great city, mediocre program, beautiful buildings, terrible host family. Past Review
By anika a (International Relations, French, Tufts University) - abroad from 09/07/2013 to 12/19/2012 with
Institute for American Universities (IAU): The School of Humanities & Social Sciences, Aix-en-Provence, France
cultural and language experience, travel. it was definitely worthwhile.
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. |
very easy classes, and i took the hardest ones available. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
my host mother could barely cook. she made frozen dinners almost every night or fed us cold cuts. it was embarrassing. we complained twice to the program and very little progress was made. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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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? |
No
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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) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 40 euros/week |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | go grocery shopping rather than out if you can |
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? | fr 22 |
| 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? | make local friends! join a sports team or something. |
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? | it is entirely americans, most of whom aren't abroad to learn french. |
