Try A More Experienced Program Than CAPA Past Review
By Peter H (Studies in Cinema and Media Culture, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities) - abroad from 09/05/2012 to 12/15/2012 with
CEA CAPA Education Abroad: London, England
While I didn't care for CAPA, I loved every minute of being in London. It was incredibly worthwhile, and I'd love to go back as soon as possible.
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. |
I don't know that CAPA was necessarily prepared with most of their courses. They were still developing the required internship course, which no one seemed to enjoy, and I had one course that was part of another university for reasons that were unclear. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The Internship Office was a complete and utter joke. I went to them at least three times with concerns, and they were never any help. I was always better off figuring things out on my own, and I honestly think I would have had a better experience had I simply found an internship myself. The one they assigned was a complete waste of time, and they refused to switch me out of it after multiple attempts to at least voice my concerns that the internship wasn't offering me anything of value. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
While the room itself was alright, the location was always an inconvenience. We lived on the outskirts of London in Ealing, so getting to central London for anything (including classes) required a minimum of 45 minutes to walk to the train station and ride it to wherever we needed to go. |
| * Food: |
We were offered a 40 pound weekly stipend for food, which wasn't nearly enough. It was commonplace for everyone to go to the ATM every week to take out enough money to get by. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
This was mostly on my end. Getting involved with the culture is really up to the individual. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
London felt incredibly safe. I never had any issues. As long as you're aware of your surroundings, I wouldn't worry about it. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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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? | about 60 pounds |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
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? | 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 would've been better off finding an internship on my own. It would've been nice to know about the courses I was signing up for and where exactly I would be staying more than a week before departing. |
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! |
