Travel Past Review
By A student (University of Tulsa) - abroad from 02/01/2016 to 05/28/2016 with
CIEE: Warsaw - Central European Studies
I learned how to travel, how to be in a foreign country, and how to be in a place where I don't know anyone. It was completely worthwhile.
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. |
The classes were pretty easy and didn't have a lot of work associated with them. Some of the professors were a little sexist or racist. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The administration of my program were always very helpful for me and would help me if I got into a situation. However, some of my friends had to deal with an incident and it was not handled well. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I would have preferred a home-stay, but the dorms were adequate. |
| * Food: |
Food is easily the best part of study abroad. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
To be honest, I felt pretty isolated. I didn't make many Polish friends at all. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't have any healthcare problems. I didn't need any vaccines to go to Poland. |
| * Safety: |
Poland is a very safe country. The safety related incident we had was from a fellow study abroad student. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
Despite the shortcomings of the program, I made some great friends and was able to travel around most of Europe during my stay there. |
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) |
Poland is super cheap. Most of my expenses were from traveling independently. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $75 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Travel to cheap countries. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
They understood that Polish is an impossible language that no one really speaks, but we learned survival Polish. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | none |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Abandon hope all ye who enter here. |
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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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? | 0 |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | How much I would travel and that it's okay to go places on your own. |
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 Avid AdventurerThe wardrobe you packed was better suited for a semester of camping than club hopping. Outdoorsy, you might forgo a crazy night out for an early all-day adventure. You'd rather take in the rich culture of an old town than the metropolis of a modern city, but for you getting off the grid is ideal. |
