American Students in Prague Didn't Care About Academics Past Review
By Emily K (Art History, Criticism and Conservation., University of Rochester) for
CIEE: Prague - Central European Studies
I feel more independent but I would not choose the same program again.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Other students were on vacation and didn't git a s*** about class. They would come to class drunk or just skip class to travel a lot. The professors were really good for the most part and would spend time outside of class with me, but the classes were very general and survey-ish becuase that's what the other students wanted. I really felt like it was a wasted semester academicly. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
They were very ready to listen and provide support. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The dorm itself was fine. I didn't like having to turn my key in every time I left the building and getting in late at night was very hard. My cleaning lady was very very nice. I didn't enjoy living with the other Americans. |
| * Food: |
Czech food is bad. It's under seasoned and over salted with little varity and almost no international element, but it's cheap. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I liked that we went on day trips around the country. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Very safe city crime wise. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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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? | $70-120 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | none |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | none |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
It helped me and I'm glad I had to take it, but again the other students didn't take it seriously. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Don't go if you don't plan on getting wasted 5 nights a week. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Modern Czech Art |
| Course Department: | Art History |
| Instructor: | Stefkova |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | Course was to basic but the instructor was great and very willing to do things outside of class. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | yes |
| Course Name/Rating: |
Theories and Realties of Gender |
| Course Department: | Gender Studies |
| Instructor: | Blanka |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | Great course and instructor! Learned a lot about feminism. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | Yes. |
