Go Abroad to Canada Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

interesting as well as a variety of courses offered. Very knowledgeable/ credentialed teachers. Majors/program pathways seem pretty strict- make sure your taking correct class/ or your classes will transfer. Was surprised by the amount of class time for different subjects. Pay attention to class times at registration. About 80% of classes have accompanying seminars. Ex- 2 lectures (Tues/Thurs) then 1 supplemental seminar(s) (Fri)- going to school 3x in a week for one subject. Not all classes are like that,depends, can get 1 lecture & 1 seminar, or get lucky and only have 1 lecture time, once a week. Pay attention to times of classes, the longer the course the less seminars or possibly none. Just important to know how many times/ how long one goes to school for all subjects taken so one doesn't end up with a really crazy or weird schedule. Also pay attention to how much tests are worth when receiving a syllabus, sometimes are weighted pretty heavily depending on the class and can really make or break your semester/grade.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Hate to rate Decew dorm residence housing so low... Just Decew's major favorable draw is gets easily overshadowed by its many flaws. Good first- Central to campus, everything is within five minute walking distance, definitely an assets in the fall/winter. The not so good- oldest building on campus. rooms are small (cement/cinder block), communal bathrooms,all over the place, less than clean. Walls are so thin you can hear your neighbors constantly. Decewes bearable for a semester, but if staying long term, might want to look into nicer accommodations.

They really try for cafeteria food. pretty decent. Sometimes hard to avoid fried/poor choices, but can manage. Offer a lot of variety. Pay attention to how much you have on meal plan/use when eating, can go quickly as they over charge for everything in the caf, ex- apple-2.00 etc. Important- make sure in the begining before using your caf card that the balance is correct on it. This past semester they confused the students who were only staying half the year not the full year- they gave us a full years balance. we were were under the impression we had a certain amount to spend and then when food services realized their error they cut our balances in half which would have been fine except they did so in the middle/ of the year-- this was detrimental to some students who previously used their caf card a ton as they thought they had the balance to so- some students had to end up budgeting to no more than 10$ at the caf a day on out, or some ended up having to buy their own groceries.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Lots of opportunities offered by SA at Brock to interact with different people and get better acquainted with different cultures/countries. Lots of social outings too around the surrounding areas.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Safe town. easily accessible heath care.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)