A New Found Love of Haggis Past Review
By Sarah B (Criminal Justice and Corrections., Illinois State University) - abroad from 01/14/2013 to 05/04/2013 with
Glasgow Caledonian University: Glasgow - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
Really did not learn too much of my course studies, but had such a blast. Never been out of the USA until this trip, and got to explore four more countries while there! Met amazing people that I will for sure keep in touch with and visit in the future.
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
At least for my course, it is really not that intensive, you just have two hours of lecture and one hour of seminar per class per week so there is really not that much work you're doing, until you wait too long and have quite a few essays to do in a short amount of time. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
There are a ton of people there for you if you need anything, or even if you just want to go grab coffee with them. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My room was a single with a bathroom in it (I lived in Raasay) which was nice. Our kitchen was disgusting, but they're not all that bad. Had an issue with some people being super loud in the court or some people mistaking your neighbor's room for someone else and constantly making noise/trying to get in at 5am. |
| * Food: |
In the court you are responsible for your own food, so what I made was cheap and basic but was fine. The restaurants are pretty good though, and some places have food half-off for certain days, so it's only about 3 pounds for meal. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The flat you will be placed in is basically all international people. It's nice to get to know them, but they really don't integrate you with other Scottish people, so I only knew a few and you experience the culture a bit through where you go, but that's it. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
There's a doctor you can visit/get medicine for free if you're a GCU student, which was nice for me, but I only went once. The care is more for general problems though. |
| * Safety: |
Was told to not go too far at night for people are not very nice, but I never had an issue. |
| 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) |
If you don't have a lot to spend, there are ways to get by. You can easily spend a fortune, but most supermarkets aren't that expensive, and for clubs you can enter before a certain time for free entry plus they usually have cheap drinks. There are tours by Student Tours Scotland that are about 20pounds per trip, but it takes you to cool places with special access, that if you went on your own would cost you a ton more. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $90. I spent about $50 on food, and then maybe $20 at clubs, and some money for the coach tours. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Plan what you're going to spend. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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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? | What to pack; brought some things I never needed, and should have brought others. |
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. |
