The best and humbling experience I have ever had! Past Review
By Jessica S (Kinesiology and Exercise Science., Brigham Young University) - abroad from 05/10/2012 to 08/08/2012 with
Brigham Young University: Various - Individual Experience Program
This summer has been full of amazing experiences and beautiful people that I will never forget. I am the project lead for two projects in Lugazi, Uganda: The Children with Disabilities Project, and the Eye and Dental Camp Project. Being the project lead for these projects I have learned so much and come to love so many people. I wish I could have all the time in the world to stay here and help these people. There is so much that can be done! Uganda will always have a special place in my heart. The friends who I have made will always be dear friends. I will never forget them. I love them so much. They have nothing, yet have so much. It has been a very humbling and great experience. I miss this wonderful and beautiful place so much and I hope I will be able to return one day.
Personal Information
| 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. |
I learned so much with this experience. I started my internship and trip to Africa thinking that I would be helping many people and teaching them the information they would need to fight their poverty. However, that is not the case. I have been taught more by the people than they have been taught by me. They showed me so many humbling things. They taught me how to be more humble and how to be more resourceful. They taught me how to love and how to be loved. They taught me how to be a friend to everyone. They taught me to be a better person. I am grateful for this experience and would do it again without a second thought. |
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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? |
Our housing definitely gave you the feel of living in Africa. I’ll be honest; living in Lugazi was no piece of cake. We lived in Africa, and we lived like Africans. We were lucky if we had running water some days and electricity went out unexpectedly constantly. We had pit latrines and bucket showers. We were truly getting the Africa experience! |
| * Food: |
The food was great. I enjoyed it thoroughly. We taught our cooks to make some American meals, so that made it even better. :) |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
By the end of my internship I felt like I myself was Ugandan! Besides not being fluent in Luganda, I had a Luganda name, I knew some phrases in Luganda, and I could navigate around Uganda fairly easy without getting Mzungu (white people) prices! :) They made me feel so welcome the very first day I was there. We didn't feel like foreigners while working there. We felt like natives and like we had lived there for years. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
We had a health clinic just down the street from where we lived. It was there, where we discovered that half of our team had parasites from those first couple of weeks. We were able to get the needed drugs from that clinic to kill the parasites, and we never had a problem since. We took getting sick very serious. Especially since we were in Africa and it could have been a multiple of sicknesses. Our Country Directors would take us to the capital of Uganda's international hospital if we got really sick, which only happened once, to one of the girls on the team. We took it very serious, and it was taken care of pretty good, for Africa. |
| * Safety: |
If you are home by dark, then Uganda is safe for you. I still advise never going out alone and always have at least one person with you. But overall, it is pretty safe if you have a buddy, stay indoors at night, and just be smart. |
| 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) |
5! |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | Yes |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $10 or less. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Don't let yourself get ripped of by taxi or boda-boda drivers. Before you travel, ask local friends what the price should be for a regular Ugandan to travel to your destination. A lot of the time, taxi or boda-boda drivers try to give you a tourist price. They rip you off. |
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 |
Ugandan's speak Luganda and English. They could understand when you spoke English and you could understand them. But they really enjoyed it when you tried to learn Luganda and speak at least some phrases with them in Luganda! :) |
| 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? | None |
| 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 speak as much as you can with the locals. Try to learn new phrases on long taxi rides - people love to help you learn! :) |
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? | 10+ |
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 projects that I was interested in doing. |
