Honors Semester in London

Program Information

Students on this program study at UNC’s Winston House on historic Bedford Square in one of the most exciting cities in the world. Participants in the Honors Semester in London live among Londoners in a central London neighborhood, attend seminars within the shadow of the British Museum, conduct research at the British Library, learn from professors who make London their home, and take advantage daily of the artistic, musical, theatrical, and cultural riches of this unique metropolis.

Students will have the opportunity to participate in an internship two and a half days per week, which will provide valuable educational experiences in a cross-cultural context. Internship placements combined with academic coursework will allow students to appreciate connections between theory and practice, and to gain exposure to potential career choices. A suitable placement for each student will be based on the student's goals, interests, previous coursework, and skills. Positions are available in art and design, education, film, finance, government, journalism, law, marketing, museums, radio and social services. 

All participants remain enrolled at UNC, earning Honors Program course credit for a full semester's work. Courses on the program count toward fulfillment of general as well as major requirements. Dr. James Thompson (Department of English and Comparative Literature) will serve as the on-site program director during the Spring 2011 semester. We welcome participation from all eligible UNC undergraduates who are prepared to take on Honors level work as well as Honors students from all UNC-system institutions.

Academics

The Honors Semester in London's curriculum consists of seminars grounded in the experience of living and learning in London. Students take four or five three-credit seminars from among a variety offered each semester. Seminars typically meet once each week for 2.5 hours. The program's resident director teaches one seminar in his or her area of expertise; London-based faculty drawn from local universities will teach four or Five additional seminars. Each course uses London as part of the classroom, taking full advantage of museums, galleries, archives, architectural sites, and other resources.

With a faculty, who previous participants have described as 'amazing,' and 'exciting,' you will have a chance to study such subjects as London’s Global Connections, British Imperial Worlds, Art in London, Contemporary British Politics, and London as Literary Crossroads. Four to six seminars will be offered each semester in addition to the course taught by the UNC faculty director, Professor James Thompson on “Home and Abroad: London, English Domestic Fiction, and Global Trade”. All courses offered are UNC graded honors courses and all fulfill General College and Arts and Sciences distribution and major requirements. There are no pre-requisites for any course.

Students on the internship track are required to take at least three academic courses in addition to the internship course.  

Life in London

In London, students attend classes at the UNC European Studies Centre (Winston House) on Bedford Square in close proximity to the British Museum and the University of London. Students share flats (what apartments are called in Britain) with other program participants. All flats are located in the Bloomsbury area of central London and are fully equipped with all cooking utensils, color television and telephone, and are cleaned weekly.

Students have membership in the University of London's Senate House Library, the largest academic research library in the city, as well as the University of London Student Union (ULU).

London provides a perfect departure point, not only to points of interest in southern England, but also to other cities in the British Isles and the European continent.                             

2010 UNC Study Abroad©