Great Experience Past Review
By A student (Truman State University) - abroad from 01/17/2012 to 04/27/2012 with
College Consortium for International Studies (CCIS): Salzburg - Salzburg College
independence, navigation, fend for myself, totally worth it
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 enjoyed the courses at Salzburg College. They were very informative and interesting and relevant to our setting. I found the topics very helpful while I was abroad. However, I was not challenged academically. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Phoebe, Konrad, and Maria are awesome! They are all so helpful and knowledgeable and really take the time and effort to make sure everyone enjoys their semester. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I did not have internet at my house, this was a huge problem and I feel as though it was not fair that I had to pay for my own. My homestay clearly did it for the money and I did not feel overly welcome in the home. She was nice enough but it could have been better. |
| * Food: |
Lunches at Il Sole were amazing! They gave us tons of food it was so filling. Dinner food was pretty good at my homestay. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I felt pretty integrated. Different international groups make an effort to hold events for international students. Also, the Austrian buddy system worked out for some people and the people in the dorms made friends with other international kids. I would have liked to have classes with Austrians but I liked that the classes were geared toward Americans. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
didnt have any |
| * Safety: |
Salzburg is very safe. I did not feel comfortable walking home alone at night, its a far walk. There are quite a few drunk homeless people, I am sure they are harmless but it can be scary. |
| 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) |
4, salzburg is expensive, most meals are included in the program so that helped to save a lot of money, just don't shop a lot and youll be fine |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | Yes |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | most meals were included |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | ryanair.com for cheap flights, eat at home with your homestay as much as possible- its free, you can get a liter box of wine for 1 euro at the grocery store- drinks at bars are expensive, mozart balls are cheapest at the chocolate factory and grocery stores |
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 |
We only had to use it in German class, but they always encouraged us to practice with locals outside of school. |
| 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? | I never took German |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 0 |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | use flashcards for class, talk to your homestay families |
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?
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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 wish i knew how to explore new cities at first because I would've gotten more out of munich |
