A Semester in Tokyo Past Review
By Anna m (Economics., Wellesley College) for
CIEE: Tokyo - Arts and Sciences
Yes. I just wish I could have done a homestay but the natural disaster was (obviously) out of our control.
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. |
The courses were easy, the work was light. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The program staff were helpful but often treated us like children. They knew a lot about the area. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The dorm was dingy and far from the school's campus. |
| * Food: |
all of my food experiences were positive |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The social experiences were great. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Tokyo is a very safe city for foreigners. The program staff were very helpful with assisting me in Japanese if I needed to go to the doctor. |
| 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? | probably about 5000 yen a week. But the program provided a food stipend. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | n/a |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | beginning Japanese |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
I was not able to do a homestay because of the earthquake but I practiced Japanese occasionally outside of class. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Someone who is open to new experiences. |
