More participants than ever are experiencing January in the British Isles through Samford University's study abroad program this month.

A total of 110 Samford students are studying at Samford's London Study Centre while enrolled in courses ranging from retail management to a study of Winston Churchill's oratorical style and use of rhetoric in World War II.

Some 50 graduate and undergraduate students departed Dec. 28 and will return Jan. 10. A second group will be based at the Centre Jan. 10 through Jan. 23.

This year's higher number of participants is in part to expanded graduate offerings at the Centre.

Eight graduate nursing students are enrolled in a course which will focus on the British health care system and the historical influence of nursing. Six Master of Business Administration degree students are studying British economic development. Side trips include a visit to the research and development office of Range Rover, makers of popular Land Rovers SUVs. Fourteen pharmacy students will spend Jan. 10-23 studying the National Health System of Great Britain with visits to medical facilities and community pharmacies in England and Wales.

Another group of Samford students chose to swap Alabama winter for a Costa Rican summer this month. Thirty students will experience total immersion in the Spanish language and culture during a 21-day stay in San Jose, Costa Rica. They will attend intermediate and advanced Spanish classes at Centro Linguistico Conversa language school while living in homes near the school. Excursions include a visit to a tropical rain forest.

Samford ranks 18th nationally among master's degree institutions in the number of students studying abroad, according to the most recent annual study by the Institute of International Education.