Since I was young I have loved to travel and see and experience different cultures throughout the world. Finally, after applying to study abroad 4 different times and having trips being canceled due to COVID, I am able to experience living, studying, and working abroad. I could not be more excited to finally be able to have a study abroad experience. With this all being said there are many differences within cultures when traveling and living in different countries.
I will be studying in London through CAPA. While the UK may have smaller cultural differences than some countries than the United States. There are some big differences I have had to consider before departing to London. For example, the United States is very different because it is so much more direct and fast paced than the UK culture. While England may seem so similar to the United States. The workplace is very much different. Through my internship interviews so far in the UK, it is a lot less formal and direct. Someone from the UK may ask you if you have time to do something rather than just telling you to do it. It definitely will take some adjusting to throughout my time abroad. In the United States we are also a lot louder than a lot of cultures. In the UK, people are much quieter on public transportation for example. When in the US everyone is chatting and it is quite loud on public transportation. The UK and US definitely are similar but have different behaviors and values, especially in the formal workplace.
In my perspective, the cultures differ a lot but are not as different as some. I think I will really enjoy the UK culture and being able to learn more about the UK and myself through my time abroad. It is important to understand how to interact and adjust to other cultures in order to be a global citizen. Someone outside of the U.S. may view the United States’ culture as loud and too fast paced, whereas people within the United States are so used to it because it is how they have grown up and how it has always been done. There are so many different aspects to culture and so many different things we can learn through interacting with people outside our own culture.
I know that this exercise will help me prepare for my time abroad because in a city like London with so many different people, I will be interacting with people from all over the world and from different cultures. I will also be working with people from many different cultures. Therefore, it is important to take an outside view on my culture and more of an inside view to their culture in order to gain empathy and understanding. While things may feel uncomfortable and different at first, it is important to understand that there is an adjustment period for every new environment that we enter. This is especially important while we are abroad given that we are going to be meeting so many new people and going to be in an entirely new city and country.
Overall, I am really excited to explore and learn all about London while working and studying.