday, June 19, and must plan their travel so they arrive in London no later than Sunday, June 19 so they will be ready to attend the first on-site orientation on Monday morning. They will be expected to leave their homestays on the morning of Saturday, July 23.

London Weather - What to pack?

Londoners open many conversations with comments about the weather - and with good reason. London weather is unpredictable and often mercurial. Students often ask us what to pack. There are two kinds of travelers: those who pack light and those who wish they did. We recommend that students pack a week's worth of clothing, with options for layering. Comfortable shoes and a waterproof shell are must-haves, and students should keep in mind that they will have limited storage space in their host family's home. For more packing and backpacking ideas, check out the Rick Steves' website.