Past Review

By Kyle J (Econometrics and Quantitative Economics., Tufts University) for

ISA Study Abroad in Brisbane, Australia

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

Yes. It was very worthwhile. I think its great to get away and meet new people (even if they are mostly Americans). I got to travel around and see Australia. The only downside on the whole experience is that I didn't get to meet that many Australians.

Personal Information

The term and year this program took place:	Summer 2008

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	I lived at the sir fred schonnell apartments. I think there were about 10 apartments in the building and each apartment had 7 ppl (1 double and 5 single rooms). The buildings are pretty much entirely for students and they are supposed to be for international students, although some australians live there. There is a bus stop right outside the apartment complex which can take you to school or a nearby shoppping center. Its probably a 15 walk to campus. Although the classes at UQ are scheduled in a way that you usually will only be walking to campus once each day. It's right on the road but i would say it felt like a safe place to live. Also, internet was not provided and you have to set that up yourself. This can be difficult since you are probably only going to be there for 4 months or so. Internet for some reason also tends to be more expensive in Australia. I ended up just buying a 3 mobile internet, which was just for myself. It was something like $150 for the modem and $40 each month. (australian prices). I also only got 6 Gb each month. And just FYI the school only lets you use 200 MB each month on the school computers. After that you have to pay for it which is about $10 a GB While i found the apartment complex to be a pretty nice place to live, i thought the management there was poor. The management had just switched over when I arrived there. I found them to be somewhat irresponsible (it took me almost a month to get a key to the apartment building so i always had to get my roommate to let me in) and i still am having trouble getting my bond money back from the management. Several of the other students I lived with are also having trouble getting their bond money back as well. <br /><br /> Like i said before, the housing was good that it was mainly for international kids, pretty close to campus and fully furnished. Although I found the management to be irresponsible.
* Food:	I didn't eat much on campus. But the food there was fine, nothing special. If you live in the sir fred apartments you will have to cook for yourself because no food is provided.
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	It was a lot of fun. The reason why I only gave it 3 stars was because like I said I found it hard to meet Australians and to get involved with the university.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?
* Safety:	I mean I always felt safe
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	No

Finances

* 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)
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	I would guess I spent about $100-110 Australian dollars on food each week. But some of my female roommates spent about half of that because they ate a lot less. Although I was cooking almost all my meals, so if you are ordering food it's going to be a lot more. Alcohol is a lot more expensive in Australia. They tax it a lot more. Like if you get a case of beer for under $30 Australian consider yourself lucky. Public transportation is pretty cheap. I an unlimited bus pass around the city each month is $40, including the student discount. If you are a UQ student you get 50% public transportation. General living expenses are not too bad, although obviously depending on the exchange rate everything can be really cheap or really expensive. I would say that the two things that are most expensive are going to bars and traveling around. If you are going to bars every night you are going to run out of money really quickly. Also, traveling around can be expensive.
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	As i stated above, internet was expensive. The school only gives you 200 MB to use on the school compueters (although they might have changed that). After that is $10 per GB. Internet was not provided at the apartment and you had to set it up yourself, which can be hard to do since you are only there for one semester and most internet places want a 1 year deal. I bought mobile 3 broadband which was just for myself. It was $150 for the modem and $40 each month (australian prices) for 5 GB each month.