An amazing semester of exploration, travel, and learning. Past Review
By A student (Middlebury College) - abroad from 08/16/2019 to 12/13/2019 with
DIS Copenhagen: Semester
I learned a lot about living independently and about the impact of history on culture. I also learned a lot from my class trips and professors. I learned a whole lot about Denmark and Scandinavia as a place. It was all very worthwhile.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The classes were definitely academically challenging and the teachers were phenomenal. The amount of work was much less than expected at Middlebury college but the academic opportunities were just as plenty. It was the type of program that you could learn a lot from if you wanted to put in the time and go above and beyond in your studies. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Very organized. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My apartment was only a 7 minute bike ride from the school in a very lovely neighborhood. The housing was all taken care of for you and I really had no problems whatsoever. |
| * Food: |
DIS could have provided a larger stipend as I ended up spending a large amount of money on groceries. copenhagen is wildly expensive and DIS could support students with more options such as a lunch cafeteria. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I did not feel like I got to really interact with the Danish as the program was entirely American students and the Danes my age are not particularly eager to make american friends. I learned a lot about the local culture and felt by the end that I was a part of certain traditions but I didn't feel fully integrated. I also played sports with Danes at a local racket club so that helped me integrate some- I recommend DIS does more to bridge this gap. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I loved copenhagen as a place- it is an easy city and this program is very very easy to navigate. For people not interested in going abroad for language immersion, this is a great taste of another culture and opportunity to explore europe. |
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) |
It was nearly impossible to stay on budget in copenhagen. The city was wildly expensive and even though I cooked every meal, it was still hard to stay under 200 each week. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 250-300 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Do not go out to dinner- cook as much as possible and grocery shop with the people you live with so you can cook as a group! You can even pool your stipends and trade off on dinner making roles. |
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? | None |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Beginner |
| 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? | Duo Lingo - for Denmark the language practice is very minimal so its just good to practice the simple stuff before! |
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 to plan travel early and budget myself before leaving! |
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 Outright UrbaniteA social butterfly, you're happiest in bustling cities with hip people, and took advantage of all it had to offer. You enjoyed the nightlife, and had fun going out dancing, and socializing with friends. Fun-loving and dressed to the nines, you enjoyed discovering new restaurants, shops, cafes, and bars in your host country. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
positive psychology |
| Course Department: | psychology |
| Instructor: | Eleftherios Saftis |
| Instruction Language: | english |
| Comments: | This class was amazing. The teacher organized all of our field trips and our week long trip to poland extremely well. This class was where I met a lot of my best friends abroad as the teacher facilitated a close knit class relationship. He was extremley knowledgeable and great at facilitating discussion. everyone felt comfortable participating and our main work was essay writing and reading which was graded very fairly. Highly recommend this class to anyone interested in psychology in denmark. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | No issues |
