Choosing to study abroad for a year in another country is a difficult task but reflecting on it poses just as much of a challenge. Over the last 10 months I have had one of the most amazing years of my life and trying to filter everything into a single blog post seems impossible. I have had hundreds of incredible experiences and learnt to live in a country thousands of miles away with a surprisingly different culture. Living in Philadelphia has been challenging but overcoming problems such as making friends and dealing with homesickness has allowed me to grow in ways I never envisaged before setting out on this adventure. My goal for this year was to live and study at Temple like any American student and, for the most part, I think I achieved this. In this post, I would discuss my experience at Temple!
Being in Philadelphia was the tourist’s dream. Philadelphia is located right in the middle between Washington D.C. and New York City, with each major city 2h in opposite directions. I was fortune enough to spend time in both D.C. and N.Y.C. whilst I was out there with each city a cheap coach journey away. However Philadelphia itself is, in my opinion, a stunning city. Aspects of the city, particularly in the North, are very poor but in Center City there are a number of famous landmarks such as City Hall, the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. For a History student it was amazing to be living in the city that gave birth to the United States. Another famous Philly landmark is the art museum, which is best known for appearing in the movie Rocky. Every week I would run from Temple down to Center City and up the ‘Rocky steps’ to look down Benjamin Franklin Parkway. It was simply breathtaking.
The studying I did at Temple was also a major part of the year abroad. Although my grades didn’t count towards my degree in Southampton, I tried to work hard and make the most of my year. The facilities at Temple are amazing due to the fact that there is so much money at the university because of high tuition fees. Temple has, for example, the biggest computer lab in the country. Classes were easier at Temple than Southampton; however for what Temple lacked in challenging work, it made up for in workload. I found that I was always quite busy, even if my work wasn’t that hard. It was also nice getting to choose almost any class I wanted at Temple, rather than being assigned classes in Southampton. This meant that I didn’t have any 9ams because the classes tell you what time they run when you choose them!
Socialising at Temple proved to be surprisingly different to socialising at home. An important expectation that I had before coming to Temple was that socialising would be very different in America due to the higher drinking age. At home, we can drink legally at age 18, whereas in the US drinking becomes legal at 21. When I arrived at the start of the year I was only 20, so it seemed strangely ironic that I was coming to the land of freedom and liberty and losing a legal right! The drinking age made nights out frustrating, as I was restricted to house parties/frat parties and I couldn’t go to bars or clubs like I can at home. In the end however the drinking age didn’t have any impact on my ability to make friends. I joined a society centred around playing intra-mural and casual football and this allowed me to meet like-minded Americans. I did not expect there to be any interest in soccer before coming to Temple, but I was pleasantly surprised to find many people who avidly followed the Premier League. I made some fantastic friends in Philly. Of course, American football, basketball, baseball and ice hockey are considerably more popular sports, but the sports-centric nature of US society means that many people still have an interest in our version of football. I played a lot of football out there, but I got swept up by Eagles fever, especially during the Super Bowl and I am now very keen on American Football. Likewise the 76ers, Philly’s NBA team, made a valiant effort in the Playoffs and I found them enthralling to follow as well.
As much as I love Southampton, one aspect of American university that I prefer to university at home is the intense school spirit. Temple pride is an important part of the university experience; all over campus there are Temple flags and students wearing Temple-branded clothing. Temple has its own marching band and it is impossible not to get swept up in Temple fever. It took me almost two years to purchase a University of Southampton jumper but only a month to buy a Temple t-shirt. University sports are a huge part of student life and Temple is no exception. Temple’s American football programme spends around $1 million a year to rent out Lincoln Financial Field stadium, which is home to the Philadelphia Eagles, NFL Super Bowl champions! Even as an exchange student, it is hard not to feel immense pride for Temple! Varsity is an important tradition in the UK, but at American university, it is like Varsity all year round. University in the UK would benefit from an increased focus on school pride to expand the university experience for students in my opinion.
Admittedly, the year wasn’t all rosy and fun. At the start I was incredibly homesick but this faded as I began to make friends and settle. FaceTime also provided me with a connection to home. I was worried that I would miss things at home, particularly as a lot of my friends were in their final year at Southampton. However, I remained very connected everyone and when I came home at Christmas I was unbelievably excited to see my friends and swap stories with them. Another issue I encountered in Philadelphia was the potential danger of the city. Philadelphia isn’t exactly safe and the fact that Temple has the 3rd biggest police force in the state didn’t appease any concerns I had before I set off for Philly. However, like everything in life, you just have to be careful. Campus is very safe and there is little need to stray off campus when it gets dark. Although I received regular alerts about crime in North Philly, and it is something to be cautious about, I never encountered any situation where I felt unsafe.
Overall therefore I would say that I had an incredible year at Temple and I would recommend study abroad to anyone. Going away for a year gave me the opportunity to step away from my life at home and, as cliche as it sounds, grow as a person. I feel a lot more ambitious having successfully survived away from home for extended period of time and I can’t wait to live abroad again in the future, whether in the US again or elsewhere. Also, having what is effectively a year out from my degree, I have been able to focus my studies and I now feel much more prepared for my final year in Southampton. Doing the year abroad was, without a doubt, the best decision that I have ever made.
Thanks for reading.
Tom
