Rewarding and challenging year abroad August 08, 2024
By A student (Theology and Religion, Wellesley College) - abroad from 08/31/2023 to 06/15/2024 with
Oxford Study Abroad Programme (OSAP): Oxford - Study Abroad at Oxford University
I gained a lot of academic independence. All of my courses were one-on-one, which meant that there was both pressure to perform my best at all meetings and utmost attention given to my work by my tutors. Without other people taking my courses, or even other theology students that I knew studying abroad in my college, the responsibility was on me to advocate and troubleshoot my own issues.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
|
* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The most challenging, yet life-affirming, academic experience I've had to date. |
|
* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Mostly quite good, but at times it felt like we were disconnected from the program administrator and other students. |
|
* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
|
| * Food: |
|
|
* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
|
|
* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I had Covid and then the flu in my first term. The college was very helpful in helping me secure both academic accommodations and making sure I had healthcare access. |
| * Safety: |
|
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
This was the ideal experience for me, as someone interested in pursuing higher education in my subject. I feel well-prepared for graduate studies and have made some excellent connections with established scholars and other students in the field. |
Finances
|
* 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) |
Was a very expensive place to live and socialize! |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 250 or 300 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Eat in hall as much as possible! |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
Other Program Information
|
* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
|
| 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? |
|
| * What could be improved? |
|
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | I wish I knew how variable the workload could be between programs. There were many times that I felt I had far less free time than peers in other subjects, simply because the essay/work output and expectations from individual tutors varied so widely! So I wish I knew that everything would be so independent. |
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! |
