St. Andrews: The Gateway to Europe Past Review
By Katherine S (Classical and Ancient Studies., Wellesley College) for
University of St. Andrews: St. Andrews - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
It was the best year of my life and I wouldn't change anything! The only thing I regret is since I traveled like a tourist, I experienced Europe in a very touristic manner and not necessarily how a student who studied in a full immersion program would have.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
|
* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The academics were very hands-off and the student was expected to do a lot of independent work. I didn't mind this at all, in fact I believe that I thrived with such expectations. |
|
* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
There was not much communication between myself and the administration of St. Andrews. |
|
* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I lived with a mixture of local, foreign and American students. I had a great location, close to campus and the heart of the town (as well as the beach and golf course). |
| * Food: |
It was your average college food, I ate out more often than usual however due to my traveling. |
|
* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I did a lot of independent traveling, not only throughout Scotland, but throughout Europe. This, along with the friends and experiences I had at St. Andrews made for an amazing year. |
|
* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
|
| * Safety: |
I never had any health issues, but the town/campus at St. Andrews was very safe. |
| 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) |
|
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | It depends on the week, when I was traveling it was close to $300. When I wasn't it was more like $150. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Although flying is suprisingly cheap, it's the smaller transportation that adds up such as getting to and from airports and to and from cities. |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
Direct Enrollment/Exchange
| * Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? | Direct Enrollment |
Other Program Information
|
* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
|
A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Any student who enjoys being a college student and doesn't want to lose a year/semester of that experience should look to do a direct enrollment such as St. Andrews. As well, they offer enough free time that traveling almost every weekend is more than possible. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Julius Caesar |
| Course Department: | CL |
| Instructor: | Felix Racine |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | I particularly enjoyed this course because of the instructor. The class was entirely discussion based and the required research was very open ended and almost entirely reliant on first hand resources/writers. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | No. |
