You need to go away to appreciate home Past Review
By A student (Smith College) - abroad from 01/25/2018 to 05/25/2018 with
PRESHCO: Study Abroad in Córdoba, Spain
I gain more vocabulary and built new friendships with the colleges involved in the PRESHCO program. Yes, they are all Americans which is great because I can see them next semester and we would have this experience to share. I've learned that I have different views and I think differently than my host parents. I've had mentally stimulating conversations with other students about these difference and it was great to be able to relate and have validation with one another. I've gained a new perspective and how to manage in a situation where I don't feel comfortable. It was worthwhile to understand and develop as a better person.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The workload was a reasonable amount for a study abroad experience. I think we had a good balance of work and time to take to travel to other places at the same time. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Living with a host family definitely gave me a true insight to the way of living in Spain. i adapted cultural routines such as late meals and nap time. But we have different views and it was hard to hear a view you go against and you're living in their house so you cannot argue with them because of the fear of being disrespectful. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I attended university courses with Cordobeses and did activities with my host family. But I had a time speaking Spanish because I was so used to speaking English to people my age and I also did not feel welcomed by students at the university and I did not solid friendship with locals which is okay to me but it was just a difficult integrating in such a short amount of time. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I am not sure because that would depend on how other programs are and I don't know that information but I do think PRESHCO is a good program. |
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) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 5 euros |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | If you really need money consider taking the loan out in exchange for your work study. In my situation, I had hardly anything saved and the loan came in handy to travel around and for emergency purposes. |
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 |
This program really enforced Spanish only, they put their part in reminding us but it a habit that we had to learn to control and many of us in the program became good friends and it was easy to relate to one another through English. There was an attempt. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | 200 |
| 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 to your host family, I did most of my Spanish speaking with them because I am living with them and I wanted to know them and I had things I wanted to share with them. They are an easy access during meal times. |
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 to bring a winter coat because it was freezing in the beginning of the spring semester. I wish I knew what kind of clothing to bring because some of the clothes I didn't wear because of the weather. I wish I knew I could be on the group flight but could have a straight flight back to LA (home) instead of NYC because I wanted to go straight home after. |
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! |
