Chile has my heart Past Review
By Kaitlyn Waddell (Denison University) - abroad from 05/19/2018 to 06/23/2018 with
Arcadia: Valparaiso - Arcadia in Chile Summer
I feel as if my spanish improved immensly in such a short amount of time and it was 100% worth it.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
My spanish conversation class was very well done and I feel like the classes taught in english were way to easy. Overall, it was a good academic experience and I walked away learning a lot. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My host mom is the new love of my life. She was so caring and curteous and went above and beyond to make me feel comfortable. |
| * Food: |
My host moms food was very good but Chile LOVES their mayo and bland food in general. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
This is hard because the Chilean students were on strike and weren't around. So nothing against the program, the students just weren't there to be integrated with. But with my family and everyone else I felt comfortable. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I had no health care issues but I felt comfortable and knew what to do if I had problems. |
| * Safety: |
I never felt unsafe in Viña or Valpo. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
i would pick the same program and same country just for much much longer. |
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) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Around 40000 pesos |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | start saving as soon as you are accepted. |
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? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | four years of 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? | Just talk to everyone, you may feel silly or like you don't know what is happening, but practice makes it so much easier. Don't be afraid to mess up |
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?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? | 0 |
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 knew more about the current political scene in Chile before going because there are a lot of cool social movements happening. |
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 Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
