Excellent city and living environment but easier classes Past Review
By A student (Middlebury College) - abroad from 07/27/2018 to 06/06/2018 with
Middlebury Schools Abroad: Middlebury in Hangzhou
Learned about local culture and improved my reading and formal grammar. Was worthwhile to make friendships with locals.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
language aspect is challenging, but content of courses is comparable to that a native Chinese 4th grader might encounter |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Disorganized, not responsive to student feedback |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
In dorm bathrooms, provides bedding, excellent roommates |
| * Food: |
excellent dining hall options as well as off campus restaurants. Dorm also includes a kitchen with supplies. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
After class activities were conducted only with other MIC students, which was quite isolating. Hangzhou research was helpful for meeting others. I would encourage students to skip the after class activities arranged by MiC and instead join an activity in the community (like fitness classes) or get an internship or tutoring job in the local community. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
MiC staff was very responsive to health concerns and did an excellent job communicating with students about the choices available to them as well as keeping parents in the loop. |
| * Safety: |
Avoid drinking alone, do not get into bar fights. Keep an eye on your GPS while in cars and if a Taxi takes you off direction leave the car. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
though I love the city of Hangzhou, I would most likely chose Kunming as their courses are more challenging |
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) |
Food was very inexpensive. The school covered transportation and ticket costs for classwork as well as cultural experiences such as museums. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $70 per week |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Take advantage of the culture funds that the school provides. You can experience China for free! |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
language pledge |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | 302 |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 10+ |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Don't hang out with other program participants, meet local, native speakers. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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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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| 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? |
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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? | Skip after class extra curricular and do something in the local community instead, get to know the guards, cafeteria employees, and local shop owners. |
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.' |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Business Chinese |
| Course Department: | |
| Instructor: | Shi |
| Instruction Language: | Chinese |
| Comments: | Relevant field trips, course work not especially challenging, however this may be due to the variation in language level among classmates. assessed with papers and presentations. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
| Course Name/Rating: |
One on One |
| Course Department: | |
| Instructor: | Wu |
| Instruction Language: | Chinese |
| Comments: | Challenging material, good instruction, 2 hours of reading for each class as homework as well as some articles to look over, did not do much outreach to local community regarding topic but that may be because it is a political topic and therefore sensitive |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
| Course Name/Rating: |
One on One |
| Course Department: | |
| Instructor: | Shi |
| Instruction Language: | Chinese |
| Comments: | two hours of reading plus articles. also conducted field trips and interviewed and locals. Course was challenging |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
