I am a changed person after this experience. Everyone says it, and it's true. Past Review

By Nadia B (Vocal Performance, University of Hartford) - abroad from 09/01/2015 to 12/18/2015 with

IES Abroad: Milan - Study Abroad With IES Abroad

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

I am mountains more confident. Being abroad has made me want to jump on opportunities much more than I have in the past. Some of the things that I could chalk up as negative aspects of my time abroad have even inspired me. For example, there was very limited access to practice rooms to sing here. Practicing is ESSENTIAL. I feel like I haven't been able to comfortably practice in months, that inspires me to want to come home and practice every chance I get. Another example is that being far away from my friends at school and from the lifestyle of Hartt has given me some perspective and makes me much more excited to interact with all those people in a knew way. I'm much more sure of myself now.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	2 weeks - 1 month

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	The classes were generally very falsely advertised and extremely disappointing. Some of the best academic experiences I've had here were self made, which ended up working our for the best but It would have been nice to have better classes here.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program	All the faculty and staff were helpful
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	I loved my roommates and CA and I loved my apartment so so much!
* Food:	I liked cooking for myself the most
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	I loved Italy and all the other countries I visited I can't wait to go back! I'm going to miss Milan's public transportation and the city in general. I felt very immersed.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?	Never had to go to the doctor here, but I can't complain either way! Because free health care!
* Safety:	Even despite some of the scares here in Europe I felt very safe.
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	No

Finances

* 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)	I traveled a lot, but ended up spending a lot less than I expected. Once you get accustomed to how much you eat/spend it becomes easier to manage.
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	Maybe between 50 and 75 euros a week. But some weeks Im sure I spent less. Especially considering I had a tutoring job in Milan so I pretty much made my grocery money every week. So for the last 2 months or so I spent close to nothing every week on groceries.
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	Set aside a chunk of money for travel, a chunk of money for groceries, a chunk of money for gifts for people, and the rest for yourself/other expenses.

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	Yes
How much did the program encourage you to use the language? 0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language	I felt very encouraged to speak Italian often!
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?	High school AP Italian
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?	SPEAK! To everyone. Don't be embarassed. That's a waste of your time. Trust me I know how hard it is to force yourself, but do it!

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Apartment
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	International Students
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	International Students
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?	I loved my apartment I love Milan I loved my Italian class
* What could be improved?	Not enough practice rooms/accessibility to the practice rooms Classes need to be advertised truthfully Teachers were subpar
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	Milan, or Italy in general has an interesting situation regarding people. The population of young people to older people is very messed up because the tradition in Italy used to be to have 13+ kids per family. Now there are rarely more than 2. This means that the generations with 13+ siblings are all old and the young people are very very few. I noticed when I traveled to certain other countries and when I thought of America that the youth populations of people fighting for change and for growth are much bigger in other countries. Italy is very traditional minded and people are the opposite of politically correct. Also the young population is kind of drowned out and basically skid by using the pop culture vehicles of other countries like America. They use our music, our art, our sayings. They're a passive generation. I sometimes wish I studied somewhere where the youth were alive and thriving. Somewhere where the young people are fighting and succeeding to be heard. Especially as a music student. The music world is ever growing shifting and breathing, however in Italy it doesn't show. I came to Italy for its history of music. But unfortunately most of the young people don't know or care that Italy is one of the most fundamental places for music, or so it seems to Americans. To them America is the only place music exists.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:	Tutti all'opera
Course Department:	Music
Instructor:	N/A
Instruction Language:	English
Comments:	This class was falsely advertised. We were told we would put on an opera with the assistance of faculty. It ended up being a mess of a situation and we had to write our own version of the proposed show (which we had to buy the €40 score for before we found out we couldn't do it) because we had 5 woman and zero men. It ended up being a learning experience for me on how to deal with incompetent people. I did take a lot out of this "course" but not because it was well thought out, because the students I worked together with and I had to deal with such a circus in order to create an opportunity to continue. So incredibly unorganized. But I guess that's Italy
Credit Transfer Issues:

Course Name/Rating:	Cultura and Cuisine in Italy
Course Department:	AUCC
Instructor:	N/A
Instruction Language:	Italian
Comments:	The teacher was immensely culturally insensitive and had no idea how to properly teach a course. She did not communicate expectations at all for any project or exam. She treated us like children and assigned mountains of tedious monotonous busy work. Over all she did not understand how to talk to people of a culture other than hers. To her Italy was the only respectable country and Americans were all "fat and lazy". She also called Africa a country...
Credit Transfer Issues: