Morocco-A Feast for the Senses Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The academic intensity was actually comparable to my home university, which I consider to be somewhat challenging. After hearing about friends' study abroad experiences in which they hardly had to work at school, I was somewhat surprised by the amount of time I actually did have to put into schoolwork, but I did enjoy the classes. They take school very seriously as it is considered to be a prestigious school. One thing that is slightly frustrating for an exchange student to AUI is the attendance policy-3 absences for a T/TH class or 5 absences for a MWF class and supposedly you automatically fail, which can put a damper on the travel plans you'll undoubtedly want to make. I found the professors to be more formal than the ones back home. They will hold you more or less to the same rigorous academic standards as the Moroccan students. Language classes are very intensive but if you put the work in you learn a TON! I also found some of the professors would make a lot of very biased stances on issues in ways that might be frowned upon in the US but you have to take this with a grain of salt and consider where they are coming from culturally. Class registration can be a huge pain, but it's worth it to get the classes you really want.

On-site administration of your program

The university is relatively new (12 years old I believe) and thus so is the study abroad program, so they are still working out a lot of the kinks. The Study Abroad coordinator is rather distant and unapproachable and didn't really seem to take much of an interest in us beyond the first day or two of orientation. She also seems to have some misconceptions and be generally out of touch with the Moroccan culture (as my Moroccan friends assured me they agreed), as she is actually an American who moved to Morocco. That being said, her two assistants Saffa and Meryem are WONDERFUL and some of the best resources on campus! They work very hard to make sure everything runs smoothly and are the first people I would go to with any problems. My major complaint is that after the first few days of orientation, they just kind of set you off on your own, which is good in some ways-but I wish there would've been continued cultural events held throughout the semester for international exchange students to come together. It's easy to fall into social cliques with the first few people you meet and after that we were hardly ever all together.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The housing facilities are pretty nice, at least much nicer and larger than a lot of the dorms on my campus. It is similar to what freshmen dorms would be like in the US. Students are placed with a Moroccan roommate, which turned out great for some and not so great for others. TWO MAJOR RULES that are hard for American students to adjust to is the curfew (you must return to campus by 12 midnight on "school nights", or not at all-otherwise you are "written up") and the gender segregation. Males and females are not allowed to enter each others' living spaces. But, you find ways to work around it. They have cleaning ladies come and clean your room for you every two weeks so that's nice but they will survey your room to see if you have any contraband materials.

I put a middle rating on this because many of us had complaints about the on-campus food, which was often not warm enough, repetitive, and not very high quality. It's the cafeteria version of Moroccan food I guess. But, it is easy to go into town to get food and Moroccan food anywhere off campus is WONDERFUL!! You can buy your own groceries and cook in the common kitchen.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

All in all, I felt tthat being in Morocco I was almost as socially integrated as I could be, except for on campus. There seems to be some strange dynamic between some of the Moroccan students and exchange students in that both groups *generally* tend to stick with their own kind. This is a generalization and of course there were wonderful Moroccans who approached me and ended up being my best friends, and some exchange students definitely make more of an effort to connect with the Moroccans than others. Some Moroccan students might seem slightly standoffish at first but realize it is just a cultural difference that they may not be as warm and outgoing upon first meeting and push past it. Moroccans end up being wonderful, extremely hospitable if you make a geniune effort to seem interested in connecting with them and their culture. A few words of Arabic will do wonders!!

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

The university provides a great on campus health center for a campus of its size. It is similar to the one at my own university where you can walk in and get free treatment and medicine for various conditions, with nurses always on staff and doctors at certain hours. However, the nurses do not speak english so I was lucky to know French but if you have an emergency and have to go in, bring a Moroccan friend or someone who knows French/Arabic with you! Side note: For a number of understandable cultural and religious reasons, sexual health care is virtually nonexistent in Morocco. This means there is no such thing as birth control, plan B, etc and for a woman to discuss her sexuality is a taboo topic. Just something to keep in mind. Off campus health care is much more difficult to find so if at all possible go through the university's clinic and have a doctor refer you to a hospital for more serious conditions.

The city of Ifrane is a very safe and cozy small town. However basic common sense (walking alone at night, etc) should be practiced. Everywhere in Morocco, you can encounter minor obnoxious incidents such as pickpocketers which can be avoided by keeping valuables in safe places. Females in Morocco (particularly if you are fair skinned and blonde or blue eyed) receive a special amount of attention. Most of it is harmless curiosity, as my Moroccan friends explained to me to my amusement I was "exotic" to them as they don't see many like me walking around. Practice the same level of caution you would anywhere in the US, with a little extra-I wouldn't really go anywhere by myself, even in Ifrane. Not that I feared for my life but you will get MUCH more obnoxious attention, cat calling, possible followers and admirers. You get this even when with male companions sometimes, but it's not as bad.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

Other than the plane ticket, Morocco is super cheap!! (by American standards). If you are comfortable with really "going local"-eating the foods locals eat from street vendors, markets, etc food is delicious and very very cheap. Train travel is the best in Morocco also extremely affordable-1st class tickets are not worth it unless you are on a really long ride. When staying in hostels or riads you get what you pay for, with the cheapest at 100dh (about 12 dollars) or less a night. Basically, it's how much you're willing to "rough it" or try something new or slightly uncomfortable. But you can really see Morocco on a budget!

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

I took Arabic at AUI and used it as much as I could out on the streets. I also used French often but it is somewhat of a language that the "upper crust" use, so if you're somewhere that's rural or lower income they will mostly speak Arabic or Berber.

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• Dorm

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• Local Students

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• Local Students
• Americans
• International Students

• Moroccan food
• Traveling the country
• Making friends

• Pre-departure preparation
• Following up with exchange students
• Orientation

The Avid Adventurer