IFSA's Chilean Studies Program Past Review
By Lisa P (Linguistics., Tulane University) for
IFSA: Valparaiso - Chilean Universities Program, Valparaiso
spanish, friends, culture, a love for valparaíso
Personal Information
| The term and year this program took place: | Spring 2009 |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I learned loads of Spanish, the problem with the program was that we were only Americans in class which made it difficult to speak Spanish all the time. I highly recommend making as many Chilean friends as possible to practice more, still a fantastic time abroad. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Very helpful and open to listening to recommendations, easy to talk to. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
Different food than I was used to, nice to have home cooked meals though. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Went on various trips to different parts of chile, they were great we got to know each other and see some wonderful places |
| * Safety: |
health issues did not apply to me, they were very clear on how to be safe, etc. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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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? | Its easy to spend nothing, since food is included (aside from taking the bus to school which costs the equivilant of 30 cents) and obviously you can spend as much as you want. in general, going out is MUCH cheaper than in the united states, you can go out with 10 or 20 dollars and enjoy yourself, of course you can also spend more. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | the school sponsored trips do not include food, was a bit annoying at first but we all got over it. there were 3 or so throughout the program, only 1 was a weekend trip. |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
Could have spoken more, still massively improved. Loved living with a host family |
Other Program Information
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* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
