Before coming to England, I knew I was going to be experiencing many new things. Portions of my daily routine that I never consciously think about suddenly become big milestones. When going to the grocery store in the states, all the brands are recognizable and you can easily get what you need and be on your way. Not really the case here. Most of the brands I've never heard of and sadly, I get very excited when I do recognize something, such as Cheerios.
As for the main reason I came to England, it was to study graphic design and see how their design process differs from my university in the states. In short, it is very different. Back home, we have two hour studios twice a week with most of the period being used as work time. Here, you maybe have one tutor session in a week and it is only an hour long. Your crit group consists of seven other people leaving about ten minutes per person per crit to talk about your progress. I am taking the branding track, which requires us to pin everything up on the board and talk though your work. While this is the same process back home, the amount of time spent sketching and generating multiple ideas is far greater here than expected.
I have been learning what the tutors expect of us and adapted quickly to using the metric system. Again, that is something I didn't consider before starting uni here. Although there is less one on one time with the tutors and more time expected spent working in the studio with fellow students, I feel I have already learned many new things. All of our design projects are based on local businesses, such as rebranding a car dealership or a new TV channel. Since they are all local companies, I have learned a great deal about the different businesses in the UK. I was quite nervous to travel thousands of miles away and begin a new life here for five months, but it already feels like home. I can't wait to see and share my finished projects when the semester ends.