Beautiful city, great host family, mediocre program Past Review

By (Middlebury College) - abroad from 01/03/2017 to 04/19/2017 with

Bordeaux Montaigne University: Bordeaux - Direct Enrollment & Exchange

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
My french improved and I learned a lot from the experience of living with a french family.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 2 weeks - 1 month

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The program did a pretty mediocre job integrating us into the french academic system

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

Delphine was very sweet but there wasn't anyone directly from middlebury in bordeaux

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

My host family was lovely

* Food:

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

The program's community service was an ineffective way to immerse us socially and I felt incredibly isolated on the university campus

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? No

I would not go to a language program. I felt incredibly isolated and didn't feel like the program did much to help us. The community service option was poorly organized and uninspiring and the students in the school were unfriendly. I am very happy I had a couple of friends in the program to adventure with.

Finances

* 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)

Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? $300
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? Grocery shopping is best done in bulk

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? Yes
How much did the program encourage you to use the language?

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

We were not allowed to speak English

How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? Beginner
How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? Intermediate
What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? A french culture course
How many hours per day did you use the language?

Direct Enrollment/Exchange

* Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? Exchange

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Host Family
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Host Family
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with?

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?
  • My family
  • My friends from the program
  • The city
* What could be improved?
  • The academic immersion
  • The extracurricular options
  • The group activities
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? Going abroad to a small city is really challenging if the program doesn't help much.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:

History

Course Department: History
Instructor:
Instruction Language:
Comments:
Credit Transfer Issues: