Five canon events if you’re a Brit on your year abroad in The States

At this point many of you will have accepted your places to study abroad, whilst others are still weighing up the options and waiting to see what SWAY fires back. For those of you who have applied to places in the USA (and those who haven’t but might end up there anyway) here’s some forewarning of things that will happen to you during your time away. 

1. Compliments on your accent

The rumours are true, a British accent in the USA is a highly-coveted attribute. “Your voice is so beautiful”, “I’m obsessed with your accent” and “I could listen to you talk all day” will be thrown around like an American football on campus. Don’t let it go to your head, but when it comes to Americans, we’re hot commodities in the States. All of a sudden, Colin’s plot line in Love Actually doesn’t seem quite so unbelievable…

I think this speaks for itself

2. Being mimicked and asked to repeat yourself

The downside to the British accent, however, is the imitation it often provokes. One thing is for certain, the attempt you will hear is never a good one. As funny as it can be hearing some of the terrible – clearly Peaky Blinders inspired – impressions, some days you just want to order your coffee in peace without being ridiculed for asking for a mocha (pronounced mock-a) instead of a moe-ka like a true American. 

3. Getting asked if you’re from London

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I don’t care if you’re English, Welsh or Scottish, if you come out as a Brit there’s a solid chance someone will ask if you’re from London. Personally, the biggest geographical mishap I’ve encountered was when I was asked whether the UK was in London, at which point I pretended to be a southerner as explaining where Sheffield is seemed like an absolute non-starter. 

An actual conversation my dad had

4. Royal family chat

This was something I joked about happening before coming, but I have been unironically asked whether I’m affiliated with the royal family on multiple occasions. “When the Queen died, I died”, is a direct quote from a frat boy on a random Thursday.

5. Greek life

If you end up at a school (yes they call it school) with Greek life, no one can prepare you for how utterly surreal it is when you step foot into your first frat party and realise they are EXACTLY like the movies. You’ll hear guys announce that “they would die for the frat” and elicit stunned faces when you explain that Greek life isn’t a thing in the UK. Things get wilder when you start hearing all the hazing horror stories; one of the worst ones which I’ve heard involved all the pledges, a dark basement and a goat – I’ll let you fill in the rest… 

Friends who frat together, stay together