By By ALEC HIPSHEAR
I'm 21 years old, an information systems major at Grand Valley State University and I plan on graduating mid-2006 - in other words, late!
I'm currently participating in my school's Study Abroad program.
I chose Kingston University, in England, mostly because it has a good information systems program and the credits will transfer easily.
Tuition for the program is the same as what I pay at GVSU, but housing, food and general expenses are much higher here than in Michigan, and it ends up being about 1 1/2 times to twice as expensive for this semester as it would be for a semester at home!
In other words, this semester is costing me about $8,000- $9,000, where a semester at GVSU costs around $4,500 (this includes housing).
Kingston University is located in Kingston-upon-Thames, which is part of the greater London area and is about 20 minutes from central London (London is divided into six zones, zone 1 being the center, the rest radiating out from that - Kingston-upon-Thames is in zone 6).
I rent a room from a landlady named Mary Tucker, who is actually an American. She has lived in England for 30 years, and regularly rents rooms to students. The house is a 15-minute walk from campus and 20 minutes (at the most!) from downtown Kingston.
It is also right on the river Thames, and my window has a fantastic view of the river.
My housing costs 75 pounds per week, which is a little less than $150 per week.
This includes utilities and access to the bath, kitchen and washer/dryer, but I have to supply my own toiletries, food and laundry detergent.
Kingston-upon-Thames is the second-largest shopping area in England, and also one of the most expensive.
Things here tend to cost the same in pounds as they would in dollars, but since the pound is equal to around $1.90, things end up being about twice as expensive for us Americans.
The minimum wage here is about five pounds per hour, however, so prices aren't really all that much higher for the average Brit.
All in all, I'm having a wonderful time, and would DEFINITELY recommend it to anybody who may be considering it.
I've got a blog (Web log) set up, which I try to update at least three times a week, and I definitely put all of my major news there.
You can find it at http://alechipshear.blogspot.com/
Everyone should feel welcome to visit, post comments and even e-mail me.
I'll try to send a postcard to anybody who e-mails me their address.