China Study Abroad Past Review
By Matthew L (Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities., Southwest Jiaotong University) for
Southwest Jiaotong University: Chengdu - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
In so many ways. Beyond becoming apart of the Chinese cultural environment and greatly increasing my Chinese speaking abilities, I got close to people I would never have met, became interested in places I would never have thought and did things I never could have done at home.
Review Photos
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 classwork, grading system and teaching methods were very similar to those at my home university. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Cultural differences result in problems but all that I ran into I had no problem dealing with. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Two German exchange students and I rented a brand new apartment for less that I spend on dorms at my home university. |
| * Food: |
The best food on Earth! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Met people from all over the world and appreciated each one of them. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Never worried about that. A hospital was located on campus and I had plenty of Chinese friends that could help me in the hospital if I had problems understanding. |
| 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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Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
Most of my Chinese speaking abilities were utilized outside of the classroom. Day to day conversation were in Chinese. Some new how to speak English but it was very easy to avoid speaking English. |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | The cultural divide is huge. So go with the flow. |
