a warm community (if not an intensive academic experience) in rabat September 20, 2025
By Laurel K (International and Global Studies, Brandeis University) - abroad from 02/01/2025 to 05/16/2025 with
IES Abroad: Rabat - Study in Rabat
Morocco was incredible, and certainly worthwhile. I learned so much about Moroccan culture and politics, nature, and self-sufficiency while I was there, and got to practice my Arabic and French extensively.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
One does not tend to study abroad for classroom education, and this program was no exception. Out of the four classes I took, I felt that only one professor was all that serious about having us learn anything regarding the subject. That said, most of the professors were quite lovely, and I learned a lot from them in other ways. It also gave me plenty of time to spend long weekends travelling or exploring the city. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Incredible, warm administration. Really made me feel as if I had a strong support system even in such a foreign environment. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I lived with a host family, with whom I never grew particularly close with unfortunately, but did a good job accommodating me. |
| * Food: |
Moroccan food is incredible, and we got to have plenty of it. Daily breaks for mint tea during our Arabic classes was a highlight. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
There were many opportunities to engage with and learn about local culture, and living with host families in Rabat made it easy to makes friends with locals. That said, I do wish our language partners (who were local students) could have been present more consistently, since they were a great point of learning and connection. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Hard for me to say, since I didn't have any significant health issues while studying abroad. That said, my classmates who did got a good amount of support navigating the Moroccan health care system. |
| * Safety: |
Rabat is a very safe city in terms of people and policing. That said, I'm honestly shocked that I walked out of there without ever once being hit by a car or motorcycle. Not all my classmates were so lucky! |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
I was personally looking for a program that would have more of an intensive academic- and language acquisition-focus, which IES did not have. That said, I still had a great time! |
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) |
Rabat is a lovely city with modern amenities that you can live very cheaply in if you know how to haggle. The only real expense would be if one wanted to travel outside of the country (which is necessary on a student visa), which is a little more difficult to do than if one was studying in, say, Europe. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Maybe $30 on average? |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | If you want to get the best prices on things like clothing, school supplies, and souvenirs, learn some Darija and don't be afraid of negotiating! Even amongst those who also spoke English or French, communicating in Darija got me noticeably better treatment most of the time. |
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 |
Darija intensive course at the beginning of the program was excellent and very helpful. That said, the main Arabic course (I took the advanced level) was lackluster, and for about the last month of the semester our professor basically stopped teaching us Arabic in favor of rehearsing our talent show performance. |
| 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? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Third-semester Arabic |
| 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? | It's on you to learn Arabic intensively, if that's what you want. Speak to your host family and to other locals often. |
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? |
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? | This is a program for those who want to learn through experiences. You will get a lot of them, and can still learn a ton if you are open to them! |
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! |
