CET Florence: Truly Life Changing Past Review
By Terral B (History of Art, Human & Organizational Development, Vanderbilt University) for
CET Florence
Absolutely, I learned so much about myself and about other cultures. I think it gave me a much clearer mindset concerning where we stand in the world.
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. |
Very hands on course load, the work by no means was a joke but getting an A was entirely within reach, the professors were knowledgeable and clearly valued the students actually learning the material more than they valued busy work |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The program was about ten girls in three different apartments--all located in the city center. The administration was there 24/7 to help with any issues that arose--from big, academic problems to the smallest issues. The facilities were perfect for our use--printers and all the tools we would need to get our work done. One of the best parts of the trip was absolutely the traveling seminar where we met up with other CET abroad students. My expectations were absolutely met. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Housing was potentially the best part of the trip. Having an Italian roommate made all the difference--she introduced us to her friends, showed us restaurants and bars, and really integrated us into the community. The housing itself was extremely spacious, located not a five minute walk from classes (and the ponte vecchio!) and above some of our favorite bars and restaurants. |
| * Food: |
INCREDIBLE. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Our classes made excellent efforts to bring us out of the classroom and into the city. We even took a weekend trip to Catania! Florence has so much to do that I was not even able to accomplish it in two months. Also, the city has a wonderful social scene and I made many European friends who I know I will stay close with for years to come. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Healthcare was easy to access when it was something small (like medication) but seeing a doctor was an absolute pain. A friend of mine sprained her ankle and waited in the hospital for a full day without seeing anyone! |
| 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? | I spent $400/week (about 250 euros) which sounds like a lot (and it is) but it would have been much less if I had been there longer. Since my trip was short, I wanted to eat at every restaurant, go to every museum, etc. so it got packed into two months. If I had had longer I would have cooked at home more and done more "freebie" activities. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | None--everything was fairly standard |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | none |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
Everyone in Italy spoke english and I had never taken an Italian course before. So, as I was only there for two months, my language class was structured in a survivors-guide-to-italy sort of way. We learned really applicable phrases/words/verbs but becoming conversational was definitely not the goal. My Italian roommate and Italian friends were always willing to practice with us and help us learn, but outside of class most of my "real conversations" were in English |
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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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? | Just stay open to everything. Go do something every opportunity to get because the time you have is fleeting and there is SO much to do--you'll never be able to say you've done it all! |
