The internship and Switzerland were incredible, but the program is problematic Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I thought the Internship phase was an incredible learning experience, but I found the public health courses in the program to be irrelevant and non-compelling. I found the French course I took, the level 2 french course, to not teach useful French to use in Geneva.

On-site administration of your program

The BU staff had very poor communication skills. They would let us know very important pieces of information with very little notice. They also were very unclear about what activities we were allowed to get involved with in the University of Geneva. They were very limiting on our cultural experience.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Our housing was in a great location. The facilities themselves were for the bedrooms, but not great for bathrooms and kitchens.

The provided food for us every day in the "continental breakfast" was only bread and some cereal. Especially in a city that is one of the most expensive cities in the world, it would have been nice to have some nutrients, like fruits or proteins, guaranteed for breakfast.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I went out of my way to join clubs at the University of Geneva, that were advertised to us at the BU Geneva student orientation held by the BU staff, only to be denied my participation in 2 of them, after my applications to the programs were done and accepted by the university clubs, by the BU staff, even though these 2 programs were specifically advertised to us in the rientation organized by the BU staff. They even brought in outside speakers from the university to discuss these events. Also, living in a BU house, with American students, and attending classes only with these students leaves you feeling isolated from the Swiss culture. It felt like a teen tour.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I had a few experiences with health care, one after getting into a sledding accident, and several referring to dealing with a sudden and new allergic reaction and dealing with the residual burns and rashes. For health problems, they recommend a local health care facility. They doctors and nurses were fantastic but there were major issues because of the language barrier. It would be nice if the BU staff were available to help their students by offering to accompany them in the translating process, as many of the staff are Francophone or bilingual. I felt extremely unaided by the program themselves for health problems.

I never felt unsafe in this program or in Geneva, or even Switzerland.

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

IT WAS SO HARD STAYING ON BUDGET IN GENEVA!!! I didn't realize just how expensive this city is, even for necessary staples like groceries. The trains were extremely expensive, even to go to neighboring towns, even with the track 7 half rail card I bought as recommended by my program, and the planes out of the Geneva airport were also far more expensive than flights out of other European airports.

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• Dorm

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• Americans

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• Americans

• Internship
• Location
• Safety

• Staff communication
• Integration with the culture/language
• Food and services provided by program

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