DIS - 4 stars Past Review

By A student (Mathematics, Middlebury College) - abroad from 01/17/2015 to 05/26/2015 with

DIS Copenhagen: Semester

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

I learned a lot about healthcare around Europe, which is why I chose the DIS Medical Practice and Policy program. DIS also encourages travel, so I was able to visit everywhere I wanted to with the 3 weeks of breaks.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	2 weeks - 1 month

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	Great opportunities to travel
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	Homestay family
* Food:
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?	When our DIS arranged room had bed bugs, the staff were not prepared with a plan or how to bag contaminated items. Additionally, they failed to inform the rest of the group who may subsequently have brought infected items to their homestays, Danish roommates, or American classmates.
* Safety:
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)
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	$4,000
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	Prioritize travel expenses. Housing while traveling will always be the most expensive so keep track on an excel sheet of your finances so you know where you are in the semester, and how well you are budgeting in the long run

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	Yes
How much did the program encourage you to use the language? 0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language
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?	None in Danish
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 homestay family or danish roommate. If you live with Americans, you will never practice your Danish language.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Host Family
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Host Family
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	Americans
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?	Travel Opportunity Human Health and Disease class taught by Danish doctors Homestay family
* What could be improved?	Emergency and Bed Bug Protocols Some "real world" teachers were disorganized and professors could have much better covered the material
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	Take the time to travel at the end of the semester -- it was the most enjoyable experience of being abroad. And, DEFINITELY live with a homestay or you will only be with Americans the entire 4 months.

Reasons For Studying Abroad

To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you.	The Academic or Linguist You went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you!

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:	Danish Language Section 139
Course Department:	Danish
Instructor:	Nina Lahav
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	Perfect atmosphere for learning a difficult language -- fun and engaging every step of the way
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Health Economics and Health Policy in Europe
Course Department:	Economics
Instructor:	Maria and Claus
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	More time on real examples was needed, field studies were related to the course but very dull and always ran overtime-- the worst field studies of all my courses
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Human Health and Disease C
Course Department:	Medical Practice and Policy
Instructor:
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	My favorite class. Always engaging and it was amazing to have lectures inside the local hospital. The term paper was structured poorly (due immediately after study tour, and many topics could not include enough of the mandatory study tour information)
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Medical Ethics B
Course Department:	Philosophy
Instructor:
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	Great foundation to the class. Case studies were interesting and spurred good discussions. Time management in class was always a problem for the professor, however.
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism in Intl. Politics, Section A
Course Department:	International Politics
Instructor:
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	I loved this class. It was out of my comfort zone and I thoroughly enjoyed and looked forward to every discussion. Best field studies of all my classes!!!
Credit Transfer Issues: