Scotland - Where beauty and pride can help you find yourself. Past Review
By Benjamin D (Economics., Trinity University) for
IFSA: St. Andrews - University of St. Andrews
It gave me a great perspective on how the rest of the world views Americans.
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. |
The workload was deceptive, as you only had readings most of the time, but you couldn't ignore them or when papers were due you had no clue where to start. The classrooms were both big and small based on the class I took. I also had a much more concentrated grading system in Scotland with only 2 or 3 grades in the whole course. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
They were quite helpful and made my adjustment period easier. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
There wasn't much selection and the portions were smaller than I was used to. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We had a trip to the Isle of Skye and it was refreshing, beautiful and a wonderfully relaxing trip. We hiked, shopped, and listened to an amazing Scottish tour guide. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
I didn't have any problems and never really felt unsafe. |
| 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) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | some weeks I would just use like $60 or so, but others I probably spent over $120. Nothing was too expensive in the day to day stuff. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Bring extra money for your travel back home. If something goes wrong, it helps to have some cash to pay a rather expensive taxi. |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
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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A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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