University of Notre Dame Pre-College Programs Study Abroad: London

Notre Dame London's own faculty teach the classes at Fischer Hall, a listed building just off Trafalgar Square that has been home to Notre Dame's London programs since 1998, while guest lecturers who are experts in their fields lead students around the city.

The one teacher Notre Dame names for the program is Alice Tyrell, who joined Notre Dame London in 1999 and is now its Director of Academic Programs. She holds an MA in London History, is a Chartered Librarian and manages the G.K. Chesterton collection, and before Notre Dame she worked at the Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine and the London Library. Her particular interest is how gender, class and sexuality intersect with immigration and housing through London's history, which suits a course about how the city became what it is today.

Notre Dame is looking for current high school juniors with strong grades and solid extracurriculars who are self-motivated, disciplined and mature, and who sincerely want to be part of the Notre Dame community during the program. There's room for only 18 students, although Notre Dame doesn't publish how many apply.

The age rule is firm. You must be 16 by 1 August 2027, and Notre Dame says its insurance and child protection policies mean it can't make exceptions. Your passport also has to be valid through 20 January 2028.

Notre Dame calls the essays very important, since they're where you explain why this particular program appeals to you and what you'd bring to it, and it suggests having a teacher, counselor or parent proofread them.

• Two essays

  Written in the online application, on topics Notre Dame sets.

• A teacher recommendation

  The letter should speak to your ability to handle college-level work, your maturity, integrity and leadership, ideally from a teacher who can back your interest in this course.

• A counselor report

  Your counselor completes a School Report form with your GPA and class rank where available, and sends your transcript and school profile with it.

• Your activities

  List them in the application, upload a resume, or do both.

• Test scores (optional)

  SAT, ACT or PSAT scores are strongly encouraged but not required.

• English test for some international students

  If your high school doesn't teach in English, you need a TOEFL (5.5+), IELTS (7.5+), PTE (55+) or Duolingo (120+) score.

You apply through Notre Dame's enrollment portal, which opened for 2027 programs on 19 October 2026.

1. 1

   Create an account on the portal and start the online application.

2. 2

   Ask a teacher to recommend you before you enter their details, then add them and your school counselor, which sends each of them an automatic request email.

3. 3

   Follow up with both to confirm the emails arrived, because making sure every document reaches Notre Dame is your responsibility, and Notre Dame won't review an incomplete application.

4. 4

   Submit your application, essays and application fee by 20 January 2027, which is also when your counselor's and teacher's documents are due and the last day you can change recommenders.

5. 5

   If you're sending test scores, upload them or email a screenshot with your application ID to precoll@nd.edu by 31 January 2027.

6. 6

   Your decision letter tells you whether you're admitted and, if you asked for aid, whether you've been offered a scholarship.

The 2027 price is $8,750, and it covers tuition including the college credit, housing in Conway Hall, all meals, travel health insurance and every activity and excursion. On top of that you pay a $75 application fee, which isn't refundable and doesn't count toward the total, and your flights. You need to arrive in London by 4 July and leave on 18 July, and Notre Dame's Pre-College staff will help with booking if you ask. Any medical care during the program is also billed to the family.

Once you're admitted, you secure your place with a $2,000 enrollment fee due by 25 February 2027, which counts toward the total but isn't refundable, and the remaining $6,750 is due by 1 April 2027. It's worth being sure of your summer plans before you pay that enrollment fee.

Notre Dame has extremely limited need-based full-tuition scholarships for this program and no merit aid, and asking doesn't guarantee an award. A parent or guardian requests aid on Notre Dame's financial aid request form, and there are no application fee waivers for study abroad.

Students live together in Conway Hall, Notre Dame's own student residence on the South Bank near Waterloo, about a twenty-minute walk across the Jubilee Bridge from classes at Fischer Hall. Notre Dame's standards and policies, published for summer 2026, set the rules, and London students must also follow the program's own London Handbook.

The rule parents most need to plan around is medication. Staff don't store or give out any medicine, prescription or not, so students manage their own, and parents must arrange any known medical or mental health needs at least 30 days before the program starts.

• Required attendance

  Students must be on time for every class, excursion, meal, check-in and scheduled event unless it's clearly marked optional.

• Room and visitor rules

  Outside guests need written approval from the program director, and only same-gender program participants may visit a student's room.

• Before and after

  Parents are responsible for their child until check-in and again after check-out on the last day, which matters because students make their own way to London.

• Strict conduct rules

  Alcohol, tobacco, vaping and drugs are banned whatever the student's age, and breaking the rules can mean dismissal with no refund and the family paying for the journey home.

If you complete all the program's requirements, you can earn one transferable college credit from Notre Dame with a Satisfactory (S) grade, and you can later order a transcript from Notre Dame's Registrar. It's a Satisfactory grade rather than a letter grade, and whether another college accepts the credit is up to that college, since Notre Dame calls it transferable without saying where it counts. Notre Dame also doesn't say whether taking part plays any role in its own undergraduate admissions.