Once en Conce: Surrealism realized and the privilege to check my privilege Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The educational system in Chile is, evidently, much less structured than what I'm used to at my home university, and this made it disorienting and frustrating when it came to coursework. Additionally, the frequent student strikes and suspension of classes aren't something that gets communicated to international students (or, at least, not to me), and I was left very confused about one of my classes whose department was paralyzed for over a month and whose professor wasn't very motivated to work with me independently to try to make up the class time I was missing. In terms of the difficulty/rigor of the courses themselves, I found the majority of them sufficiently challenging and interesting. However, the classroom environment was not ideal, with a good number of students talking to each other or using their phones during practically the entirety of class, which was a significant disruption in one of my classes that the professor, despite his nagging and warning and outbursts, was unable to keep in check. This only added to the difficulty of being able to understand the professor when I had to try to hear him over a bunch of other conversations going on in the back half of the classroom. I found the students lacking in respect toward their professors, not even feigning paying attention or following the rules, and also lacking in motivation with regard to their schoolwork - this did end up negatively affecting me because most of the assignments given by professors were group reports and other projects, so I ended up having to carry the entire group in a few instances with no way of communicating this to the professor(s) because everyone else waited until the last second to "do their part." Despite the negativity, I regard this experience as valuable in that it opened my eyes to the positive aspects of my home university and has given me a newfound appreciation for the system that I am used to.

On-site administration of your program

The Middlebury Program directors were extremely proactive and took concern in each student, which gave me a good support network during my time in an unfamiliar environment.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I really loved my host family and got along pretty well with them, and excluding some tensions with my host brother, I really enjoyed the experience. Living so far from the campus, however, could be inconvenient at times, since I predominantly traveled between the university and my home via public transport, but it was manageable.

I'm vegan, and despite not having any dietary restrictions themselves, my host family did an amazing job accommodating my needs.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I didn't make a concerted effort to really engage with my Chilean classmates, so I didn't get to experience much of the Chilean university student life. I also frequently felt like my being from the United States and others knowing that kind of set me apart from people; in a few instances, I felt like they drew unreasonable attention to that fact, and in doing so made me feel very consciously like a foreigner.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I had a bout of illness a week or so into the program but didn't seek medical treatment as it resolved on its own.

I didn't feel unsafe for a second - I'd gotten lost and ended up in unfamiliar parts of the city in the middle of the night a couple times, and I frequently found myself downtown once it had gotten dark, but I never feared for my safety or worried that someone would rob me or had any run-ins with suspicious people. I tried to stay relatively cautious about my valuables, but in general I always felt very safe.

I really got to love Concepcion, and the Middlebury Program was well-organized and -coordinated, so I would choose it again. However, I can't say I would choose to study at the Universidad de Concepcion again - but I hear it's among the best in the country, and it being centralized (i.e., having a campus where all the academic buildings are located together) really sets it apart from most of the other universities in Chile.

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

The rent was the most difficult expense, but luckily I'd had enough saved up to be able to cover it for the duration of the semester. Apart from that, I'd say I spent about the same on a weekly/monthly basis as I do typically at my home university.

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

The Middlebury Language Pledge is a promise to only speak the target language with other people while in the host country, except in case of emergency.

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• Host Family

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• Host Family

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• Local Students
• International Students

• I enjoyed being able to apply this knowledge that I've been building on for the past ten years (that is, learning Spanish) and being able to learn from real-life contexts and native speakers. (I even liked having my preconceived notions and previously-taught understanding challenged and flipped on its head through merely listening to people's conversations.)
• I loved the city that I got to study in - if I had gone through another program, I wouldn't have had the opportunity to go to that particular city (or other smaller cities, likely), and I really fell in love with Concepcion.

• I think there could be more support from the program for students during registration, since the host university somewhat lacks in that department, and also when strikes and paralizations occur.
• I would say there should be more support options for students having a hard time with culture shock, but it's probably mostly on me for not reaching out to my program when I was struggling, so I don't know if this is necessarily a valid suggestion.