Past Review
By Benjamin K (Mechanical Engineering., Tufts University) for
IFSA: Auckland - University of Auckland
I would tell everyone to go abroad it is the perfect time to take stock of your life at home while having a good time and experiencing a place you otherwise wouldnt have had the chance to.
Personal Information
| The term and year this program took place: | Fall 2009 |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Easy for the most part. Not a lot of work during the semester just a ton of cramming for finals which are worht 60-70% of your finals grade at the end. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
IFSA was helpful the whole way through. Very accessible people running the program. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
It was an apartment style housing with multiple lofts per floor and two separate towers. 5 people shared a loft and there were three or four lofts per floor depending on the tower. <br /><br /> Hated the apartment we were put in. Mostly due to the fact that The people who ran the apartment had terrible and weird rules about parties and cleaning that resulted in about $200 in maid/noise fines that at any other university housing complex would have been a virtual non issue in my opinion. The location however was great. Very close to campus and the city center. |
| * Food: |
good food on campus but I dont cook so it got a bit expensive and repetitive |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Loved al the people who were on my program as well as many of the kiwis i met in auckalnd. The city is a bit small so the night life there got a bit repetitive. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
New Zealand has free medical care and the country feels extremely safe. |
| 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? | I went out for food a lot so it got expensive. An average meal would be about $10-15 kiwi which is $7-10 US. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | nothing out of the blue. buying groceries and cooking for yourself keeps food costs down. but thats not a secret. |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
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 do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Loved everything IFSA has to offer, but go to an South Island university not Auckland. |
