The biggest culture shock though, came when I entered the workforce. It's well documented that the American office culture is pretty different to the way we work back in the UK, in part fueled by the notion of the 'American Dream' — that unwavering belief that absolutely anyone can become successful if they're determined and willing to work hard enough to achieve their dream.
And it seems that an all-work-and-no-play mentality has bred a workplace that's underpinned by a sense of fear that you're never quite working hard enough. And nowhere is this quite as obvious, to me at least, as the American attitude towards vacation days.
In the UK, almost all full-time workers are legally entitled to at least 28 days of paid vacation per year. Most employers will include the eight Bank and public holidays into that figure, which leaves the average British worker with a minimum of 20 days of vacation to use.
At my previous job, I had 25 days' vacation, eight paid Bank holidays, a day off for my birthday, and the opportunity to buy an additional five days off. We worked hard. But we were given adequate time away from the office to rest, reset, and rejuvenate.
So you can imagine my horror when I was offered my first job here in the States and found out my paid time off was an accrued total of 10 days. A measly two weeks, which included both vacation and sick time. And the worst part was the employer seemed to think that was generous. They prefaced the section about PTO with, "we know how hard you work and recognize the importance of providing you with time for rest and relaxation."