(Photo provided by program director)
As the semester nears its end, Skidmore students on campus are craving a break from the intense workload and chilly early morning walks to class. However, for the freshmen students in London, it is a different story.
After a semester of traveling and new experiences, the London FYE students are faced with mixed feelings – excitement to go home and heartache that their study abroad experience is over.
Tova Petto ‘22, who participated in the program last year, reminisces that she “felt like a different person by the end of [her] London semester” and she “would not want to change a second of the time [she] spent there.”
Each fall, Skidmore offers 36 freshmen students the chance to spend their first semester in London, studying under two Skidmore Faculty Coordinators and one Skidmore Program Assistant (a recent Skidmore graduate).
Along with the rest of the first-year class, the London freshmen participate in their Scribner Seminar, coupled with additional classes from the IES Abroad London Center. The aim of the program is to expand students’ maturity and independence, while challenging them with new academic and cultural experiences.
Kate Egan ‘22, another participant of the program last fall, only had positive things to say about her time in London. She said that “enrolling in the London program was one of the best decisions I have ever made. Not only did I get to experience a life abroad in a country I never would have otherwise lived in, but I met a group of people that have become family.”
Although the semester sounds incredible, it presents a unique challenge: students must transition not once, but twice — and this time into Skidmore’s campus life halfway through the school year.
It is easy to see why this would be a hard transition. Imagine having to adjust from living in an international city to a small town in upstate New York, and in the middle of winter.
Petto claimed that the transition was rough, as she felt that she was coming to Skidmore “unannounced into a school year that was already underway.” On campus, Skidmore’s classes are more rigorous than that of the IES curriculum, and the ongoing winter weather can create a dark and solemn atmosphere. With this in mind, she feels that more can be done to welcome the London students into the Skidmore community.
In hopes of easing some of these hurdles, the current London students will not face this change alone.
Kendra Nelson, the program manager of the Off-Campus Study & Exchanges office, explained that in the last five years, Skidmore has taken steps to improve the “retention of London FYE students by providing more information about the program at the time of application and acceptance, updating January orientation sessions, and, most importantly, the London Peer Mentor program.”
Nelson also affirmed that in recent years, there has not been a higher transfer rate for the London FYE students compared to their peers. This is most likely associated with the increase in resources that Skidmore has offered for the students over time.
The London students will arrive on campus three days before returning students, as they will have a second Skidmore orientation. This will allow them to begin their integration onto campus. They will get to know Skidmore’s offices, SGA, and our variety of club opportunities.
Additionally, Jordan Alvarez ‘20, one of the peer mentors for the current students in London as well as a past London freshman, will act as a resource for the students alongside the other peer mentor, Libby Hicks ‘22.
Their roles in the spring will be to “assist the students in their transition, and the best way to do that is to get them involved with events on campus,” says Alvarez. He plans to schedule weekly events for the London freshman, and attend larger campus activities with them.
Plus, the current FYE students can rely on previous London freshman for advice and solidarity.
As Egan previously stated, the shared experiences of the London students binds them as a family. The past FYE cohorts will no doubt welcome the current students to campus with open arms. And, hopefully, other Skidmore peers will follow suit.