Abroad101: Study Abroad Reviews

Semester in Budapest Past Review

By (Wellesley College) - abroad from 01/28/2019 to 05/17/2019 with

CIEE: Budapest - Business + European Studies

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
Despite having problems with the over involvement of the program administrator, I did enjoy my abroad experience. I love Budapest, and how it is centrally located so that you can travel to other countries very easily. I traveled nearly every weekend, but also enjoyed exploring Budapest.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 1 month - 6 months

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I anticipated and honestly looked forward to my abroad classes being a lot less rigorous than my home institution. However, I was hoping that they would at least be interesting. Most of them weren't and honestly just felt like a waste of time.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

While the program administrators were very kind, I found the head administrator to be far too involved in our lives. It felt like she was a babysitter, which we didn't need. For example, our rooms were checked weekly and after a few people got a little too drunk on a night out, she found out about it and gave us a curfew for two nights. We're in college-it's just unnecessary.

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

They rented out a hostel for us and we all lived in rooms ranging from 1-4 people. It was very well located (and close to university) and I also liked how we were all living together-it made it easier to make friends.

* Food:

It wasn't provided, but Budapest is a great city for food. Lots of cheap and delicious options very close to the school.

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I didn't really meet any Hungarians. They attempted to pair us with Hungarian "buddies" during the first week but a lot of the buddies didn't actually seem too interested, and I don't think anybody in my program actually became friends with their buddy. All of our classes are also with just foreign students, which also made it difficult. I'm not sure how the program could fix this though.

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I didn't have any health issues and didn't have to go to the doctor at all. However, the program provided supplemental medical insurance and made sure to tell us about an english-speaking doctor to visit if we needed it.

* Safety:

I always felt very safe in Budapest.

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

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)

It's very easy to live cheaply in Budapest. There are lots of cheap restaurants and grocery stores, and you can also go out and have fun in bars/clubs for a reasonable price.

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

Nobody in my program spoke Hungarian before we arrived, so we were all starting from square one. I appreciated that everybody seemed to acknowledge that Hungarian is difficult and that we weren't really going to be able to learn a whole lot of it in one semester. So, they encouraged us to use what we had learned, but didn't expect too much.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Hostel
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Americans
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • Americans
  • International Students

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?
  • the city
  • the other program participants
* What could be improved?
  • less program involvement
  • more interesting classes
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? Don't expect a lot from your classes-most of the learning will take place in the exploring and traveling that you do.

Reasons For Studying Abroad

To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you.
The Outright Urbanite
A social butterfly, you're happiest in bustling cities with hip people, and took advantage of all it had to offer. You enjoyed the nightlife, and had fun going out dancing, and socializing with friends. Fun-loving and dressed to the nines, you enjoyed discovering new restaurants, shops, cafes, and bars in your host country.