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Glasgow U | Life > Experiences

Culture Adjustments: What I’ve Learned from Studying in Scotland

Tess Phillips Student Contributor, University of Glasgow
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Glasgow U chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Moving from the US to Scotland brought some culture shocks I never saw coming. Here are the three that stayed with me.

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Photo by Jordane Mathieu on Unsplash

Navigating Public transport

Obviously, America is infamous for its lack of public transit. Living in close proximity to New York City and Philadelphia made me familiar with trains, but I’d never taken a regular bus before moving to Scotland. I’d ride the yellow school bus to school, but I had never taken a Greyhound bus or public city bus before. Although Scotland (and Glasgow) made it easy to navigate and apply for free bus travel, during first-year I refused to ride one unless I had a friend with me. Now, I ride the bus from the airport, into the center, and all over the country!

People will chat anywhere!

The Northeast of the US isn’t known for being overly friendly towards strangers. Noah Kahan captures that cool, reserved attitude in his song “Northern Attitude,” about being raised out in the cold.

The Glaswegian tendency to chat in queues, in the pub, outside while smoking, or just randomly saying hello in the street, was definitely something to get used to. That friendliness really contributed to my feeling of belonging here, and as they say, the people really do make Glasgow.

Charity shops and a culture of anticonsumerism

Charity (or thrift) shop culture exists globally, but I wasn’t prepared for how prominent it is in Glasgow. Having shops whose proceeds go directly to charities was an entirely new concept to me, since the only thrift and vintage stores near my home were the numerous Goodwills.

I was also unprepared for the sheer number of young people here with anti-consumerism attitudes, in a positive way. More people seem to use Vinted, the online second-hand marketplace, and I don’t know anyone back home who uses anything similar. It’s also completely normal to suggest an outing to the local British Heart Foundation or Oxfam to browse the second-hand selection, and I’ve come to really enjoy that during my time in Glasgow.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME

All in all, I wouldn’t change my experience of studying here for the world. Glasgow is an amazing city, and it has become my home. These cultural adjustments have widened my view of the world, and I believe they’ve aided my journey towards becoming a “global citizen,” a goal of mine since high school.

I’m excited to take these lessons into my post-university career, and I look forward to absorbing whatever Scotland has left to offer while I’m here.

Tess Phillips

Glasgow U '29

Tess is the coordinator of photography and a writer at the University of Glasgow, Scotland chapter. She oversees the photography team alongside the Head of Marketing and Social Media and focuses her coverage on the cultural and life narratives surrounding Glasgow.

Beyond Her Campus, Tess manages her own company for private swim lessons in her hometown in New Jersey, serving over 60 clients annually in her area. She has previous written and photography publications in her high school's yearbook, the Red Oak, where she held an editor position for two years. Tess studies International Relations and Social/Public Policy in a joint Honours degree and is currently in her second year of studies.

In her free time, Tess enjoys spending her days outside. She holds an advanced diver certification in scuba diving, and in the summertime can barely be found above water. She is a music and high-fidelity sound enthusiast, who enjoys competing in "Jeopardy!" from her couch (and she always wins!).