A Great City, a Great Experience Past Review
By A student (Plan Ii Honors, The University of Texas at Austin) - abroad from 06/21/2013 to 08/08/2013 with
Bogazici University: Istanbul - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
Istanbul was an awesome city and definitely not what I expected. There is such a rich culture and history in the city and great nightlife. I'm glad that I chose to come to Istanbul rather than a traditional European study abroad destination, which I had originally planned to do. I learned so much about Turkey and the Middle East from both my classes and the other exchange students--everyone had a unique background. Although the Summer Term program was not the greatest, Bogazici University is a well reputed school with a beautiful campus.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
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 Summer Term office was pretty disorganized and didn't give much information, so that could be frustrating at times. However, if you are proactive about asking them questions you could probably get everything taken care of. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Most of the exchange students lived in the Superdorm, so it was a nice social situation. However, the Superdorm management is pretty strict about rules. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
My classes were mainly composed of American exchange students, so I didn't get to interact with local Turkish students much. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
I found Istanbul to be a pretty safe city. However, as with any large city, you should take caution and be aware of your surroundings. |
| 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) |
The school cafeteria serves meals for 75 cents. However, if you want to eat out, you can usually do so for around $5 a meal. The city is affordable if you budget well. However, it's not the cheapest place. |
| 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 more in the cafeteria! I wish I had more meals there to save money on food. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
Direct Enrollment/Exchange
| * Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? | Direct Enrollment |
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? | More about the program and the city--I really didn't know what to expect |
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. |
