Exhausting , exhilarating , educational . Past Review
By Michelle T Nunno-Evans (Utica College) - abroad from 11/27/2017 to 12/09/2016 with
Utica College: Occupational Therapy in the Dominican Republic
The overall trip was extremely worthwhile. There was a very large group and I am not confident that the size was manageable. Required more down time, more decompression time . The days were planned from early morning to very late into the night.
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. |
Both Clinical and life experiences very worthwhile. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Very supportive. Very high expectations of staff on the ground. May need to look at a bit of scaling back on activities offered so that each opportunity's goals are more attainable. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
A bit more information front loaded so that families and participants have an opportunity to have a greater sense of safety with the housing option chosen. |
| * Food: |
new culture new food. More opportunities to bring snacks from home . |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I had the perfect mix. However the group was on extreme ends , some students felt very threatened and some felt we did not embrace the culture... |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Thank heavens , no issues. |
| * Safety: |
I felt very safe, however did fin traveling on the bus late at night challenging . Difficult to disembark for personal hygiene trips . |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
Not in the same format. Greater structure would need to be in place. A great deal of travel , spend more time in each place to develop skills and relationships . |
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) |
I felt that we were provided with enough money ,,,, |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Learn the exchange rate , and have a clear understanding of the terminology of the money denominations. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | none |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 0 |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | develop a very basic mini-course that this group of students and faculty has prior to this trip . |
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?
Select all that apply |
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? | 10+ |
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? | Much more knowledge of the culture, the language, the money of DR. |
