Experience of a Lifetime Past Review
By A student (Brandeis University) - abroad from 07/11/2017 to 11/19/2017 with
IFSA: Brisbane - University of Queensland
I learned how to be independent and took classes brandeis doesn't offer, it was definitely worthwhile
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. |
Academics were not difficult to manage, work load was much better than at Brandeis, there was still work, but it was not an overwhelming amount, and it helped you learn the subject. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The admin were all very nice, except our specific advisor left her position for a new job half-way through the semester which was weird, she still came to our farewell dinner though. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
it was nice, our booking actually lasted longer than the program told us so it's good to check in on the housing contract yourself. there were some issues with maintaining cleanliness because people were moving in and out of the apartment sporadically. |
| * Food: |
delicious |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I think it was a little out of my comfort zone to jump right in and mingle with locals, but I met and became friends with a good amount of Australians through group projects |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't have any issues, but friends who did seemed able to locate resources easily |
| * Safety: |
Brisbane is very safe, the place they house you for this program is in one of the best and safest areas, and the building we lived in particularily had many saftey measures in place |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I loved the area, location, school, and the staff were great |
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) |
It wasnt too bad as long as you budgeted |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | about $150AUD i think |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | budget budget budget, budget how much you can spend on campus each week, budget how much you can spend at the grocery store each week (or every 2 weeks in my case), don't online shop or buy too much clothes that you could get from the states, it's hard to bring it home anyways |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
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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| 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? | had my housing until much later than I thought, Brisbane's coast does not have beaches, it has mangroves, closest beaches are an hour away on the gold coast |
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 Avid AdventurerThe wardrobe you packed was better suited for a semester of camping than club hopping. Outdoorsy, you might forgo a crazy night out for an early all-day adventure. You'd rather take in the rich culture of an old town than the metropolis of a modern city, but for you getting off the grid is ideal. |
