Visit our NYU in London photo gallery for images of the program and city.

Orientation

During your first few days, you'll attend a student orientation to help you get a sense of your new lifestyle. Student Life staff provide you with an introduction to the neighborhood and organize outings to city sights such as Camden and Soho and a boat trip along the Thames to Greenwich. Kew. At orientation, you'll find out about community service, transportation, and leisure activities and meet faculty and staff. In addition, Blackwell's Bookshop provides a textbook stall at the NYU Center, where you can buy your books for the upcoming semester. Living abroad is a transforming experience that is often more meaningful when shared. These orientation events will help you meet other new students and hopefully create friendships that last a lifetime. Since you'll have already registered for courses before arriving in London, you'll have more time to focus on becoming a true Londoner, which might take a few minor adjustments. You'll be trying new foods, shopping at unfamiliar stores, and learning how to navigate the London Underground. You might think there's no language barrier, but differences in British and American English are quite profound. Ninety percent of our words are shared, but accents, patterns, and speeds of speech vary throughout the city, so inevitably you'll spend a lot of time trying to decipher what the British are saying. The NYU program helps you with your transition to the London lifestyle; within a few weeks, you'll naturally fall into pace with the city.

Housing and Meals

Most NYU in London students will be housed in one residence managed and operated by NIDO. The residence is in the King's Cross area of central London, a thirty minute walk or fifteen minute bus ride north east of the academic center. NYU in London students will be living together in one building, within an exciting and diverse community of over 1000 young people from all over the world that have chosen to study in London. All rooms, which are share by two people, are fully furnished and include linens, private bathroom, Internet access, telephone, and small kitchen facilities or communal kitchen located on each floor. Specially designed for international students, the NIDO building also features a gym, TV rooms, restaurant and cafeteria, laundry facilities, and a movie screening room. For more information about the facilities, please go to: http://www.nidolondon.com/

Health and Safety

The NYU Student Health Center and the Department of Public Safety work closely with program staff to plan for safe, healthy, and enriching opportunities long before you arrive. You will be introduced to many of these services in the months leading up to your program abroad while others will be explained in detail during the mandatory on-site orientation such as meetings with local health care providers, presentations of local laws and crime prevention techniques, and examples of cultural differences.

While an issue is unlikely to surface, should an emergency situation arise, there is a contact person designated for wellness issues on call 24 hours a day located locally; as well, the Department of Public Safety in New York will assist with international emergencies (212-998-2222). For medical situations, the University provides coverage by HTH Worldwide, an international insurance company, to ensure that treatment is available to you by qualified professionals when needed with no out of pocket expense. Students are also required to maintain insurance with their home policy. For assistance in extremely rare situations, the University has contracted with International SOS, the world's leading provider of international customer care, which includes evacuation services.

The Department of Public Safety in conjunction with the Office of Global Programs works to create a safe and secure environment for students, faculty, staff and visitors to pursue their educational and professional goals and aspirations. The annual security report for NYU in London contains useful and relevant information.

Before you depart for the semester you will be instructed on how to use NYU Traveler, a Web-based information collection tool where flight and travel details, local and U.S. telephone numbers, and emergency contact information can be stored so that NYU staff can assist you if needed.

Trips and Activities

Each semester, NYU in London organises day trips to places such as the beautiful city of Bath and the academic centers of Cambridge and Oxford. In addition, an extensive programme of activities is planned to places of historic and cultural interest within the London area. On your own or with friends, you may choose to visit Windsor Castle or Hampton Court, Henry VIII's opulent palace by the Thames, both of which are close by. Other popular destinations in Britain include York, Manchester, and the coastal towns of Cornwall and Devon. Outside the UK, Paris can be reached in 2 and a half hours direct by the Eurostar train, whilst Amsterdam, Barcelona and Rome are only a short plane journey away.