An amazing European adventure! Past Review
By Erica W (M.S. Business - Global Marketing Management, Virginia Commonwealth University) - abroad from 06/05/2013 to 07/02/2013 with
Forum-Nexus: Ultimate Summer in Europe - 9 Cities in 1 Month
I learned more about the world we live in and various cultures.
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The administrative staff were helpful both before and during the program. The program director, Hugo, is so knowledgeable about the world and is a complete joy to be around. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Beautiful hotels with nice rooms. |
| * Food: |
Breakfast is included with hotel stay and was always good. Very filling! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The program offers us the ability to socially integrate through on campus classes in most cities, professional visits and cultural education. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I fortunately did not have any incidents but medical coverage is provided as part of the program's tuition fees so that was reassuring. There were no special vaccines were necessary for this trip. |
| * Safety: |
We stayed in multiple cities over the course of the trip. The only two cities in which students encountered theft were in Barcelona and Paris. Rome is another city that ranks high in pickpocketing thefts and scams. Any student should just exercise caution in any city when traveling abroad, particularly in the high risk locations. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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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) |
Food prices vary and budget can be adjusted accordingly however I set myself a hefty food budget because I wanted to experience all of the flavors of Europe. :) Be prepared to pay for water in most cities. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $250-300 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | I worked out a budget before the trip and determined how much I was going to spend on food, transportation, miscellaneous expenses, souvenirs and gifts. I came up with a daily budget and a city budget then pulled out the amount of cash I needed in each city. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
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? | 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? | Make sure to take items that you use on a daily basis on the trip. I take vitamins daily but failed to bring them along with me thinking I would be fine not taking them for a month but my immune system crashed and it would have been nice to have them with me. |
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. |
