Study abroad in New Zealand Past Review

By (PSYCHOLOGY., Rice University) for

ISA Study Abroad in Auckland, New Zealand

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
YES. i gained so much - great travel memories, beautiful sights, thoughts about kiwi culture and different ways of living, a new perspective of the US, a more confident, optimistic, and effervescent outlook on life.

Personal Information

The term and year this program took place: Spring 2009

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The professors varied in quality, though none of them were bad. I thought the classes were tough in the sense that there were only two tests or so to base our grades off of. It was important to be on top of it, because there was very little official work (such as quizzes, routine tests, etc) to keep a person in line. Many people put off their work for virtually the whole semester and definitely had a hard time at the end!

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

The program did not do very much throughout the semester besides the volunteering weekend - I had friends in IFSA Butler and Arcadia that were doing much more with their programs. I didn't mind because I traveled a lot on my own, but I think the price for the programs was roughly equivalent and it wasn't really worth it so much.

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

housing with americans, mostly, which was a bit of a disappointment. but extremely close to campus - i walked everywhere <br /><br /> the people who were in charge didn't like Australearn students and sought them out discriminately. i liked the living situation overall, though. aesthetically pleasing, secure, my own room, right in the heart of the city so i could walk to any place i wanted, day or night

* Food:

i just cooked for myself - no meal plan

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

definitely worth it to see some maori performances, travel as much as you can, meet locals when you can, and just immerse yourself in the culture.

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

i signed up for the (free) health services at the university, though i didn't hear about it through my program. i did feel as though i would have been able to contact australearn, if an emergency did arise.

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? No

Finances

* 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)

Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? 100-150NZ (not including traveling on weekend, which varied a lot)
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? the exchange rate can change a lot!

Language

How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? None
Language acquisition improvement?

n/a

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Dorm
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students

A Look Back

* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? put yourself out there, and be open to new experiences! be willing to explore, this is the most beautiful country in the world and there's nothing stopping you.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:

Advanced Social Psychology

Course Department: PSYCH 311
Instructor: Niki Harre
Instruction Language: english
Comments: challenging, very interesting, more in depth (and less breadth) than I am used to. required a lot of studies that had to be learned. i didn't participate much in class, but the professors were fairly knowledgeable.
Credit Transfer Issues: I don't currently have transfer credit for my major, though I am trying to do that now (it didn't go through for some reason)
Course Name/Rating:

Microbiology

Course Department: BIOSCI 204
Instructor: Mark Ambrose
Instruction Language: english
Comments: difficult! teacher went very fast, a LOT of material. i didn't participate much and when i did, i felt as if it was somewhat discouraged.
Credit Transfer Issues: Yes, not getting upper-level credit (though again, I am trying to figure that out now)
Course Name/Rating:

Microeconomics

Course Department: ECON 101
Instructor: don't remember! sorry
Instruction Language: english
Comments: a HUGE class, three streams with 1500 total. fairly straightfoward material, tests were fair. participation was difficult because it was such a big class
Credit Transfer Issues: econ 101 is difficult to get credit for at rice. i took it for enrichment purposes.