Amazing Community in the Middle of the Desert Past Review
By ilyssa.weingarden (International Affairs, George Washington University) - abroad from 09/02/2012 to 01/18/2013 with
American University of Sharjah: Sharjah - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
I learned to put myself out there. I learned not to be intimidated by other lands and cultures and to make the most of my experiences.
Review Photos
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. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The IXO office at AUS is fantastic. Everybody there is incredibly helpful and supportive. The trips we took together at the beginning of the semester were fun and helped us all get close and form a community. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The dorms are very nice and there are maids to clean. It does take a while to get used to the curfew. |
| * Food: |
Starbucks, subway, minimart. But if you don't want to break the bank, eat from the more local food options, not Burger King. It's healthier, cheaper, and yummier anyway! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
It took me until the last month or so to really make strong friendships with people from my classes and locals, which I really regret. However, this was my choice as I just LOVED all my fellow exchange students too much. You need to be friendly and push out of your comfort zone earlier. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't have many health problems while there, but the office was helpful, if slow. I was able to get shots and pills easily there when I wanted to travel out of the country. |
| * Safety: |
I felt completely safe at all times on the Sharjah Campus. It helps there is a LOT of security. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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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) |
Depends on what you're doing - go to Dubai a lot? Go traveling? You WILL spend a ton of money. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $100-150 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Eat on campus, cook in your room. Make a friend with a car FAST because almost all my expenses were cabs. |
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 |
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| 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? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Beginner 2 |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Talk to your roommates and classmates in Arabic. They will laugh, but if you don't you will lose your language skills. The language program here isn't great (most people are native speakers) and people speak in English a lot. You need to make it happen yourself. |
Direct Enrollment/Exchange
| * Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? | Exchange |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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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? |
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? | I wish I understood how much everything cost so I could budget better. I might have been able to travel more! |
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 Outright UrbaniteA social butterfly, you're happiest in bustling cities with hip people, and took advantage of all it had to offer. You enjoyed the nightlife, and had fun going out dancing, and socializing with friends. Fun-loving and dressed to the nines, you enjoyed discovering new restaurants, shops, cafes, and bars in your host country. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Middle East Meets the West |
| Course Department: | IAFF |
| Instructor: | Dr. Meenaz Kassam |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | The best part of this course was being part of the Soliya program. Once a week for two hours I got to video chat from my room, or the library or wherever, with college students from the US, Europe, and the Middle East. I still keep in contact with some of them and I had some fascinating conversations. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
