During my time in London, I’ve gotten to see numerous landmarks and experience the history of the city through its museums and parks. While sightseeing has been a very significant experience during my time here, I also have learned a lot about the culture here from studying at Richmond American University London. I am taking three courses, Intro to Communications, Studio Photography, and Fintech. Although these courses parallel their equivalent at Pitt in many ways, I have also picked up on many different ways the school system here differs. The University of Pittsburgh is a relatively large institution, boasting upwards of roughly 30,000 individuals. On the other hand, Richmond American University London (RAUL) consists of one building with about 15 classrooms and approximately 1500 students. Due to the smaller size of the school, I feel as though I have gotten to meet a larger proportion of the student population and since my class sizes are subsequently smaller with about 15-20 individuals in each class, I’ve had the ability to form more personal relationships with my professors.
I’ve also noticed a few subtle differences in my course structures too. At Pitt, we have some longer classes (2.5 hours) that meet once a week, but I’d say the majority of classes at Pitt meet twice a week and are 1 hour and 15 minutes long. On the other hand, my classes here all meet once a week and are almost 3 hours long. This has encouraged me to be careful with my study methods, as I have to ensure I am focused for the entirety of a relatively long class. Additionally, I try to engage with the course material more on my own time so that I do not forget the material within the week’s time. I have also noticed that European culture has more of an emphasis on work-life balance, so I find myself having less assigned homework, but I do certainly have to study the course content on my own time to ensure that I am adequately engaging with the material. Also, Pitt has so many different study spaces throughout numerous buildings, but the relative size of the RAUL building has encouraged me to find additional study spaces throughout London such as cafes or libraries. Overall, although there are many differences between Pitt and Richmond American University London, this experience has taught me to be more adaptable by learning and studying within a new environment and I am thankful that I’ve gotten to learn a lot about how different cultures structure their education!
