Prague: So Much More Than A Tourist Destination... Past Review

By Caroline S (International Relations, American University) for

CET Prague

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

My time in Prague through CET was without a doubt the most worthwhile experience I've ever had. Prague is such a beautiful, fun, and relaxed city. And the Czech Republic as a whole is so special. The craziest, most unpredictable things happen there. There is so much to do, and the city is small enough that you really feel at home. I can't even think of anything negative to say that might help this review seem more balanced. I just loved everything about my semester in Prague, and while I may be an extreme, I think it is pretty impossible not to love it.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	1 month - 6 months

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	Classes were really interesting, but pretty demanding, so you shouldn't just expect to be able to coast through without doing much work. But everything is directly related to where you are, so it's really very beneficial for you to do the work. Typically I don't think many of us get to learn much about the history of this part of Europe in school, so this program and the classes it offers are a really good opportunity to learn about it. In addition, your teachers will be Czech, which also helps to enhance your cultural experience because they have a lot to share. Field trips are often taken to help reinforce the things you'll be learning about in class.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program	The staff really does a lot to ensure that the students adjust well and experience the most they can during their time abroad. In addition to planning events and helping with any issues that may come up, CET tries to structure your classes so that you have most Fridays off (the exception will be makeup classes, but you'll still have many many free weekends), so that allows you to have longer weekends to travel. I found the program to be a very good balance between being organized and helping you to get the most out of your time there, but still being flexible and allowing you to do your own thing at the same time. The program is also a really nice size. A lot of the other programs in Prague are a lot bigger, but CET is small enough that you get to know everyone on a very personal level, and it enables your classes to stay pretty small as well.
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	CET provides nice, and very safe, apartments right in the city center. Public transportation--which is seriously the best public transportation of any city I've ever encountered-- is very accessible from all of the apartments. You'll be living with other American students, but CET also puts one "Czech buddy" in the apartment with you. Living in an apartment is definitely the best living option, but it's really nice to live with a Czech buddy as well, because they're like a built in resource for you, and they can introduce you to people, events, and traditions that you may not be exposed to on your own.
* Food:	As a vegetarian, it was surprisingly easy to find really great vegetarian food. Everywhere has vegetarian options, and there are tons of vegetarian restaurants as well. Standard Czech food is good too though. Smazeny syr (fried cheese sandwich) and zmrzlina (ice cream) were among my favorites.
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	CET organizes and offers many cultural events, like visits to Terezin (which served as a transport camp during the Holocaust), the opera, hockey matches, and many more. In addition, they organize traveling seminars for you, so you basically have extended field trips, which give context to the things you're learning about in class.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?
* Safety:	Prague is a really safe city. Violent crime is extremely rare, and pickpocketing is the only real security issue I was ever aware of.
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	Yes

Finances

* 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)

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	Yes
Language acquisition improvement?	CET has you take a Czech language class, which allows you to become more immersed in the culture and so you're not simply acting like an American everywhere you go, because in this way you can at least attempt to be culturally sensitive by learning the language a little. Czech is tough, but it's fun to learn something totally new and to put it to practice outside the classroom.