The Best Semester of My Life Past Review
By Kyle Dandrea (Anonymous University) - abroad from 02/22/2017 to 07/04/2017 with
IES Abroad: Auckland Direct Enrollment - University Of Auckland
SO worthwhile. I gained the knowledge on how the world works, how to understand other people and cultures, and how to navigate through the unknown.
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 university was very different than what I am used to at my home university. The courses were all huge lectures, and I was not thrilled with the teaching style of most of my professors. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The IES Abroad staff was so kind, genuine, and incredibly with everything. Whether it was figuring out our insurance, where to go on a weekend trip, or just talking about classes, Andrew and Bianca were here and gave copious amounts of assistance and support. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I was living kind of far from campus, but I was very happy with my living arrangements and being a part of the culture. |
| * Food: |
Groceries were crazy expensive, but eating out was always yummy. And, you don't have to tip! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I was living with two New Zealanders and two British women, so I felt pretty integrated with the local culture because I was introduced to a lot of local gems. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
It was a pretty easy process. I went to the doctor at the university and payed it, and then filed a claim with the help of my program advisor and got my money back in no time. However, I had a NZ bank account which made the whole thing way easier to do- so I recommend that for a lot of reasons. |
| * Safety: |
New Zealand felt so very safe. I was never worried or felt unsafe. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I just fell in love with my entire experience. My program director, Andrew, was friendly, supportive, and unbelievably helpful. He got promoted so he left half way during our semester, but we ended up with Bianca, our orientation coordinator who we all easily became deeply fond of. Everyone I met in my program made my experience what it was. Some of them have become my best friends, so needless to say.. I would definitely do it all over again in the same program. |
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? | 100 |
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? | Honestly, nothing. anything I didn't know, I figured it out on my own or through the program. That's the best part of the experience- growing and learning how to do things on your own. |
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 LinguistYou 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! |
