Rome: The Experience Of A Lifetime! Past Review
By Erica R (Special Education, Illinois State University) for
Lorenzo de' Medici – Florence
I gained a greater sense of independence, sense of traveling, I appreciate the culture so much more, and I fully expect to travel so much more! It didn't change my academic future plans, but I benefited greatly from this!
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | - |
| 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 classes were way more challenging than I had anticipated. I felt the teachers expected too much out of us who are in a fantastic city. I do understand it was a STUDY abroad experience, but I felt that the classes' work loads were more than needed. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Everyone was fantastic at LdM, they helped with any problems we had, answered readily to our questions, etc. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I loved the neighborhood I was in, I felt totally safe and was very close to the Metro to get to class and to many places to go to. However, I did not feel that my apartment was as nice as the other students in the program. I did not appreciate that I had paid the same amount of money for housing as all of the other students, but my apartment was less than the others. |
| * Food: |
Anywhere! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
There were a lot of fun activities that were planned for us that we had the option of attending. They were so cool and interesting regarding the city and culture. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Safe if you were smart. |
| 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? | about 25 euro |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | There were more expenses that were unplanned before we had to leave but with spending there I just had to be smart and not spend money on things I didn't absolutely need. |
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? |
I definitely needed to use Italian in everyday interactions, and even if they did know how most people did not speak English. I could practice Italian with all of my roommates, who were in higher level language classes than I was. |
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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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | A good student would benefit from this program, as the studies were more challenging than you would expect. |
