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Argentina: Full of Altibajas, but without a doubt the best semester of my life
CIEE: Buenos Aires - Liberal Arts
Program Information
The Liberal Arts program helps students gain a critical appreciation of Argentina and its importance in Latin America from a social sciences and humanities perspective. This is achieved through CIEE courses offered at Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales and direct enrollment courses in academic depar... More
| Provider: | CIEE |
| Location(s): | Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Year Founded: | |
| Website | Take me there! |
Review By:
Melanie K. (Latin American Studies, Wellesley College) on July 20, 2011
Overall Rating
Personal Information
| * Start Date: | 2011-02-24 |
| * End Date: | 2011-07-17 |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
My semester abroad was challenging in a different way that my own college. I found challenges in completing hundreds of pages of reading per week in Spanish, learning how to participate in class (it's not as expected and much less formal that at Wellesley), and |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The staff is incredible! They are very helpful, responsive and above all fun! |
| * Housing: |
I was very worried about doing a homestay, but wanted to try it. I could not have been placed in a better family and have developed a wonderful relationship with my host family! I hope to keep in touch with them forever! |
| * Food: |
My host mom ; don't be afraid to ask for different foods (it took me a long time to build up the courage to ask for a different kind of breakfast food). |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
You need to be aware of your surroundings in Buenos Aires. |
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* Home Institution Advising:
How well did Wellesley College prepare and support you for your time abroad? |
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Between buying lunches, transportation, and some fun things, I routinely spent $125/week (or 500argentine pesos) |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | It's harder to make your own lunch than you think because it can be awkward to use your host family's kitchen/its hard to bring with you for long days. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | a 300 level seminar on Spain with Profesor Ramos |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
I used Spanish in everyday interactions, with my host family, porteno friends and tried to speak spanish even with Argentines who spoke English. I did often use English among my friends from the USA. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * If you could do it all over again, would you choose the same program? | Yes |
| * What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile? | NO QUESTION. BEST DECISION OF MY COLLEGIATE CAREER. |