USF co-director of the School of Interdisciplinary Global Studies Scott Solomon has taught in the USF in London program for all but one summer of the past decade and has led the program since 2019. An associate professor whose expertise is in the areas of globalization, migration, and international political economy, Solomon has taught two courses for USF students in London: Empire, Blood, and Belonging which covers issues of citizenship in an age of global migration and US-UK Foreign Policy and the Special Relationship, examining the deep connections between the two countries. 

USF World asked Solomon to reflect on the value of the program, and he answered from London just as the summer 2025 cohort of students was arriving. 

You've traveled all over the world. What do you think it is about London that the students consistently say is a "transformational" experience? 

Solomon: I believe London is a special place for a number of reasons. Here is a paragraph from my syllabus describing London in general:  
“London is a vibrant, dynamic, and globally significant city. Scholars have described London as one of a handful of ‘global cities’ that serve as key nodes in global networks (along with New York, Tokyo, Paris, etc.). Global cities tend to be important centers for education, commerce, finance, the arts, journalism, publishing, and other fields reliant on concentrations of human capital. Given this, London offers unparalleled opportunities to further our understanding of international politics, migration and citizenship.” 
 
London is a key global node for so many fields and allows easy access as English speakers. So, no matter the course or field, there is a way in which London has a tremendous amount to offer. 

What do you learn from those summers spent there? Are there still new things to discover? 

Solomon: I'm constantly surprised by the new things I discover/learn each summer. To quote Samuel Johnson, “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life." … London is constantly reinventing itself. 
 
I take students to visit a mosque in East London that was previously a synagogue, and before that was a Christian church. While some things in London seem to have a solidity for centuries (like Westminster, Houses of Parliament, etc.) many neighborhoods are constantly evolving. I take students to Brixton each summer. Brixton was once among the most expensive areas of London to live in. Over time, it began to economically decline and by the 1960s and 1970s, it was a relatively poor suburb that attracted working-class families of Afro-Caribbean descent. While that population is still there, it is currently undergoing a kind of gentrification that is pulling young professionals to Brixton and remaking the area once again. You can tell a similar story about many parts of London, especially as it has become such a desirable location for both the wealthy and immigrant populations hoping to make a better life for themselves and their families. 

What makes it fun for faculty to participate? It seems faculty are equally as effusive about spending time teaching there as the students are about being there. Is it the experiential learning opportunities? 
 

Solomon: What makes this a fabulous program is getting to experience London each summer with a group of students who are really living in London for the first time in their life. They may have visited before, but they are living, commuting, studying, and spending their free time in London in a way that is very different from a tourist. As an undergraduate, I had a similar experience when I travelled abroad for the first time as a USF undergraduate. I went to Costa Rica, mainly to get some language credits in the summer, and came home transformed. It was challenging to live in a different environment and culture, but I quickly adapted, and that gave me a kind of confidence about facing new and different challenges. Seeing that happen to students, and sometimes having a hand in it, is one of the most rewarding moments in a teaching career.  
 
Finally, I need to give a shout-out to our co-director, Dr. Jessica Cook of the English Department. She teaches incredibly popular classes on Jane Austen and Harry Potter and has years of experience teaching in London. Dr. Cook and I do a lot of work during the academic year to make this program a success, alongside the team at Education Abroad (which is now called Global Learning) and USF World.