Ashley, Samir and Koleth: Student Life in Canada vs. England

Song: “Sing” by: Ed Sheeran

Activities: University of Hertfordshire, Kings Cross, Harry Potter: Platform 9 ¾  

Day five of the London Field school and we are still going strong! On this day we made are way to the University of Hertfordshire to visit some of the students that are on an exchange program from Capilano University as well as the Master of Science students who are studying in the joint degree program with Capilano University and Hertfordshire. 

As the daily leaders for this day we found that the cultural differences were very noticeable during are travels to the university. On are way to the school we had to brave the rushing crowds of King’s Cross station. As a group of Canadian university students who are use to the “not-so-crowded” streets of Vancouver and aren’t afraid of the word “sorry” the aggressive, fast paced British are difficult to understand.

While at the school, our group gained insight into the life of typical student in England. One of the main differences we notice compared to Capilano was that almost every student lives on campus and takes the university’s shuttle back-and-forth between the other campuses for free. How great is that!? 

The other main difference we noticed is that in classrooms and lectures there was very minimal interaction between the professor and the students. Unlike at home; where our instructors always attempt to engage students, this made it quite difficult for us to focus. Lastly, the biggest surprise was the completely different grading system in the United Kingdom. While an A in BC is attainable at 85% here you can acquire it here with a 70. This might sound AMAZING and perhaps you want to transfer to the UK now… but unfortunately it’s as hard to get an A in the UK as it is in Canada (Maybe harder.)

 
Overall, we found that this day was an interesting lesson cross-cultural experience. While the people of London  may seem very similar to those of Vancouver at first glance, in reality there are pronounced differences and behavioural traits that makes it challenging to fully comprehend what is going on at all times. 

We believe this day truly helped our fellow travellers grasp what it means to be a Canadian and how lucky we are in that we can embrace different cultures and soak-up the rich (no pun intended) and historic culture within England.

Ashley Stuart is a 1^st year Bachelors of Communication student, Samir Sharma is a 4^th year Bachelors of Business Administration in Marketing and Koleth Labastida is a 2^nd year Tourism Student.