While studying abroad provides students with a different academic environment, knowing which program to enroll in and deciding which class to take can seem daunting.

“It’s up to the student to pick the program where classes fall into their academic plan,” study abroad adviser Jane Battisson said, adding that when studying abroad, students are encouraged to meet with academic advisers.

Class credit usually transfers because in programs like Florence, Italy and Geneva students are enrolled directly into Kent State courses.

Class structure, on the other hand, is very different from classes at Kent State.

“Students are much more self-relient and independent,” Battisson said. “There are not as many checkpoints such as exams, quizzes and homework.”

Lisa Davis, senior English major who studied at the University of Leicester, said in England, students were not in class as often as they would be at Kent State.

“You’ll have one or two lectures for a class per week,” she said. “And you’ll have one study group for that class, so all in all, you’ll only have about eight hours of class or contact with the teacher per week.”

Davis said she was given long reading lists that she was expected to complete on her own.

“By the end of the semester they could test you on anything, and they don’t necessarily have to have taught it,” she said.

Elizabeth Whiteman, junior managerial marketing major who studied in Greece, said that she had class two days a week, went on field trips two days a week and traveled to the different Greek islands on the weekend.

“Kent really did a great job in preparing me, and they were really organized,” Davis said about the program. She said she felt the program at Leicester could have been more organized, but that was “beyond Kent’s control.”

Contact international affairs reporter Leila Archer at [email protected].