6 amazing months of class, friends, and traveling Past Review
By A student (ILR, Cornell University) - abroad from 02/01/2012 to 08/01/2012 with
Duke University: Berlin - Duke in Berlin
I learned many things that would take hours to elucidate, but in the end it was incredibly worthwhile and experiencing it is really the only effective way of learning.
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | Freie Univeritat Berlin |
| 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. |
through program classes, university classes, and cultural experiences the education experience was phenomenal. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
They made the transition and living experience incredibly easy leaving nothing ambiguous or difficult to do. Answers to our questions were readily available and any anomalies were dealt with quickly and well. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
For the duration of my 6 months in Berlin, Duke put me in a home stay with a love-alone mother who was both a phenomenal host and resource for me, as well as being someone i could practice my german with nearly anytime i wanted. |
| * Food: |
The food in Berlin was phenomenal, but especially the food provided to us on program events or situations where the program took us on trips and provided food. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Between the strides made in the language and the many cultural experiences the program took us too we had a great foundation in the culture. This was furthered by the exposure to other german students and provided a good opportunity for integration, as portrayed by normal germans. |
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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
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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) |
Berlin is a really cheap city but that sadly doesn't make the dollar any stronger as a currency and so things were just more expensive. |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * 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? | $150 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | buy everything in supermarkets |
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? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | GERST 2020 |
| 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? | find other students through Tandem programs or social encounters |
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 german |
