What makes high school in England great? High school abroad in England is a no-brainer for many teenage students with an ambition for traveling abroad. That’s because for native English-speaking high school students, England is the quintessential travel softball, so to speak. Considering that England is, well, an English-speaking country, similar in culture to the United States and other Western countries, and easy enough to navigate (given the extensive train network and reliance on public transportation), teen travel in England need not be overwhelming or stressful for first-timers.
However, that’s not to say there isn’t immense opportunity to learn and grow! For teens ready to venture outside of their home country and dip their toes into the world of travel, England is an exceptional place to start. High school study abroad programs in England will challenge you personally and academically, open your eyes to life outside of the United States, introduce you to lessons in independence and responsibility, and perhaps even inspire future study abroad plans during college.
That being said, there are a few key things you should be aware of about high school travel in England before you jet off to Europe. These things range from schoolwear, to exams, to time off from classes. Honestly, there’s probably more differences between high school abroad in England and high school at home than you would imagine!
What you need to know before attending high school abroad in England
1. First of all...it’s called secondary school.
Before you explore high school study abroad programs in England, you should know about this crucial difference. In the United States, elementary school (kindergarten to 5th grade) precedes middle school (6th grade to 8th grade), which precedes high school (9th grade to 12th grade). However, in England, there is only primary school and secondary school, and secondary school covers the entire range of ages from 11 to 16.
By the way, they aren’t called “grades” either. In secondary school, you start out in year 7 and work yourself all the way up to year 11. At that point, you’ll move on to sixth form (or years 12 and 13) or alternatively, attend college (which is different from American college) or begin an apprenticeship. Confused? Honestly, we are a little bit too. To clarify, what Americans call college is what England calls university. The college that you can choose to attend after year 11 (at age 16) in England acts as university prep or could just be another course of study of your choosing.
Bear in mind that this isn’t the only difference in terminology between the United States and the United Kingdom—you’ll find lots of discrepancies during your high school study abroad. England replaces a lot of o’s with ou’s (color is colour, favor is favour), ed’s become t’s (learned is learnt, and burned is burnt), and vocabulary is wildly different as well. Are you calling your friend on the phone? Nah, mate—are you having a laugh? You’re ringing ‘em up on the blower! Don’t worry if you’re having a hard time catching on though; your teachers will cut you some slack for being a Yank.
2. Get ready for uniforms.
At home in the United States, you probably go clothes shopping every summer in preparation for the school year ahead. You buy new jeans, you coordinate your shoes, you get a new backpack. In England, all of that stress and shopping is unnecessary, since secondary schools everywhere require uniforms. These outfits usually involve a skirt for girls and trousers for boys, as well as a tie, sweater (jumper), and blazers.
Some students love and swear by their uniforms, and others hate the limitations in individuality and wardrobe choice. During high school study abroad programs in England, you’ll get the chance to find out which camp you’re in, as you’ll be held to the same standard whether you like it or not. Whatever you do, just try not to get your stuff mixed up with a friend’s—rumor has it students smell their jumpers to figure out which one is theirs.
3. Expect the commute to be a little different.
Up until you’re old enough to have your license and a car in the United States, you’ll probably be riding the yellow school bus every morning to high school, unless you have a very generous friend or guardian who will drive you. Buses are generally cramped and rowdy, and the commute is long, since the bus has to pick up 30 or more kids around the city en route to school. In England, the system is similar, but the buses tend to be double-decker and sadly, not yellow.
However, instead of being picked up at your house, you will have a designated stop to get to catch the morning bus, which is often just a city bus that runs specifically at that time for schoolchildren to use. However, students at schools in larger cities such as London and Manchester will take advantage of public transportation like trains and trams. During England high school programs, your host family or advisor will help explain which form of transportation you’ll be using to get to school.
4. Your time off is allotted differently
In the United States, generally speaking, students have an occasional day off here and there throughout the year for public holidays, except for half a week off at Thanksgiving, two weeks at Christmas, a week at Easter, and of course, two or three months off for summer. In England, schools run on terms, which means you’ll go to school for six weeks, and then get a week off. This is the system all year long, with more time off granted at holidays like Easter and Christmas, and usually there are six weeks granted at summer. There are pros and cons to both systems, of course.
In the States, two months off at summer means forgetting a lot of what you learned the year prior, but opens up the opportunity for summer jobs—and summers abroad! However, the steady pace of time off in the UK helps prevent students from feeling overworked, even though it means never having more than a month away at a time.
5. There are tests. A lot.
Testing in England is no joke. There are two major rounds of testing at secondary school: The GCSEs follow year 11, and your results determine what you’re allowed to study in sixth form. At the end of sixth form come the notorious, life-altering A-levels, which can make or break your university plans.
Many high school students in England receive conditional offers from universities, and their acceptance is determined by test results that they receive just a month prior to when they would be beginning at their chosen school. Results Day is one of the most stressful days of a young person’s life, because if you don’t get the results you need to attend your top schools, then there’s a mad scramble to find a university that will take you.
Imagine thinking that in a month’s time you’ll be attending your dream school, only to find out on Results Day that none of the schools you want to go to will accept you. Truly, we’re not sure how any secondary school students sleep at night. When applying to high school programs in England, be sure to ask your advisor which tests you’ll be responsible for taking. For example, if you plan on attending a university in the UK, then you’ll probably have to partake in A-levels. If, however, your dream school is in the United States, then you’ll have to do SAT or ACT prep alongside your study abroad responsibilities.
6. School lunches are lit.
Tater tots. Pizza. Taco boat. Popcorn chicken. Applesauce. Sound familiar? Generally, these (or some variation) are staples in cafeterias across America. In recent years, the quality and nutritional value of food offered to students at school have come under question. On the other side of the Atlantic, England is light years ahead when it comes to school lunches.
Secondary schools tend to have one hot meal a day throughout the week, like Curry Thursdays or Fish and Chips Fridays, but dining halls offer other items like toasties, baguettes, pasta, salads, and more. If you get a chance, try out the cornflake tart for dessert or any of the other numerous treats on offer, like chocolate mousse. By the way, they call it dinner sometimes instead of lunch. And sometimes dinner is tea. Got it?
7. The curriculum is standardized.
Have you ever met someone from another high school in your state, struck up a conversation about school, asked them about reading To Kill a Mockingbird, only to find out they never had to read it? In the United States, teachers have a lot of control over what their students will learn and how they learn it. There are standards set at the state level, but these standards also vary from state to state, meaning what kids are learning in 9th grade in Ohio could be very different from what kids are learning in 9th grade in New Mexico.
Such is not the case in England. Unless you attend a private school, every secondary school follows the national curriculum. Keep in mind that during England high school programs, there’s a good chance the material will be ahead of what you would normally be learning back home. Again, be sure to consult with your program advisor to make sure you’re enrolled in the proper classes.
8. There’s a ton of variety in the day-to-day.
In high school in the United States, every day follows the same formula. You might have English first period, Spanish second period, algebra third period, and so on. For some schools, this routine continues all year long, and at others some classes will change at the start of the second semester in January.
In England, things are quite different. Schools operate on time tables, allowing enough time to take up to 15 classes in one-hour increments on different days of the week. At the end of two weeks, your time tables will change. This particular feature of secondary school is somewhat difficult to explain, but easy enough to follow as long as you have your trusty planner, and a reliable advisor to approach with questions.
Next steps to attending high school abroad in England
Don't pack your GoPro juuuust yet. There are a few items on your teen travel abroad to do list you should check off first.
- Decide where to go. Figuring out where to study abroad as a teen isn’t easy. Ever-popular London? Somewhere with a beach? Don't let ANYTHING hold you back—choose a place that's right for you.
- College-prep classes or something more fun and experiential? You don't only have to take classes that pertain to your studies back home (though it never hurts to get more credits towards graduation). Decide if you want to use this time abroad to learn hard skills like Spanish or to develop soft-er skills, like teamwork and communication, through something like a service project.
- Choose from the best high school study abroad programs. Pay attention to past participants’ reviews, program/university reputation, location, and your ease of getting credits. Some schools or providers may even provide contact info for student ambassadors or past international students if you want the REAL dirt. Here’s our guide to choosing between teen travel abroad programs.
- Plan your finances. Sort out funding before you go to afford daily essentials and splurge in travel (in addition to program costs and airfare). Do your research to have an idea of how much your study abroad program will cost. Be sure to check out high school travel scholarships too!
- Talk to your guidance counselor. Getting all your ducks in a row is largely dependent on what your school requires, if anything. Talk to a study abroad advisor or the equivalent at your school to see if there are more choices available to you.
You’re eight steps closer to high school abroad in England!
Are you ready to discover high school study abroad programs in England? Well, before we set you free to do so, we have one final fun fact for you! Do you love Harry Potter? (Of course you do! Everyone does!) Well, get excited. It turns out there’s actually quite a few similarities between our favorite fictional school of witchcraft and wizardry and actual high school abroad in England. Houses are a real thing (sadly sans Sorting Hat) and so are prefects. Plus, the GCSEs are structured eerily similarly to O.W.L.s. We’re beginning to suspect that every school has a hidden Room of Requirement too.
With these 8 things you need to know about high school abroad in England, you now have fantastic surface-level knowledge of what to expect from your foray into secondary school abroad. You’ll blend in with your new uniform, show up to class at the right time on the right days, and dive headfirst into a cornflake tart with the rest of your classmates. You’re practically a pro as it is! For everything else, you’ll have a diligent program advisor guiding you every step of the way. So pack up your wellingtons and mack in a sack, and get on over to high school abroad in England!
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