Great math and beautiful city. Disappointing in terms of meeting locals. Past Review
By A student (Mathematics, Statistics, Wellesley College) - abroad from 09/07/2015 to 12/17/2015 with
BSM: Budapest - Budapest Semesters in Mathematics
I learned a lot of math and gained some cultural experience by living in a post-Soviet country.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I worked hard on all of my math classes. They were as difficult or harder than the math classes that I took at my home university. |
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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? |
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| * Food: |
I had to take care of food by myself (no dining halls, etc). Luckily, eating is inexpensive. I enjoyed purchasing fresh fruits and vegetables from the markets. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I wish there were more opportunities to meet other Hungarian students or people my age. The program was very insular - I only spent time with other North American students. I feel like I missed out on certain aspects of learning about the local culture and only saw the country through a tourist's lens. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't need to use the healthcare system, though the program provided health insurance for the people in the program. |
| * Safety: |
Budapest is one of the safest places that I've lived. |
| 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) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $30 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Cook your own food. Stay away from tourist areas. Look for the hole-in-the-wall family-owned Hungarian restaurants. |
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? | 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? | N/A |
| 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? | Take the Babilon Intensive 3 week course before the semester begins. |
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?
Select all that apply |
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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 need to work harder in terms of meeting locals. |
