A Wonderful First Start into International Exposure! Past Review
By Ben L (LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES, GENERAL STUDIES AND HUMANITIES., Sarah Lawrence College) - abroad from 09/10/2013 to 12/20/2013 with
Sarah Lawrence in Florence
Totally worthwhile. Gained a lot of proficiency in the language - enough to want to travel to Sicily next semester and take all of my courses at an Italian university, in Italian!! Also gained some interests that I had never experienced before (I'm obsessed with linguistics now), and honed in on a lot of things that I had been developing academically prior to being abroad.
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. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Cristina, Paola, and Irene are all INCREDIBLE! They did an amazing job the entire time. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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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? |
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) |
If you're smart about it, it can be very easy! Most weeks I really just got lunch, and then there would be one other expense sometimes such as putting more minutes on my Italian track phone. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $80 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Travel outside the most touristy areas of the city! An extra 10 minutes walk could save you some cash. |
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? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | beginning Italian |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Read books and articles and try to have conversations with anybody that might speak the language! |
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? | How beautiful living abroad is, but that could only have been obtained by actually living abroad. |
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 Nearly Native or Trail BlazerCraving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.' |
