The Emerald Isle Past Review
By Brien B (History and Secondary Education, Drake University) - abroad from 01/27/2014 to 06/06/2014 with
IFSA: Belfast - Teacher Education at Stranmillis University College
I think I experienced a ton of personal growth. I feel I've become a more well rounded person and much more able to interact with people I do not know or are different from me
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
They courses were not particularly challenging, though the grading seemed rather harsh. As a student with a 3.8 GPA going to Stranmillis, I was shocked to receive a C on an essay (my first in all of college). Additionally, on the exams, personal opinion was strongly discouraged, while the exams themselves focused on the memorization of quotes to simply write back into a paper. This form of examination is one I find ill equipped to adequately assess the knowledge of the student, instead only testing your ability to memorize |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The International Office at Stranmillis was phenomenal! The IFSA-Butler contacts we had in-country were also amazing. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Housing was fine, nothing special, but no real complaints. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Very well, students were friendly and very willing to interact with us, show local flavor |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
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| 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? | Roughly between $100 and $250 (Depended on the week) |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Know that with the conversion factor, your dollars are going to disappear faster. Always try to remember what you're spending in dollars, as well as local currency |
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? |
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? | The significant differences between the American and British education systems |
