Experience of a lifetime Past Review
By Dina (CUNY - Brooklyn College) - abroad from 08/28/2017 to 12/16/2017 with
CUNY - College of Staten Island: Florence - Study Abroad at Lorenzo de’Medici
The staff at Lorenzo de Medici was always willing to help. Professors were enthusiastic and eager to teach us.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The staff at Lorenzo de Medici was always willing to help. Professors were enthusiastic and eager to teach us. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
My advisor was always there to answer any and every question I had, even if it was a question pertaining to where I can buy something specific. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My apartment was located in the center of the city, and it was large, spacious, clean and fully stocked. Couldn't have been happier |
| * Food: |
Restaurants were delicious of course however not many options outside of Italian food. Not much food variety. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Florence's city center, where i lived, had a large tourist/international student population. I wasn't able to fully integrate into the local culture as English was spoken often and many locals lived outside the city center, however I did have many experiences to integrate |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
There were several hours for walk-ins, which was incredibly helpful. Any medicine prescribed could be bought in any pharmacy and it was all affordable. Really happy with the service |
| * Safety: |
Never felt unsafe, even when walking alone at night |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I enjoyed not having many people from my home institution/program with me because I was able to push myself to make new friends |
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) |
If speaking about food and personal expenses alone, it would've been really easy to spend roughly $100 a week. However, if you decide to travel each weekend, you must set a goal for a larger weekly budget. |
| 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? | Try not to eat out everyday as it can add up. Set certain days aside to go out and try new foods. Lunch is cheaper than dinner for the same meal, so consider going out for lunch. |
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 |
Italian class was taught entirely in italian |
| 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? | Try to incorporate the language in little ways. Start by ordering a coffee, or greeting your local neighbors and service people. You'll become more comfortable and have the courage to use the language more |
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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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
