During my time in London, I took an international finance class through CAPA, which is the program that coordinates study abroad with Pitt. This class was similar to my classes at Pitt in terms of things like class structure and assignments and I really enjoyed learning about international finance in a different country as it allowed me draw upon differences between what the finance world looked like in London and in America. The class assignments included a midterm, a final, and a final group project however the material our professor taught us adequately prepared us for these assignments. My professor also wanted us to make the most of our time in London and explore as much as possible, so he would take us on field trips to places that corresponded with our class material. I felt this was also very beneficial because it gave me a chance to understand the material more thoroughly through experiential learning. For example, we went to the Bank of England Museum and learned all about the history of the central bank and how it came to be. At this time, my class was also writing research papers about the central bank so this trip allowed us to not only further understand the material we were researching, but also gave us more ideas for our papers. We also walked around the area that surrounded the Bank of England and saw other important financial institutions and our professor explained more about who they are, what they do in this city, and how they function in the bigger picture of the business world. Everyone enjoyed the trip and getting a chance to explore and learn more about the city. Taking a class during my time abroad also gave me an insight into what education looks like in the UK. I was able to see the differences in the way the material was taught there versus in America as well as how the grading system functions in London. It did take some time to get used to these differences, but I still thoroughly enjoyed this class and was able to get a firm grasp on the material taught. Overall, I believe that being able to learn about business in a global context is something that I know I can carry forward with me in all aspects of my professional and academic career and capitalize on the experience I gained.
