Photo courtesy of Lindsay McIlmurray '16: My Home Away from Home"
Summary: With a population of around 200,000 York is one of the UK’s best connected and most student-friendly cities. It’s easy to get a train to London, Edinburgh, Glasgow and beyond. Filled with iconic medieval streets (The Shambles was the inspiration for Harry Potter’s Diagon Alley), York truly has that “study abroad look.” You won’t find yourself comparing York to any American cities, that’s for sure! York is known, also, for its night-life and independent venues. You’ll hear music in the streets at all hours, and you won’t be hard-pressed to find a great restaurant or cozy pub to enjoy in your down-time.
Located on 500 acres of parkland, the University of York is its own beautiful “bubble” for students from all over the globe. Particularly strong in English, Psychology, and World Literature, studying University of York is a wonderful opportunity for students who wish to grow as academic and pursue a more independent learning style. University of York also has the largest Art History faculty in the UK! University of York has an extremely active Student’s Union and offers over 200 student societies (clubs). There is truly something for everyone, both in town and on campus!
Name: University of York
Location: York, England
University size: 28,000 undergraduate and graduate students (21% international)
University founded: 1921
Terms available: academic year and spring + summer combined semester (no fall semester option at this time)
Dates: late September to mid-June (academic year); mid-January to mid-June (spring + summer combined semester). Start and end dates noted are tentative and subject to change.
Academic Calendar: https://www.york.ac.uk/about/term-dates/
Pre-university program: n/a
Registration info: 120 credits per year (60 for the spring+summer combined semester) are a full course load. Note that at University of York, when you look at classes, you'll see two different credit systems: "Credits" and "ECTS". You should be looking at Credits! Again, the goal is 120 Credits for the year or 60 Credits in the Spring+Summer combined term. Please be advised that students don't always take the same number of classes at the University of York. Different classes (modules) have different credit amounts. You might find 15-credit classes, 20-credit classes, and even 30-credit classes! No matter how many classes (modules) you take, a semester at York is equal to a semester at Holy Cross (4 HC credits towards graduation) as long as you are taking 60 Credits (120 for the academic year)!
ICIP required: Yes for academic-year students
Maximum capacity: 12 Holy Cross students for Academic Year or Spring/Summer terms combination only: This is a highly competitive program. We are only able to send 12 students for academic year or the spring/summer terms combination only, with preference given to Academic Year students. In the event that we receive more applications than available openings, we will select participants with the highest GPAs in their respective majors to attend the University of York. Preference for fall vs spring will be given to those with the highest GPAs in their respective majors. It is advisable that students interested in the University of York arrange to meet with Assistant Director Piper O'Sullivan (posulliv@holycross.edu) to discuss alternative locations in the event that student interest in the University of York exceeds capacity.
University website: https://www.york.ac.uk/
Study Abroad website: https://www.york.ac.uk/study/international/applying/visiting-students/
Student life/campus activities: https://www.york.ac.uk/study/student-life/
Visa fees: A visa is required for academic year students only. Semester students do not need to obtain a visa. Academic year students should plan to spend around $1000 on the UK student visa (the actual number fluctuates and depends on exchange rates with the British Pound)
Housing deposit: n/a
Course Catalog (module search)*: https://www.york.ac.uk/study/international/applying/visiting-students/courses/#modules
Courses previously taken by Holy Cross students: https://sa.holycross.edu/index.cfm?FuseAction=Abroad.Home
On left-side menu, click on "Courses Taken Abroad for Holy Cross Credit" then select program. Please be aware this list is meant to give you an idea of the types of courses available to you at University of York based on what past students have taken. This is NOT a list of classes that are guaranteed to be available to you and you are not limited to the classes on this list. Class offerings change each semester and you can certainly register for classes that you do not see on this list.
Grade equivalency sheet: Available on the Holy Cross Registrar’s website: http://www.holycross.edu/support-and-resources/office-registrar/study-abroad-equivalencies
*Note: In the UK, classes are called “modules” and majors are called “courses.”
All information listed above is subject to change
For more information, please contact:
Piper O'Sullivan - Assistant Director
Email: posulliv@holycross.edu
Phone: 508-793-3053
Office: Smith 218
