Technion Institute: A Rewarding Journey of Personal and Academic Growth Past Review

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Technion, Israel Institute of Technology: Haifa - Semester of Engineering & Science

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
yes

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 1 month - 6 months

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The workload is largely a matter of individual choice. Homework is light, but not sufficient to excel in the courses, as it is both an almost-insignificant part of the overall grade and a comparatively small part of the studying needed for mastery of the courses. To that end, it is helpful to know that the student stores sell study guides and previous final examinations (including solutions) for every course they have taken. These are quite cheap and extremely useful. The grading system is very much final exam-based. The final exam can be worth as much as 90% of a course and will generally be worth at least 50-60%. It can also be retaken, and students at the Technion are often not expected to pass certain course in the first try. This is because the courses at the Technion are meant to inmerse the students for practical use through a thorough theoretical introduction (keep in mind that many of these students plan to go into the engineering core of the military upon graduation). Therefore, introductory courses which in the states would typically be spread up into multiple courses. However, the teaching style is such that this is not a huge stretch on your time if you wish to do well in a course on the first exam. On the whole, I would hugely recommend the Technion university.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

The people are great administrators, but there are far too few of them (though they were working on this when I left)

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The housing was great, though it was a little dingy (there was a fumigation in the middle of the term)

* Food:

Food is more or less up to the individual studying at the Technion, but the food in the cafeterias is delicious, and the local Haifa Markets are wonderful (they have everything you could want with the possible exception of pork: it offends too many major religions in the country)

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

There were literally too many to mention. I participated in activities ranging from Salsa dancing to Kung Fu in clubs, and obviously there were numerous historical attractions.

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

There is absolutely nothing to worry about.

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

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)

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? Yes
If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition?

Language acquisition improvement?

There is a very good Hebrew course for foreigners at the university. It is geared towards practical scientific use, but will also teach you the general aspects. Most people speak English, and in small classes professors will conduct the class in English upon request. It is also useful to bring a dictionary to the classes which do not teach in English.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Dorm
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
  • International Students

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?
  • See Above
* What could be improved?
  • Organization
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? This program is very academically intense: it could benefit most students, but the best candidates would be those who have a desire to advance academically.