¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Past Review
By A student (Smith College) - abroad from 01/26/2017 to 05/25/2017 with
PRESHCO: Study Abroad in Córdoba, Spain
I have become more independent and willing to try new things, which is cool. I have also seen more of the world and learned a lot of stuff about Spanish culture. That was worthwhile.
Personal Information
| 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 PRESHCO courses were alright (if somewhat basic), but the UCO courses made me miserable. Every class is basically a 1.5 hour lecture, with little/no student interaction, and it isn't always clear what the expectations are for students. I feel like I would have learned much more and generally been more engaged at my home institution. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The equipo is pretty cool and generally helpful, though there were communication issues throughout the entire semester. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The homestay was really beneficial in some aspects - ex. it's good for practicing Spanish, nice to have someone cook/do laundry, good to be living with people who know the city. But it could be really difficult in others - for example, I didn't always feel comfortable in the house, they teased me a lot for my habits, etc. |
| * Food: |
The food was pretty great. I tried a lot of new things and it was overall fantastic. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I didn't really make any friends or go out very much, but I did enjoy exploring the city, experiencing the festivals, and getting to know more about Spain. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't really have any experiences related to healthcare! |
| * Safety: |
I felt fairly safe walking home late at night. Female students do get catcalled/have to deal with street harassment. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
Absolutely not. I appreciate the good things about this program, but I was basically miserable for four months straight. If I could do it again, I would examine the living daylights out of my intents/goals for study abroad, and then I would have stayed at my home institution, and tried to do a summer program or just traveled on my own instead. |
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) |
I didn't go out much; I mainly spent money on travel and snacks. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Probably 10-15 euro a week on food. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Eat in with your host family; take advantage of free things in the city; don't go out much. |
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 |
They were very encouraging (with varying degrees of success...). Every time we were in a group, we were expected to speak in Spanish. This was also true of the homestays and the school. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Fluent |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Fluent |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Spanish 251 |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Talk in Spanish to each other... even if you feel silly, you should try it. |
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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| 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 had known what the academics would be like, and how it was going to affect my mental health. |
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! |
