5 Reasons You Shouldn't Stress Over BS

So, you are either thinking about coming to Harlaxton, or you go here and you have to take British Studies. You have heard rumors, and for some reason, a few of them freak you out. British studies rumors are rough, and make it sound like you are going to die by course overload.

You want to go see the world and take pictures like this:

But British Studies got you like:

Though you may have heard this – or maybe I am freaking you out right now – I just want to settle these rumors and give you five reasons why you shouldn’t stress over British Studies. Here. We. Go.

 1)   It’s actually a super awesome class

Think about it, you are learning about a history that isn’t really what you learned in high school because high school was busy teaching you about America and being selfish with history. And the professors here are brilliant, and will have brilliant things to say – so enjoy it. It is a chance of a lifetime.

2)   You are living on a campus surrounded by professors

Are you freaking out because your paper is due in five weeks and don’t know exactly how to start it? Quit it now. Just settle yourself. You stinking live on campus where any British Studies professor would love to have a sit down with you to help. It is obvious that they want you to succeed and will help however they can, so take advantage of it. Also, for all the quizzes and exams, there are whole binders filled with examples of past exams and quizzes to help you out. You seriously can do it.

3)   You’re a college student, not a surgeon

Okay, so maybe I am a senior and a little more relaxed than most, but really friends, some people treat homework like life or death, and it is important, but it’s not like you are designing a rocket that might kill someone. You had a bad day on a homework assignment or quiz, it happens. Just do your best, because that’s all you can do.

4)   You’re in a whole different country

Like I said, homework and the likes is important, but when you are worrying so much about a quiz, that is worth 2% of your grade in the long run, that all you do is study for two days and don’t even venture out into town because of it, you are stressing too hard my friend.

5)   Why worry about something you can’t change?

So you did study really hard for the quiz, or you did go and read all the past exams and worked your tail off trying to study for the exam coming up, but when it comes around you didn’t do as well as you wanted to. Friend, just take a deep breath. It’s okay. You worked hard. You did your best. And that is great. A friend always says, "Why worry about something you can’t change?" And I think that is just great advice. It happened. It’s okay. Just go study and get help from the professors for the next one. It’s not the end of your college career, I promise.

So, I hope you enjoy your stay in a castle that sits in one of the most beautiful counties in the world. Stress just isn’t worth wasting this opportunity.

Good luck,

Branden

6 Dos and Don'ts as an Introvert Abroad

So you are an introvert and you don’t know 1) whether you should or should not study abroad and 2) if you did then how in the world will you survive without your close friend or friends. Well, I am here to help you figure both of these out. 

The answer to question number one is quite complex so be ready - 1) DUH! Okay it wasn’t complex, but you get the picture. Of COURSE you should study abroad if you even have a little bit of desire to, which leads us to number two. 

Now you may be asking, “who are you to be giving advice on studying abroad as an introvert”, and my answer is, I am an introvert, and even more, I am the only one from my school here at Harlaxton. So how do I survive? Well, here are the dos and don’ts of being an introvert abroad.

Let's get to the dos first:

1)   DO go on trips by yourself

You might be questioning this because people (extroverts usually) tell you it’s wrong to go somewhere by yourself, but you also know something a little more than extroverts, and that is yourself! Study abroad is about learning about yourself, so do just that and learn more about yourself by traveling somewhere (I went to London) alone!

2)   DO get daily alone time

You need to care for yourself, so never be ashamed of that. Go into town and go to the local coffee shop (I suggest Picture Café – so good) and sit on your computer by yourself. It’s okay, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

3)   DO pick at least one new person to be friends with

As an introvert, we love getting to know people deeply. Pick someone new and get to know him or her deeply because you never know who your next close friend will be!

Now for the don'ts, and these are important!

1)   DON’T use your introversion as an excuse!

Now you’ve probably heard this before, but I’m going to tell you why - You have beautiful insight to the world, and your unique and wonderful voice deserves to be heard. You can have input in conversations. You can be conversational. Don’t let anyone say you can’t contribute to something, because you can and you will be awesome at it, even if it is less often than the extrovert. Besides, extroverts need an introvert friend or else no one would listen to each other because they would be too busy talking over each other.

2)   DON’T only do stuff by yourself

Yes, I did just tell you to do stuff by yourself to learn about you, but other people are smart too, and can help you learn even more.

And last but not least. . .

3)   DON’T be scared 

New places and faces are all a part of growing up. Rather than being scared, just look at it as another opportunity to show people how wonderful you really are – because I promise you are.

Well that is it for now, I’ll be back on Monday with a post that is dear to my heart.

Until Then,

Branden Benskin

Handy Items to Help a Student Settle In

You’ve finally made it to Harlaxton, hallelujah! You’ve been assigned to your dorm and are now ready to start your adventure. But hold on a tick, you’re going to need stuff to settle in with and to help get back to comfortable daily life. You obviously couldn’t fit everything you need into your suitcase, and if having to choose between your favorite jeans and a clothes basket, the jeans will win every time. So definitely pick up one of the light weight pop up hampers at the Dollar Store or Walmart to bring with you. Today’s blog is about how to get on your feet and settled in at Harlaxton. This will include packing tips, where to shop in town, and the everyday life hacks that are brilliant!

One of my most treasured items is a charging tower. I purchased this on Amazon prior to arrival. It’s a wee bit bulky so I put it in the bottom of my backpack as my carry on. This thing has been awesome! With this I can plug in my U.S. devices. If you have something like this you won’t have to buy a gazillion adapters and converters. I have this tower and one adapter, which is working perfectly. As a bonus, the cord is quite long and it acts as an extension cord as well as helps me to stay tidy with everything in one compact place. It also acts as a converter so you won’t have to worry about frying your appliances and burning down the dorm. Did I mention this comes in several cute colors as well and different plug tips? I bought the European plug, as I plan to travel quite a bit throughout Europe and not just the United Kingdom. However, a $5.00 adapter settles any issue I may have had with having the European plug tip. Plus, the adapter is small and easy to throw in my backpack for any weekend getaways you may decide to take.

Okay, so now you’re setup, plugged in and charging. What now? I bet by this point you’re quite hungry. Sadly, what they don’t tell you is there isn’t really any food at Harlaxton between meals other than what you would find in a typical vending machine. Luckily, you can call the taxi service, Street Cars, and pay 6 pounds to head into town. Harlaxton also provides a free shuttle service but doesn’t begin until about three days after arrival. I highly recommend getting a few microwaveable snacks from the local ASDA (think a small Walmart). Because we eat dinner early here and I find a cup of noodles or bowl of cereal takes the edge off. The Cup of Noodles here comes in variety of flavors and I will cover all the food choices in a later blog to follow.

Also, if you’re a coffee lover such as I am, pick up some coffee and creamer or ½ gallon of milk while at ASDA because you can’t access the coffee in the Refectory (cafeteria) until meal times or later on in the evening. Also, they don’t unlock the doors for evening use until around the second week of classes. The bistro (pub) does provide drinks but it isn’t open until 8:30 p.m. 

Another handy item to have is a Bobble (filtering water bottle) which is wonderful! You will receive a house travel mug the first week of classes but it does leak if tipped over and doesn’t filter. I brought mine from the U.S but they are available to purchase here in the UK at stores such as ASDA. So these are a few helpful items and tidbits that helped me get going the first few days here.

Written by: Stacy Flanery

Communicating While at Harlaxton

An easy guide to keeping in touch with family and friends back home and at Harlaxton

The Importance of Technology and Communication While Abroad

When you are abroad, it is easy to get sucked into this secret world that is Harlaxton. In such a connected world, it is so easy to communicate and I think we take it for granted sometimes. When it comes to being abroad, here are some things to consider:

•  Do you need a phone with data, texting and/or calling ability?
•  Do you normally talk a lot with friends and family?
•  How often would you say you use social media sites like Facebook? How about photo sharing websites?
•  Do you plan on using GPS or any location app?
•  How do you plan on booking trips/making reservations on weekends?

What I’m Doing

I knew that I wanted to be able to use a phone while abroad. I have traveled many times before, and my family and I had always carried a little international phone with us wherever we went for emergencies, hotel check-ins, dinner reservations, calling family, etc. Before coming to Harlaxton, I recently acquired a new iPhone 6 (my old phone was an iPhone 5, so I was already familiar with the interface and vast array of settings and apps available to me). 

Every phone carrier will have their own international abilities that you can investigate so it is always best to call and ask. My carrier (Sprint) offers a Global Roaming Plan which gives you free data and texting plus 20 cents per minute calling. The only catch is that it is 2G data; however, upon my arrival to the UK, I discovered that I could often find 3G very easily and it is also free. Essentially, if your phone can find it, you can use it. I was skeptical if this would work so I also called Sprint to get my phone unlocked before I came over. With this option, I can take out my current SIM card and buy a local SIM. Another popular option is to forget about finding international phone service and use your smartphone as a WiFi device only.

I love keeping in touch with people back at home while I am abroad and it is very easy to do if you have a WiFi signal. I use FaceTime Audio to make calls (Apple products only) and FaceTime Video and Skype to talk with people as well. While at Harlaxton, it is also important to be able to contact people who are here. Some people do not bring their phones for various reasons. One of the best ways that I have found to communicate with people is Facebook Messenger (works on the website and there is a phone app for quicker use when you are away from your computer). It is quick, easy and simple to use. You never know when you will need to make a group message to talk about a project, schedule a meeting or just have a fun conversation. Email is vital when conversing with professors. Also, never underestimate the power of a fun postcard or letter when communicating with family. It may seem old fashioned, but it is kind of fun!

Friends and Family Back Home

While at Harlaxton, your parents and friends at home will want to know what you are up to, so do everything you can to share your experiences with them! Additionally, contacting friends and family from home could maybe take away some homesickness. Remember that there is a huge time change in most cases. When preparing to go abroad, look at your schedule and prepare your family and friends for the amount of time that you will be able to talk during a given week.

Friends at the Manor

While in the manor, it is still very important to communicate with those who are in your classes. You may need to know when to meet them to work, eat, etc. Along with technology, there are also whiteboards outside of everyone’s rooms that can be used for quick messages or important information.

Written by: Kelsey Fields

Top Seven Ways to Combat the Homesickness That WILL Set In

Don’t doubt us, we’re experts.

We all know that immediate feeling of freedom (“I’m in EUROPE and AWAY from my FAMILY!”) and right now, we’re all riding on that glorious high. But soon, we will all come crashing down in a blazing glory of realization (“I’m in EUROPE and AWAY from my FAMILY!”). So here are some tips to help ease the inevitable fall of homesickness we all succumb to eventually (We’re looking at you, yes you.)

1. Make your room feel like home.

We know this seems basic, but adding a touch of familiarity to your room can go a long way in fighting against homesickness. Something as simple as a collection of photographs, or letters from home can help ease pain and promote feelings of happiness. And if you don’t have these things at your disposal, buy something at PoundLand that makes you smile—such as that photo of One Direction you’ve been eyeing, or even just the calendar full of cute puppies/baby animals. And if you want to be REALLY cheap, write favorite quotes on a piece of notebook paper and stick them on your bulletin board. Seriously guys, it’s that simple.

2. Talk to your family

COMMUNICATION IS KEY. We know it kills your vibe to be calling Mom instead of going to the Goose, but even just a ten minute conversation will really help both you and the family member across the pond adjust to the major move to Harlaxton. On the flip-side, don’t become that person who talks to their family on the screen more than to their family in real life (cough your fellow homesick students cough). To quote a favorite Wildcat, “We’re all in this together.” So, to sum it up, find the right balance between screen time and face time.

3. Settle into a routine

We all remember the awful first days of living at Harlaxton and living hour by hour out of a little packet; do yourself a favor and don’t do that. Setting a routine can reduce stress significantly and can help to make a strange situation feel more familiar. Traveling constantly won’t help the whole routine thing, but when at home base (Harlaxton) try to find a steady schedule that works during the weekdays.

4. Exercise!

It stinks, yes, and we are not all exercise junkies (us authors included), but exercising releases endorphins, endorphins make you happy, and happy people just don’t shoot their husbands! (Thank you, Elle Woods.) But seriously, it can be something as simple as walking around this glorious campus or as hardcore as a workout in the gym. Whatever works for you— just make sure you get moving!

5. Get some “Me” time

Getting some time to yourself is important for your mental health, whether you’re living at home, on your normal college campus or, you know, Hogwarts. And by “Me” time, we don’t mean time by yourself doing homework— we mean take time to chill and do something relaxing, like reading a (non-school) book, knitting, or exploring the gardens. Whatever it is for you, just make sure you do it… for your sake and all of ours.

6. Spend some time with the locals


With convenient shuttles departing Harlaxton at hour intervals, you really have no excuse to not explore the charming town of Grantham. And not only is exploring shops like PoundLand a magical experience, it can also help ease your homesickness by slowly introducing you to local culture. It’s important to escape the little American bubble we’ve created at Harlaxton, and while it’s nice to come back to the ‘Home of the Free’ capital of Grantham, it’s important to dip your toes into the local scene and feel connected while abroad. Having some roots here locally will help ease the pain of having your home roots so far away—and you may meet a cute native while you’re at it ;) .


7. Know it’s going to happen…

…but don’t fear it too much. Homesickness is a natural mixture of emotions that most of us mortal beings can’t escape. To put it into layman’s terms, homesickness is like British Studies. As much as you wish to avoid it, unless you want to be deported because of Visa requirements, you can’t! All jokes aside, homesickness is a real issue that hits almost everybody—and everybody eventually has to deal with it in their own way.


Hopefully, these seven tips will help make the transition a little easier and your experience more “I’m in EUROPE and AWAY from my FAMILY!” rather than “I’m in EUROPE and AWAY from my FAMILY!”

Cheers!
An & Chels

My Meet-a-Family Experience

I didn’t know anybody coming to Harlaxton.  Studying abroad meant that I would leave my family, my friends, and everything I was familiar with for four months.  That’s the longest I have ever been away from home—let alone having the experience take place overseas.  Some of my biggest fears at the beginning of the semester included homesickness and not being able to immerse myself in the British culture.  I worried about how much Harlaxton would feel like home.  How could it?  I would be living in an architectural phenomenon—nothing short of a miniature fairy tale castle. 

I expressed my concerns to a friend at my home campus that had previously done a semester abroad at Harlaxton.  She informed me about the Meet-a-Family Program offered in Harlaxton.  After filling out a short questionnaire application, any student could potentially be matched with a local family for the semester.  Of course, the student to family ratio didn’t guarantee a placement in the program, but I decided it was worth taking my chances.  And I am so happy I did.

The Meet-a-Family program has been a blessing throughout my semester at Harlaxton.  As the semester draws near to an end, I reflect back on how much I have gained through the opportunity.  My host parents, Jan and John, invited me into their home and treated me as if I were their own daughter.  They took the time out of their busy schedules to make England feel like home.

At the first Meet-a-Family dinner, I remember giving my host mother a jar of maple syrup in a container shaped like a maple leaf.  We got to know each other and discovered mutual interests in Downton Abbey and desserts (or pudding).  It marked the beginning of my English family.  The relationship I’ve built with them traveling the English countryside, over home-cooked meals, and at their cozy cottage is a relationship that I will always value.  From taking me to Sempringham for my British Studies research to buying me chocolate from a candy shop to visiting Woolsthorpe Manor to solving crossword puzzles together in the afternoons to getting to know each other better over Afternoon Tea—I made some of my favorite Harlaxton memories with Jan and John.  They even offer to let me do laundry at their home—something unusual for families in the program.  I couldn’t have asked for better host parents. 

At the end of the month, Jan and John are taking me to Oliver!, a musical in Uppingham. Both acted with the company in previous productions, so I am excited to learn more about the musical theatre world through their commentary.  It makes me sad that it will be my last visit with them for the semester, but I know that because of my time with them through the Meet-a-Family program, I forever have a family in England.  I plan to visit my English “home” again one day.

I am so thankful I got the chance to participate in the Meet-a-Family program during my time at Harlaxton.  Any fears and reservations I had at the beginning of the semester have disappeared.  I have truly gained a second home.  I would recommend the Meet-a-Family program to anybody coming to Harlaxton.  Wonderful people like Jan and John make the Harlaxton experience even better.

-Mackenzie Amundsen

Planes and Professors

The Gold Room at Harlaxton Manor is packed. Students and visitors alike are patiently waiting to attend another installment of the lecture series held in the building.

                Amid the soft chatter, Professor Edward Bujak stands calmly at the front. His black suit and white dress shirt, unbuttoned at the collar, make a fine representation of his personality: confident, professional and yet somehow easy-going.

                 The doors close and the audience becomes silent. Bujak describes the manor grounds as they were a hundred years ago, swarming with bi-planes and aspiring fighter pilots.

 Bujak is a British Studies professor at Harlaxton College who is all about history. As a man whose research interests lie in country houses, Harlaxton Manor house seems to be a perfect fit.

Bujak found himself at Harlaxton after teaching part-time at East Anglia University, the school where he earned his PhD. With no job options available at the time, he began searching outside of the mainstream for employment and stumbled upon an advertisement for Harlaxton.

“On the basis that it was interesting, and different to what I had planned on doing, I thought I would give it a go,” said Bujak. “Luckily, I got the job.”

Bujak is one of four British studies professors who lead lectures and conduct seminars. Along with British Studies, he also offers other classes ranging from Renaissance and Reformation Europe to British Politics Since 1945.  Currently, Bujak is teaching a class on Word War II.

An important quality for any teacher is a passion for the subject, which seems to be no problem for Bujak. He has always considered history “more of a hobby than a career.”

This hobby carries into the classroom and the enthusiastic atmosphere helps students to become excited about history as well.

 “He makes the class very energetic and easy to engage in,” said Jessica Toney, a junior in Bujak’s World War II class. “It’s a nice change of pace from professors that read information from PowerPoint slides.”

Bujak has no problem describing events in history with the intensity level of an action packed novel.

“He’s a man with boundless energy and is really someone who doesn’t put up a front.” said British Studies Professor Bianca Leggett.

The concept of learning between Americans and the British on the manor grounds didn’t begin with the college itself, however; it originated during World War I.

After discovering an aerial photograph of a bi-plane over Harlaxton, Bujak decided to focus on a history lying just outside of his window.

Curiosity behind the photo became the inspiration for Bujak to tell the tale of a different kind of classroom that existed near the manor.

The grounds at Harlaxton served as a training area for pilots who hailed from across the British Empire as well as American mechanics.

By digging deeper, Bujak uncovered numerous interesting details on the successes and failures of young men from across the globe learning to harness the power of a new weapon, the airplane.

“You find this one little piece, and then you keep digging and digging,” said Bujak, describing the photograph and research process. “And you end up with 65,000 words in a book.”

 Bujak’s book Reckless Fellows: The Gentleman of the Royal Flying Corps will be available in the fall of 2015

During Bujak’s installment of the Gold Room lecture series, he described the new pilots earning their wings while throwing in a brief Top Gun reference, deriving a laugh from the American students.

The combination of attentive eyes and laughter in the room, prove that Harlaxton’s century-old tradition of Brits and Yanks learning together is far from over.

-Patrick Henry