Experiencing Europe with IES Past Review
By Jack Galardi (Skidmore College) - abroad from 01/10/2017 to 05/15/2017 with
IES Abroad: Freiburg - European Union: Politics, Law & Economics
As far as academics are concerned, if you are looking for an easy-breezy semester abroad, I would not recommend this program. We took all of our classes at the IES EU center. Obviously like any institution, there are easier and harder teachers and professors, but the required 5-class course load means you will definitely be working throughout the week. I wouldn't say it's as hard as a lot of American colleges and universities, but it is certainly no walk in the park. Finally, since the program includes quite a bit of travel, I definitely did my fair share of work on planes and trains. As we are currently in a period where the European Union is in flux, the topic courses I took, EU and the Muslim World, EU-US Relations, and Migration, were very current and interesting.
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. |
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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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* 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? |
Yes
I really loved my experience, it was invaluable to say the least. I will look back fondly on my time in Europe and the lessons I learned for the rest of my life. I would recommend the program to any student, especially those with an interest in Political Science, International Relations, or Economics. |
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
| * 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? | None |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Beginner |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? |
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? | 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? | One of the most important things I learned on the program is that the more you travel, the more you realize how much more there is to see. Even though I was lucky enough to see some amazing cities, there were many that I wish I had WAY more time in, and even more that I wanted to see but didn't have the time. You really get an idea of how enormous the world is on this program, which is a lesson worth learning. |
