A bit disappointing. A lot of fun but huge work load and I didn't learn much Past Review
By A student (Conservation Biology., Middlebury College) - abroad from 01/28/2012 to 05/04/2012 with
Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS): South Africa - African Ecology and Conservation
I got a good experience with some great people and I got to see what research is about. I don't know if it was worthwhile because, even though I did learn a bit, I feel like I could have learnt much more at my home institution.
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. |
I think that the academics were too big of a part of the experience to the point that we were not able to enjoy the rest of the time there because there was too much work. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Since the professors are also the ones who take care of the administration, they were always very busy and never fully on top of things. Everything took long to get done and there was a huge lack of communication between staff and between staff and students |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Most housing was great though the big 30 person rooms were a bit uncomfortable to live in |
| * Food: |
Delicious! Though not super healthy... |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Most of the time I felt like we were isolated from any cultural experiences but the homestay made up for that. The homestay was amazing and it definitely showed me what the living situation for people living in rural South Africa is. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't have any health issues so I can't really answer this question accurately but I think everything was handled the best way possible. |
| * Safety: |
I never felt in any danger at all except maybe for the two days that we were in Joburg but we were definitely cared for properly and most of the time you are in areas with very little people and the people who are there are all very nice and not aggressive or dangerous. |
| 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) |
The program is really minimal cost because everything is super cheap and the food is payed for already so all you have to pay for is snacks and souvenirs (except for during the break in Cape Town). However, during the days off we usually organized to do something fun such as rafting or visiting a rehabilitation center and that could get more expensive. |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | Yes |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $15 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Save your money to do fun stuff. Don't spend it on snacks or drinks. |
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 program works mostly with plants and barely at all with animals (especially large mammals). It is also a lot of work that I don't feel teaches you much. |
