Didn't Wanna Leave! Past Review
By Jax T (Business, University of South Carolina - Beaufort) - abroad from 05/15/2012 to 07/20/2012 with
ISA Study Abroad in Valparaíso/Viña del Mar, Chile
Life-long relationships, fluency in the language, unforgettable experiences.. best 2 months of my life, no question!
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. |
Awesome professors who do their best to include you in the class discussion. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The ISA staff was incredibly helpful. Many of them are young and actually went out with us and really made us feel like one of the locals. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My host family was super nice and fun, introduced me to a ton of kids my age in the neighborhood and took me on a bunch of tours of the city. Really made me feel like one of the family. |
| * Food: |
Chile has the dankest food ever, I ate at the same restaurant for lunch for like a month. The fresh avocados make everything 20x more delicious. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Chileans love Americans so I had plenty of opportunities to practice Spanish and I made a ton of local friends. I even dated a cute girl from the university! |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Like in any big city, be careful at night: don't speak English loudly, don't wear gaudy watches, etc. Definitely no worse than Baltimore or New Orleans. |
| 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) |
So cheap |
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 |
My Spanish improved greatly |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | intermediate |
| 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? | Make friends with the locals and avoid other Americans at all costs! |
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? | 10+ |
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? | Make every effort to become friends with local people in the city! Leaving your comfort zone is the key to a successful experience abroad. |
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 Outright UrbaniteA social butterfly, you're happiest in bustling cities with hip people, and took advantage of all it had to offer. You enjoyed the nightlife, and had fun going out dancing, and socializing with friends. Fun-loving and dressed to the nines, you enjoyed discovering new restaurants, shops, cafes, and bars in your host country. |
