It is what you make it. Past Review
By Dane L (early childhood education, Illinois State University) for
Lorenzo de' Medici – Florence
This experience changed my overall outlook on how I view the world and has made me realize how small one's perspective is when based selfishly upon just the US
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The overall educational experience was challenging, yet overall pretty positive for me. The grading system seemed to be fair judging by the midterm exams, but new-coming students may benefit from knowing that the teachers do not keep updated grades to help give an idea of where one stands percentage-wise. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
All things were pretty standard here, I was relatively pleased. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The apartments ranged very widely in appliances, internet strength, and luxuries- but I was fortunate to be in a very nice apartment. The apartment had a lot of great cookware and was supplied plentiful with dishes and all. |
| * Food: |
Buying meat that is discounted due to proximity to 'sell by date' and says "sconto" on it was a great way to save- but make sure it is frozen if it is not eaten that day. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The two italy bus trips which were included in the illinois state tuition were awesome! Our tour guide was amazing and it was so much fun. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
I never had any problems with these things but I always felt pretty safe. |
| 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) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | I spent just under five thousand american dollars (not including round trip ticket from chicago to rome), and was able to see 6 countries and all major places in italy. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | I would really recommend keeping receipts from credit cards and atm transactions and recording these transactions on the computer or spread sheet to keep an idea of how much is being spent. that was the only reason that I was always sure about what things I could and couldn't due in relativity to my budgeting. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | none |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
It was mandatory to take an Italian course, but it was a very easy course which did not present much of a challenge. It was frustrating because the class moved slow and I wanted to finally be able to have smooth daily interactions, so many times I did independent studying. Though I heard most people speak english, judging by the number of failed conversation attempts I had, I would say otherwise. Practicing the language was also difficult/frustrating sometimes because many of the Italian people were not always friendly or willing to engage in conversation with struggling-to-speak americans. |
Direct Enrollment/Exchange
| * Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? | Direct Enrollment |
Other Program Information
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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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? | Someone who already has italian language experience would benefit the most from this and transition smoothly into making florentine friends. |
