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CCSA: Summer Term - London Mid-Summer
(Directory Program)
Program Base Price: $3,199
Airfare: $1,350 - $1,550
Dates: July 9, 2023 – July 24, 2023
Scholarships: Yes (see scholarships page)
Program Description:
London is a metropolis made up of hundreds of communities. Become part of the city while your explore the many secrets that make London special. The two-week program offers a wide selection of courses to meet your academic needs. Scheduled field trips and personal exploration time enable you to see London up close.
An optional day trip to Stonehenge/Salisbury will be offered.
Photo Gallery:
More Info:
The price of this CCSA program includes:
Accommodations
Course-related activities and entrances fees
Some minor additional course fees may apply. See our cost calculator.
All course-related ground transportation
Additional cultural program excursions
Health and emergency evacuation insurance
Program directors and staff on-site 24/7
Daily breakfast and some additional meals
*Cancel for any reason prior to March 17, 2023, and receive a Full Refund.
Accommodations:
Housing
Participants will reside at St. Giles London, one of the most centrally located hotels in London. Situated in the heart of the West End, St. Giles is just a few minutes walk from Oxford Street, Soho, Theatres, the British Museum, Covent Garden, and many other attractions. Tottenham Court Underground Station (Central and Northern lines) is just 2 minutes away, right around the corner from the hotel entrance.
Rooms
Rooms are twin bedrooms (Classic Rooms), equipped with two single beds, desk and chair, storage cabinets and drawers, and an en-suite bathroom with shower, basin, mirror and toilet. An LCD TV, telephone, digital safe, fan and hairdryer are also included.
Students will be housed in twin bedrooms (Classic Rooms).
Faculty will be assigned to double rooms (Classic Rooms).
No triple rooms with three individual beds are available; only one double and one single.
Facilities
Free Wi-Fi is provided throughout the residence.
Daily full English breakfast is provided in the Sage & Chilli Restaurant.
NOTE: Past faculty and admin have emphasized the rooms are small. However, the location and other amenities (cleanliness, breakfast, staff, etc.,) make St. Giles a fine accommodation site. As one faculty put it, “The UK is an island and things are all smaller and, hence, the rooms will be small.”
Students will need to budget an additional £50 for local transportation costs.
An Oystercard pre-loaded with £50 will be provided to each participant, but top-ups will be required (roughly £50 per week) over the course of the program. You may add more value/credit to your Visitor Oyster card by simply ‘topping up’ at:
Touchscreen ticket machines in the stations
Oyster Ticket Stops across London
Transport for London Visitor Centre
London Overground station ticket office
You may also download the TfL Oyster app to check your balance, add credit to your Oyster card.
Course(s) Offered:
Art & Design
Drawing London: The Art of Urban Sketching
Course Description: London has been luring travelers for centuries – both for its long, rich history and for its contemporary marvels. In this course you will document through drawing some of London’s historical locations such as The Tower of London and Greenwich Observatory and explore unfamiliar places such as outdoor markets, cemeteries, parks, and eateries where you will hone your drawing skills while observing and recording the people and culture of Britain. This class will provide you with instruction in technical skills such as watercolor, perspective and composition, while stimulating your creativity with visits to museums such as Tate Modern and The Cartoon Museum and excursions outside London to places like Dover and Oxford.
Communication / Media Studies / Film & Broadcasting
Digital Storytelling: Exploring England
Course Description: Everyone has a story to tell, and in this class, students will develop their own stories as they relate to the culture of England by creating audio and video projects on location. We will examine digital media as a tool for seeing, exploring, and expressing cultural identity. While visiting ancient sites, cathedrals, museums and attending concerts, students will document their experience as a participant observer during this historical time. You're invited to take advantage of this opportunity to develop your cultural competency and sensitivity in the process of documenting intercultural stories in Ireland.
Course Description: Explore flavor science and flavor research in London in this class that features a combination of lectures and hands-on activities from bread making and chocolates to beer and wine. The class will include visits to manufacturing sites and tastings as well as a visit to an English university renowned for its work in flavor research. Students participating in this session will come away with a deeper understanding of the minute details (ingredients and processing) involved in flavor development of our many cherished food products. In addition, the opportunity to discuss flavor creation with experts and to have your own chance at creating a flavor will be one of the highlights of the class.
International Business / Management / Legal Studies
British Business, Law and Brexit
Course Description: As Britain experiences the aftermath of leaving the European Union, constructing a new trade agreement with the EU, dealing with immigration and boundaries, nowhere is better suited for studying the impact of Brexit than London. Gain understanding of the implications of Brexit for US, UK and EU companies through meetings with business managers, visiting offices and production facilities of multinational corporations, and observing British law and its parliamentary system. Through this unique on-site learning experience in London, you'll acquire insights into the shifts in economic power among international players that come with Brexit and into the nature of global trade, laws, marketing, currency, production and tariffs.
British Literature Transformed: English Writers in the Postcolonial Era
Course Description: The traditional British literary canon of Shakespeare, Dickens and Austen has not been the same since the post-WWII generation. Black, Asian, and Middle Eastern writers from the colonies emigrated to London and the rest of the UK, and their perspectives on race, class, and nationality transformed Britain’s idea of itself. This class will visit cultural sites like the Museum of London, the British Museum, and the Black Cultural Archives that tell stories of colonialism and immigration. At the same time, we will read some pivotal examples of postcolonial literature and explore the urban neighborhoods in which these works are set in order to develop a rich and complex understanding of contemporary Britain.
Monstrous Metropolis: Gothic London in Victorian Literature
Course Description: Full of ghosts and gore, hauntings and horror, monsters and murders, Gothic literature has delighted and terrified readers for over two centuries. This course focuses on Victorian London, the labyrinthine city which inspired such Gothic tales as Jekyll and Hyde and Dracula as well as works by Charles Dickens, Elizabeth Gaskell, Arthur Conan Doyle, Oscar Wilde, and others. Explore London haunts which inspired the Victorian Gothic (including Westminster Abbey, the Tower of London, Highgate Cemetery); trace the artistic and architectural elements of Gothic London; and stalk the dark locales of Jack-the-Ripper. Tentative field trips include Rochester, Cambridge, Strawberry Hill, and Bath.
This course will answer the question of who is really in charge in the UK – a country with a parliamentary monarchy and as many unwritten as written rules of government. To unravel the mystery, students will explore the workings of government in various sites, like the Tower of London, the Houses of Parliament, Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace, and London’s City Hall, while observing at close quarters the impact of policies and politics on the daily lives of British citizens. This class offers students an immersive, exciting way of studying political science and will likely inspire new ways of thinking about government.
We will visit various sites in and around London that represent different places of power of the British government, both historically and in modern times. Our class will also meet as a group before and after visiting these sites to discuss their importance, influence, and connections to each other.
Prerequisite: Three hours of introductory political science or consent of the instructor.
Pop Culture / Communication / Broadcasting & Media Studies / Music
Pop Culture in the UK: Sports, Music, Movies & More
Course Description: Explore the UK's incredible influence on popular culture throughout the world in this class focused on how British musicians, films and sports institutions have had a huge impact on global trends. Learning experiences will include visiting sites associated with some of the greatest pop musicians, such as London's Abbey Road Studio and Liverpool's Magical Mystery Tour. The UK's impact on the silver screen will be the focus while visiting the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio and during movie-themed walking tours. Field trips are planned for historic sports venues such as Wimbledon and Wembley Stadium. Open to all undergraduate majors.
Course Description: Sports are integral to identity and reflect cultural beliefs, rituals, and traditions. This class will engage you in a series of learning experiences that highlight the differences and similarities in the communicative practices observed in the US and the UK as they relate to sports. By visiting sites such as the 2012 Olympic Games stadium, the World Rugby Museum, a Premier League football club, a cricket ground, Wimbledon, and other less formal athletic venues, this class will address issues such as fan loyalty development, athlete equity, international club ownership, community investment, the mythology of sports heroes, and how communication is central to the business and culture of sports.
Course Description: Beginning with the script and ending with captivating live performances in London's world- renowned theatre district, this course offers performers, playwrights, designers, and anyone interested in performative storytelling a rich exploration of London’s theatrical scene. Featured activities include attending a Globe Theatre performance, experiencing Warner Brother’s Harry Potter Studio, hearing guest speakers discuss current theatre techniques, taking backstage tours, and a field trip to Henry the VIII’s Hampton Court Palace. Comparing British theatrical conventions with American ones and discovering new ways of storytelling are some of the topics to be covered in this collaborative class.