Winning London: Regent's College

Regent’s College London is made up of seven schools from many areas of study. As a study abroad student, I am enrolled in Regent’s American College London (RACL). There isn’t much separation, though, between the schools because they all fall onto one campus. I like it because the combination allows for a big mix of students.

The best thing about Regent’s? The buildings are all connected! It takes some maneuvering and knowledge of the basement hallways, but it’s possible! Some buildings are easier to get by going through the courtyard, but even then it’s just an in and out thing.

The library is quite impressive here. And when I say impressive, I mean it has a big DVD collection. It also has an area of big comfy chairs to watch the movies. This improvement probably came about with the film school at Regent’s. When it comes time to study, they have a great quiet area where all the academic books are kept. The room has high ceilings and long wooden tables for old English charm. I plan on not buying any text books and spending my homework time in the library using their copies. Daddy taught me well; if it’s free, it’s for me!

Our dining hall is called the Refectory. It’s just your regular dining hall with the kitchen attached to a big area of long tables and chairs. They serve one or two main dishes per meal, usually one with meat and one without. It’s only on occasion that I venture to try the very British food they serve. What can I say? I like my American ways. They also have a nice salad bar, soup, and various sides that change day to day. They always have chips (French fries) though! We also can use our meal plan at a fancy sit down restaurant called the Brasserie. I have yet to try it, but I’ve heard good things. Then there is the Student Bar. I've only been down once, but it was really updated and fun! There are two Starbucks style coffee shops on campus, too. Oh, and the deli just opened this week. They have interesting combinations of meat, cheese, and whatever else. They also offer to grill it for you. Yum yum! Overall, the food is pretty good. Thumbs up, Regent’s.

The Refectory eating area.

The Student Bar.

The newly opened Deli.

The Brasserie.

Reid Hall is the dorm building for Regent’s College. It mostly houses study abroad students, while others live off campus and commute to class. This setup makes the school very busy during the day and quiet past 17:00 (5pm). At the main reception, there is a crazy man named William. He calls himself Elton John and wears eclectic fashion jewelry he calls “bling”. The first time I met him, he was wearing a necklace with a large eye hanging at the bottom, along with a matching pin to create a pair of eyes. He’s awesome, and knows the answer to all your questions about living in London.

My dorm room is on the third level of Reid Hall. It gets confusing, though, because it goes Ground Floor, First Floor, then Second Floor. So, my room number is 207. I have one roommate, Gretchen, and she’s great! Very respectful and we have the same goal for our study abroad experience: to explore everything! In our room, we have two beds, two desks, and two dressers. We also have a nice fake fireplace and a big mirror hanging above it. Our window has a great view with a lot of sunlight coming through during the day. The old wooden doors tend to slam if you don’t guide them to a close, so my apologies ahead of time to my neighbors.

My bed on this beautiful morning. I use my biggest suitcase as a nightstand. The red suitcase at the bottom of my bed is actually holding my laundry. Crafty, huh? Please excuse the broken curtain. The top of it is no longer sticking to the top of the window, so it just falls down. I'm working on getting that fixed...

Here is the fake fireplace with the mirror on top. Charming, and useful. It has a nice mantel to rest your makeup bag on, too. I took this picture around 13:00 (1pm), but the sun usually comes in and shines across the whole room.