A Memorable Summer Past Review
By A student (The University of Texas at Austin) - abroad from 07/01/2016 to 08/07/2016 with
University of Texas - Austin: Moscow - Moscow Plus Summer Program
I learned a lot about daily life in Russia. My speaking skills increased somewhat, though I wish I had worked more on them.
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 |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
While we were in very nice dorms, I would've preferred to be with a host family. |
| * Food: |
Because we lived in dorms, we were required to go out into the city to get food, which meant that we had to interact with locals more, boosting our use of the Russian language. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I lived with Americans and took classes with Americans. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I had no health issues during the program, though several other participants got colds. |
| * Safety: |
I only felt unsafe when walking alone at night, but I had no accidents. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
While the program has a few flaws, it is a great trip for your first time into Russia. You decide how much you want to be in the culture and can make real progress in your speaking skills if you apply yourself. |
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) |
Food is very cheap. A regular meal will cost about 4 to 6 dollars. |
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 |
We took classes from Russian professors who only spoke to us in Russian, but were also surrounded by other Americans throughout the class day. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | I finished my first year a few weeks before. |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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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? | 0 |
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? | Mostly just small cultural things that didn't make my life difficult, but just would've been nice to know beforehand. |
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 Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
