Koc is an unfortunate place to be located in an Incredible city worth visiting Past Review
By A student (Art History, Criticism and Conservation., Brandeis University) - abroad from 09/13/2014 to 01/10/2014 with
Koc University: Istanbul - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
Turkish. Yes, it was worthwhile.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
|
* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Students are restless and professors are bored. For the most part, these students do not care about academia will skip the majority of classes. Professors are traditional and uncreative. |
|
* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The staff is friendly but disorganized. Volunteer programs were promised without any follow-through. |
|
* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Housing is terrific, spacious, and clean. The housing is located very close to classes. They even have housekeepers who clean up daily and clean the rooms every week. The communal kitchens beautiful and comfortable, but they don't include any cooking dishes or utensils or ovens. Of course, it will take about 1.5 hours to get into Taksim, but Sariyer is nice. |
| * Food: |
Local students hate the food, but there are lots of options and relatively inexpensive. There's no meal plan. Turkish food as a whole is incredible! |
|
* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Koc is a bubble. I felt integrated at Koc, but the university setting certainly does not reflect local culture. |
|
* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
When I got sick and the campus doctor barely understood my English. Despite the language barrier he tried to give me a shot that he couldn't define in English. |
| * Safety: |
Campus is extremely safe and has a safety gate where students must present their IDs. Women should not travel alone at night off-campus. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
|
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) |
This all depends on how much you would like to travel. It can be very affordable if you buy groceries and stay close to school, but a $100/week is not an adequate travel budget. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
|
How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
The Turkish class was very helpful. Tuba is a great teacher and a lot of fun. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | intermediate |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? |
Other Program Information
|
* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
|
| 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? |
|
| * What could be improved? |
|
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | I knew almost nothing going into this program. |
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 Nearly Native or Trail BlazerCraving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.' |
