Laura Jenkins

Year Abroad: University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada

A year spent studying at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, has been the most incredible, challenging and rewarding experience of my life. It provided me with the opportunity to experience a different culture, the chance to study different topics and some amazing travel opportunities. I benefited hugely from the immense range of courses on offer and the facilities available at a large Canadian University. Calgary is a wonderful city to live in and with the mountain town of Banff only an hour away, I took full advantage of the proximity of the Rockies. I am so grateful for the financial help the Arthur Miller Scholarship gave me as it helped alleviate some of the financial costs associated with a year abroad. Thanks to the award I could enjoy my time in Canada to the full and do everything I wanted to do, including a fantastic two months I spent travelling across Canada and the United States which was a perfect end to an amazing year.

 

Harriet Pile

Year Abroad: University of California, Berkeley, USA

Thanks to the exchange rate last autumn, six hundred pounds converted into almost twelve hundred American dollars, give or take a few nickels. Living in a co-operative household, the cheapest option in the Bay, with 52 Americans from very different backgrounds and all the fun and bustle that brings (not to mention the overwhelming views of the Golden Gate Bridge) ensured that I had one of the best years of my life thus far. Going to Berkeley University, however, and learning why it is so respected and admired was probably one of the single best decisions I have ever made. Opportunity felt limitless. A large part of this I owe to being a lucky recipient of the Arthur Miller Award.

 

Jacqui Burgoyne

Year Abroad: Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri, USA

The Arthur Miller Scholarship paid for my flight to St. Louis, Missouri, from where I then travelled to Westminster College, Fulton (famous for being the college where Churchill gave his 'Iron Curtain' speech). With the help of the scholarship I was able to spend one year of my degree in Missouri. While there I took part in a mock-presidential debate in front of over 100 people, joined a sorority, and travelled to Nebraska to do service at the Santee Sioux Reservation. Obviously I will always remember these experiences, and I am glad I was not forced to pass them by.

 

Sophia Thompson

Year abroad at The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada

Three words describe the year abroad: incredible, spontaneous and unforgettable.
As soon as I got to Canada I knew I had made the right choice. I was instantly welcomed by Canadian students living in my residence and quickly became their token ‘Brit.’ Even the replicate river Thames that runs through the campus made me feel at home. I wanted to make the most of the year and attempted to try as many new things as possible. The University has its own television station and I was given the chance to work as a news reporter and eventually created my own documentary programme. I had never worked on TV and I am now going onto to do masters in Broadcast Journalism. I took the liberty to travel across most of America and the East of Canada whilst I was away. My sister was living in New York so I regularly took the 14 hour train journey from Toronto to New York whenever I had free time. Joining the University ski club allowed me to take a ski trip to Mount Tremblant in Quebec and many Canadian friends invited me to theirs for Canadian Thanksgiving. Everyday was a new learning experience, from new learning styles, meeting new people and having to pronounce Potato and Banana in a Canadian accent to avoid any blank looks. One of the professors certainly inspired my dissertation topic and gave me useful advice for research. The year abroad is a year I will never forget and if I could do it again I would. I strongly encourage the year abroad and it will definitely be one of my cherished memories.