Mi Buenos Aires Querido Past Review
By Michelle C (Clinical Psychology, Emporia State University) - abroad from 05/30/2012 to 08/01/2012 with
Connect-123: Buenos Aires - Volunteer/Intern in Argentina
I learned how to communicate better in Spanish. The most valuable part of the experience for me was the psychological component. I learned how people in Buenos Aires expect to be treated in therapy, I was able to sit in on group sessions and learned about new styles of therapy that are being used in Argentina.
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. |
I did an internship with a company called Esclerosis Multiple Argentina, rather than take classes. It was great! I learned a lot about how to communicate in Castellano, and about therapy in Buenos Aires. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
I worked with wonderful people from the professionals to the patients, who really cared that I learned to communicate effectively. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I loved the people I lived with, they were helpful, nice and fun to hang out with. The apartment was quite noisy and pretty expensive especially when compared to other Connect-123 housing that I saw. |
| * Food: |
I had some excellent food! I expected more flavor, but portenos, do not love spice the way I do. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
It really depended on what I was doing, but just riding the bus or taking a taxi felt pretty normal. Of course, I am a foreigner and was only there for 2 months, but people were always helpful and nice to me so that made living in Buenos Aires much easier. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
My grandma and mom came to visit me for about a week. While there, my grandma tripped on the sidewalk and cut her eyebrow pretty badly. We went to the Hospital Aleman and were treated wonderfully. The cost was minimal, around $60 US, and we were in and out in about 40 minutes. She just ended up needing butterfly bandages. We chose the hospital based on the recommendation from the program as well as the US embassy, which we were going to see, and ended up inside because of her fall. |
| * Safety: |
I felt very safe the whole time. I was cautioned about which taxis not to use and tried my best to stay in groups for the most part, but even when I ended up walking a few blocks alone, I didn't feel much at risk. Of course I took as many precautions as possible and stayed on well-lit, busy streets as much as possible too. |
| 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) |
Cost of living is high in Buenos Aires. I come from a small town in the US and the cost of daily things like groceries, toiletries or eating out were a little higher or about the same than home. |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | No |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | No |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $125 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Cook at home! I saved tons of money by not eating out each night. Also, take the bus everywhere, it is super cheap compared to taxis and the system is pretty easy to figure out especially if you have the Guia-T or use a website like comoviajo.com.ar |
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 |
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| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | 24 hours of Spanish in college |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Live with a Spanish speaking family. My hosts spoke in English with me most of the time. |
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? |
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? | More Spanish. More about the cost of living. |
