Memories of Vienna December 30, 2024
By A student (Art History, Brandeis University) - abroad from 08/25/2024 to 12/14/2024 with
IES Abroad: Vienna - Study Abroad With IES Abroad
Yes, it was lifechanging in how I view the world and history. It was definitely worthwhile and I'm grateful I had the opportunity to go.
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I loved my classes and it was great to be able to take classes taught by local + Hungarian instructors. Moodle was decent enough to use and I appreciated not having to buy textbooks. |
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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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| * Food: |
no meal plan, there were a few excellent meals provided by IES for events but the kitchen situation was nightmarish |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Vienna is very cosmopolitan, but lacks the diversity I was used to in the United States. I struggled with befriending local Austrians but found success making friends with immigrants using the meetup app. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
In order for absences to be excused, one has to provide a valid doctor's note, but the deductible was $100. This cost was a barrier for me and as I have a chronic condition I wasn't sure what to do, so I just went to class sick. |
| * Safety: |
Vienna is the safest, quietest city I have ever been in. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I really loved my internship, classes, and met some great people through the program. Getting the opportunity to get out of the United States and travel to several countries was incredible. |
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) |
If I had not been awarded an outside scholarship I wouldn't have been able to survive on institutional financial aid alone. I had a budget of around $1000/month and I was able to make that work + still travel around Europe. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $80-100 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Get into a cooking routine, look for cheap travel with minimal transfers, befriend people in other countries so you don't have to stay in a hotel/hostel. If you drink, don't buy all your drinks at bars/restaurants. |
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 |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | 3 yrs high school French |
| 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? | I used RocketLanguage and listened to German podcasts to get myself used to the sound of German and I think that helped. |
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? | 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? | The program is overwhelmingly people from one specific university which honestly had some very poorly behaved male students. |
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! |
