Amazing experience! Past Review
By Anna L (International Studies, Emory University) for
IES Abroad: Freiburg - Environmental Studies & Sustainability
I would highly recommend this program to anyone-I wish I could have stayed longer!
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. |
That being said the classes were what you made of them. If you do not study that much you wont get that much out of the classes, if you do, you will manage to come out with a great understanding of the EU. Although it is not easy to get a 4.0, if you put in a reasonable amount of work and are relatively good at writing it is definitely manageable. I would say with minimal work you can get above a 3.5 pretty easily. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The IES staff is amazing. I cannot imagine a more caring or helpful group of people. They help you with everything you need and go above and beyond to help you organize day trips and other fun activities. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I am one of the most OCD people and although the dorm situation at Vauban freaked me out at first it was fine after I got used to it. The other dorms were new and completely fine. It mostly depends on your roommates in terms of common areas, but you can take the initiative to keep things clean if you would like. Further your room is your space, so it completely up to you. |
| * Food: |
TONS of good food options. Martin's Brau was the best restaurant I went to. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I can honestly say that this program was the best experience of my life. The people I met will remain lifelong friends and the memories I made will never be forgotten. Freiburg is an amazing town and is the perfect location for study abroad. My friends who studied in large cities wished they had taken advantage of a smaller city. It is absolutely gorgeous and there is plenty to keep you occupied. Further there a lot of great opportunities for short day trips around the area. The party scene is great, plenty of fun places to go in Freiburg and on the field trips. If you wanted to get a sense for the culture you easily could if you spent time with roommates and participated in a lot of activities around town. If you want to hang out with only Americans that is totally possible as well although I would recommend getting to know the town and the German college students. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Lived in Vauban, seemed sketchy at first but it was totally fine. |
| 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) |
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Language
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Make sure you are interested in the subject matter if you participate in this program because all of the courses are about the EU. Also, make sure you are up for a lot of travel. |
