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St Andrews: Academically Rewarding but Isolated
Direct Enrollment: St. Andrews - St. Andrews University
Program Information
Founded in 1413, the University of St Andrews is Scotland’s oldest university, and the third oldest in the English speaking world. The University is located in the mediaeval coastal town of St Andrews on the east coast of Scotland. The town, with its close-knit community, is very much our campus with Univers... More
| Provider: | Direct Enrollment |
| Location(s): | St. Andrews, The United Kingdom |
| Year Founded: | |
| Website | Take me there! |
Review By:
Anna P. (political science, Wellesley College) on September 22, 2010
Overall Rating
Personal Information
| * Start Date: | 2010-02-01 |
| * End Date: | 2010-05-31 |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The papers and final exam period were very intensive at this university and a nice challenge; otherwise there were not many hours of classtime and not as many readings as I'm used to. I really enjoyed classes and meeting with my professors, but St Andrews did not have as many weekly hours of academic involvement as Wellesley, which led me to feel understimulated. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
St Andrews was a lot less organized and compact than Wellesley is in terms of teacher/administration/student networks and openness, though their orientation programs were also very helpful. |
| * Housing: |
The dorms were giant and gorgeous and I had my own bathroom and a very nice floor kitchen; no complaints |
| * Food: |
pretty standard dining fare |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
No trips arranged through the program, but I loved everything I did and all the cultural experiences hosted by St Andrews. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
No problems |
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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? | 30 pounds at the most when not traveling on food and living expenses. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Allocate a travel budget |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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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 do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | make sure you go out and experience more of Scottish culture and society than you get just at St Andrews |
| * What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile? | I really enjoyed studying in St Andrews; I learned a lot in my classes that I wouldn't have had the opportunity to study at Wellesley, but I found it pretty isolated from the rest of Scotland. |