A Wonderful Challenge Past Review
By A student (Luther College) - abroad from 08/27/2019 to 12/14/2019 with
IES Abroad: Rabat - Study in Rabat
I learned a lot about "rolling with it" since overall, Morocco is a rather chaotic country. It was definitely worthwhile to learn about a new area of the world and it opened a lot of doors to future paths of learning, linguistically and culturally.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The professors were amazing and the workload manageable. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
There were often late notices for things and sometimes issues that staff said they would take care of then dropped the ball. Everyone was really friendly and eager to help though! |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My host family was incredible. |
| * Food: |
A lot of meat, but really tasty fresh food overall. Culturally, they expect you to eat a lot, which was difficult for me because I don't usually eat that much. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I felt very welcomed in the local community. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
I felt safe, but got a lot of verbal attention that was difficult to endure sometimes. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
There were a lot of administrative challenges that I struggled with, including disorganization and lack of respect for host families. I would definitely go to Morocco again though! |
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? | $5 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Eat the food your host family provides--you already paid for it! |
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 |
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| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Fluent |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Fluent |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | I hadn't taken a language course. |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? |
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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| 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? | I wish I knew how little formal Arabic and French are actually used or valued in Morocco, since my main goal was language learning. |
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 Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
