Mi Vida en Viña: An Amazing, Immersive Semester in Chile Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

My coursework was engaging and interesting - I took 5 classes at the local Universidad Adolfo Ibanez (UAI), 3 in Spanish and 2 in English, but all with other international students. Although sometimes the periods were long, the professors were clearly passionate about their subjects and were on top of teaching international students with varying levels of Spanish and knowledge about Chile. Studying at UAI also gave me a fantastic opportunity to get to know other students outside of the API program itself.

On-site administration of your program

API also provides a program that is incredibly well-supported - the resident on-site coordinator for the program is the nicest, most helpful, and knowledgeable person on the planet, and she genuinely cares about each and every student. She quickly answered every question I ever had, and checked in regularly with each student, plus the orientation she provided was comprehensive and helpful. As well, she led many fun, fascinating group excursions and trips for the API students.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I lived in a comfortable, centrally-located apartment with a retired Chilean grandmother as my host mom for the duration, and it was fantastic. The room was a little small, but perfectly serviceable, and I had it to myself.

I'm Celiac, and was worried about the availability of gluten-free food options while abroad, but my host mom cooked all of my meals without a problem - and they were delicious! So is traditional Chilean food, by the way - empanadas, completos, lomo a lo pobre, sopaipillas, pebre, pastel de choclo, alfajores...try them all.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Living with a host family was key to helping me get integrated into the local culture, as my host mom and I shared meals together and discussed all current events and happenings, plus I got to know her family. It was harder to get connected to other Chileans my age, as there was a pretty big divide between international students and Chilean students at my university, but an "exchange buddies" program run by Chilean students did help.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I got sick once while in Viña with API, and the resident director helped me navigate the Chilean health system as well as insurance (which was easy to get reimbursement for), even to the point of taking me to the doctor herself. The local healthcare system is convoluted and difficult to navigate alone, but she knew the ins and outs and I didn't have any problems at all, thanks to API. I got the typhoid vaccine for Chile, and as I planned to (and did) travel to other Latin American countries while abroad, I needed the yellow fever vaccine, too.

Viña del Mar is very safe, even in the early hours of the morning or late at night. It's actually far safer than many US cities as far as violent and armed crime goes, but there are more instances of petty thievery, so I just had to be aware and careful with all of my belongings, e.g. not having my phone out while walking. There was civil unrest and protests that occurred while I was abroad, and some of those turned violent, but API and the resident director did very good, proactive jobs of keeping us informed, prepared, and safe in the difficult situation.

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

The Chilean cost of living is surprisingly high for a Latin American country, so expenses were more than I expected, but not unmanageable.

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

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• Host Family
• Apartment

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• Host Family

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• International Students

• Resident director support
• Home stay, food included
• API student group trips/excursions

• Connections with other Chilean university students

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