a historical happening in the essence of Being Past Review
By Hayk Harutyunyan (Middlebury College) - abroad from 09/01/2016 to 04/15/2017 with
Middlebury Schools Abroad: Middlebury – CMRS Oxford Humanities Program
Improved my academic skills quite a bit.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I took two theology, a philosophy and a poetry-writing tutorials throughout my two semester at CMRS In addition, I did two independent research courses (on J. Milton, and M. Luther), and had two seminars on religion. My best academic experience so far has been at CMRS. Though intense and challenging, the tutorials created space for me to explore my interests freely, and discuss my ideas one-on-one with excellent professors. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Bernard, Emma, Camilla, Paul and Fiona were consistently there to help with all kinds of issues. Bernard and Emma, the two academic supervisors, did everything imaginable and beyond to help and encourage me personally and academically. They also provided me with much valuable career advise, and enthusiastically helped me out with all kinds of side projects. Throughout my two semesters in CMRS, I feel that I developed a dear relationship with these two individuals. Camilla's readiness to help and efficiency in getting access to any books was appreciated. Paul was thorough and all-knowing whenever I asked for his help. Thanks to this help, I managed to get a fellowship which enabled me to do independent research for the summer. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The locations of St Michael's hall is central, the general state of the facilities is good/very good, the kitchen is excellent. Some issues: The computers in the room of requirement are long due to an upgrade. In a couple rooms, all that one can see outside the widow is a brick wall. The 'coventry kids' are an annoying presence and make the surroundings of the hall 'sketchy'. |
| * Food: |
Though we had access to Keble College dining (ok food), I mostly cooked for myself and mostly enjoyed doing that. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The integration with Keble college students is a long noted problem of this program. While this integration is naturally though only partly the responsibility of the students, the separation of St.Michael's hall from Keble College does impose an unfortunate limitation on the efforts of the students. More administrative effort could be made to introduce CMRS students to Keble College students through planned social events. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
The emergency room is free in the UK. We also have a GP, a private clinic associated with the program, who provide general medical services. I visited there only once and their service was fine. |
| * Safety: |
Oxford is generally very safe. I did hear about a couple of crimes in Oxford. The above-mentioned 'coventry kids' are generally safe but sometimes provoking, and often smoking cannabis. |
| 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) |
Oxford's expensive. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 80 pounds |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | cook for yourself. Look for discounts in supermarkets. Some shops (know Morton's) will drop prices of perishable food before closure dramatically so keep an eye on that. Don't drink too much. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
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? | 0 |
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? | I wish I knew better that I could ask for whatever course I like so long as I justified it's relatedness my studying abroad experience in Oxford |
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 Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Poetry Writing |
| Course Department: | English Literature |
| Instructor: | Rebecca Varley-Winter |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | I was challenging. The teacher was knowledgeable and well-prepared. I participated just as much as in any Oxford tutorial. The poems were assessed in my presence and with thorough and helpful commentary. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
