Compared to where they were a year ago, students studying in London are now receiving the royal treatment.

Last March, Syracuse University’s Division of International Programs Abroad announced its London Center was moving from Notting Hill to central London. The decision was met with a flood of letters and phone calls from alumni, who were irritated the university would move an academic program from the traditional, residential Kensington Park Gardens and Royalty Studios buildings to the modern, more urban Faraday House. Now in its second semester at the new location, the London program is receiving rave reviews from students, faculty and staff.

‘I couldn’t wait to move to Faraday House,’ said Dr. Meredith Hyde, assistant director for SU London. ‘We knew it would be a great place to relocate because it’s ‘student London’ as opposed to the ‘tourist London’ area of Notting Hill.’

West London boasts museums and universities, as well as unique shopping and restaurant districts that use special discounts catering to students. Notting Hill is certainly quieter and more residential, and initially appealed to SU because of its friendly neighborhood feeling, Hyde said.

‘Notting Hill was great when the program was just beginning, but it was very dysfunctional with people rushing between the two buildings,’ Hyde said. ‘We’ve gotten a lot more sophisticated since then – the new location is like living in Greenwich Village if you’re a student at New York University.’

According to Hyde, the main reason for the move was academics, which signifies a shift in how education has grown with technology. The Notting Hill buildings had little access to technological resources, and professors often scrambled to secure equipment and classrooms at the last minute.

But because Faraday House is new, the center can build and wire things at its discretion.

‘The classrooms are completely up to date and have new computers and technology everywhere,’ said Shira Levy, a junior public relations major who studied in London in fall 2005. ‘They’re still doing some construction, but there wasn’t anything major that interfered with classes.’

In addition, the center maintains non-academic facilities at Faraday for students’ enjoyment, including pool tables, foosball tables and lounges for relaxing.

‘It was really convenient to hang out at the center instead of going home between classes,’ said Adam Streicher, a junior public relations major who also studied abroad last fall. ‘I also belonged to the gym at the University of London, which was right nearby.’

Streicher said he was a bit nervous upon hearing that SU London was moving from Notting Hill because he had many friends who loved their experiences there. However, he decided to stay enrolled anyway, figuring that central London would provide a multitude of cultural and social opportunities.

Because Streicher thought the university’s pre-arranged housing was overpriced, he found a place of his own about 25 minutes away. Commuting turned out to be a bit of a hassle, but was relatively easy since the Center is accessible by numerous bus and tube lines.

‘I really had to plan my mornings out in order to make the commute,’ said Dave Hayward, a junior accounting and finance major. ‘It was a lot more complicated than taking a 10-minute walk from Ackerman Avenue to the Quad (at SU).’

Hyde acknowledges the center is still grappling with housing. The pre-arranged housing is quite close to Faraday, but students who want to locate their own accommodations are finding that they must move further away. The Center had numerous landlord contacts in Notting Hill and was respected in the area, so it will take some time to create a similar rapport with central London tenants and businesses.

Enrollment is always much higher for SU London in the spring semester than in the fall, averaging around 350 and 200 students, respectively. Last fall’s enrollment was much lower, with only around 150 students registered before Tulane University students transferred after Hurricane Katrina. Hyde attributes the change not to the center’s move, but to a revamp of courses from the Martin J. Whitman School of Management.

‘Usually management students come to London in the fall, whereas now they are attending in the spring,’ Hyde said. ‘I thought we would also lose students after the July 7, 2005 bombings, but was surprised and impressed that we didn’t.’

Even with the new building and Tulane students joining the program, the center’s first semester was extremely successful, Hyde said.

‘Looking back to the time when we were on a split site in West London, it seems as if in one bound we’ve moved from sitting in the back seat of a public bus to being driven in a luxury limousine,’ said Christopher Cook, a communications professor. ‘Of course there have been problems, but many snags were ironed out over winter break so we were ready for the huge intake of students this semester.’

When it first opened years ago, SU London became popular and immediately well-known because of its academic excellence. However, NYU and University of Notre Dame have since become bigger programs, highlighting the need for Syracuse to remain competitive.

‘We will be adding more academics in the next few years to accommodate a wider variety of students, such as those from the School of Architecture,’ Hyde said. ‘Syracuse got a reputation as a ‘traditional, does-it-well’ program, and it’s so much better than that. Seeing it come back to the forefront of study abroad centers is really exciting.’

Published on February 9, 2006 at 12:00 pm