A Broad Abroad Past Review
By Karen M (Villanova University) - abroad from 01/11/2012 to 05/21/2012 with
Arcadia: Rome - Arcadia in Rome
Europe was amazing. Being abroad is definitely an eye opening experience.
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | Universita degli studi di Roma Tra |
| 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. |
It was a general consensus that the Italian professors were quite unorganized. Sometimes it was hard to hear through their accent. Because of the language barrier, they didn't really understand what was being said from the students. The English professor was American and probably the most organized out of them all, not being biased. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
they're nice people and they mean well. But they are so unorganized. They just need to give the students more of a warning before they change the time or date of a planned event. Some people need to be more understanding of the situations dealing with core classes and credit for home universities. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I think I'm giving this a good rating because we had such a lovely apartment. It was extremely upscale in my opinion. But maybe it's a norm in Rome. I know some students who were stuck with one shower between six students. |
| * Food: |
Wasn't a fan of Italian food before I came to Italy. But wow. The food is awesome. Even if it's cheap food, it's still pretty good. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Local culture, not very much. Arcadia program is full of American students. If you're trying to get away from Americans and really try to experience the culture outside of America, Arcadia is not for you. If you know Italian, you'll do pretty well on your own. Arcadia tries to integrate the students with the culture, but it doesn't work out too well. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Arcadia made it pretty clear during orientation what numbers to call and what the specific procedure was. I personally never experienced going to the hospital so I don't know how much of the information was valid. |
| * Safety: |
I thought I was in a pretty safe neighborhood. However, there were a few incidents where other students got into trouble with random strangers for absolutely no reason. When the students confronted the staff about it, they simply blamed it on the students... How were they supposed to know something bad was going to happen? The staff did a terrible job warning the students about the neighborhoods they lived it. They found out the hard way. |
| 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) |
It's hard. I had to live very frugally. I used most of my money on flights. which in my opinion was worth it. sacrifice a little food money for flights across Europe. I dig it. And girls usually get free things.... |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | No |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 100-300 euro |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | make pasta. super cheap. 40 cents a box or bag that could last 2 weeks... Don't eat out so much. |
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 |
They encourage you to speak Italian but they also speak English so it doesn't work out too well. When students attempted to speak to strangers asking for directions in Italian, the locals would just tell you to speak in English. I guess they don't like us butchering their language |
| 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? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Intermediate Spanish |
| 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? | Make some italian friends who speak english. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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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? |
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? | Italian |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Reading and Writing Rome |
| Course Department: | English |
| Instructor: | Ms. Moira Egan |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | It was not challenging. It was exciting though. We read stories, poems and novels by expats. The field study was absolutely amazing. It was the most relaxing weekend of my entire semester. We discussed poems in a serene setting. It was just amazing. Due to the small number of students in the class, I was forced to participate. It was both good and bad. The teacher was a professional! She knew how to handle students, spark conversations, and it is honestly a class that you must take! For those lucky enough to take her, enjoy it! Those who can't, ... sorry. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | N/A |
| Course Name/Rating: |
At Home In Rome |
| Course Department: | Core |
| Instructor: | Isabella |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | It was challenging. Isabella was extremely knowledgeable about Roman history. She made the class interesting. Exams were not so easy. There was a lot of information that needed to be memorized, but I guess that applies with every class. I feel as though the professors of this class thought this class was the most important class, because if you don't know about Roman culture, then you might as well not be in Rome. I think that was the only downfall of the class. They were appalled when the students didn't know "facts" about Italy. I wish they swapped the "weekly" visits. The first half of the semester, when it was cold out, was when we had all our field trips. So brace yourselves for the cold. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | N/A |
