Vienna: You will Always Hold a Place in my Heart Past Review
By Kelli V (Music, Hope College) for
IES Abroad: Vienna - Study Abroad With IES Abroad
No doubt! I am now hoping to enter the Peace Corps and later work in a study abroad office because of my experience in Vienna.
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. |
As stated above, it was great! |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
My dad wasn't a huge fan of the billing situation. He constantly had to locate individual charges to figure out which ones the new ones were because they weren't listed chronologically. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I loved my apartment! I wasn't in Vienna specifically for language, so I wasn't bothered that I was with Americans and we spoke English. We could still chat in German at times and get help with German homework, etc. So, I was completely satisfied! It may have been nice to meet the neighbors, but otherwise it was great! |
| * Food: |
It is much cheaper to bring sack lunches to IES rather than eat Happy Noodles or Pasha. It is just healthier too! Pasha is good sometimes, but sandwiches are great on that good Viennese bread! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The trip to Styria was very nice. I also greatly enjoyed visiting Mariazell, Austria. The Mozart Museum was also very interesting. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
No issues whatsoever. I was kept very safe and healthy. |
| 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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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Maybe 20-30 euros a week on food. I didn't have many personal expenses. I only bought one pair of shoes while I was there. I was trying to be very economical. Most of my expenses seemed to be on my music lessons. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | IES gives a 400 euro stipend for music lessons. For some that goes quickly because lessons can be up to 80 euros for an hour (mine were 60). |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| 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?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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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? | Bring measuring cups and measuring spoons if you are planning on cooking any recipes! |
