Trip of a Lifetime Past Review
By April Reisenfeld (Carleton College) - abroad from 06/26/2018 to 08/06/2018 with
Round River Conservation Studies - Mongolia Conservation Program
On the program, I not only learned immense amounts about environmental research and conservation, but also about Mongolian perspectives towards land and other people. It was extremely inspiring and I've returned to the states with a perspective towards relationships that I had not previously understood.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The academics were all related to the field work we were conducting, allowed for amazing hands-on experiential learning. The instructors were flexible about scheduling. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
All instructors involved were amazing, both in terms of academic support and providing the best experience for the students as possible. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
As long as you brought a good tent, satisfactory housing was inevitable. |
| * Food: |
We were lucky enough to have a cook who provided amazing meals, accommodating for the vegetarians in the group. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The cultural integration was my favorite aspect of the program. Getting to know locals was a crucial part of my experience and my cultural awareness was heightened. |
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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
Round River's Mongolia program was an amazing experience. It challenged me to do things outside my comfort zone and provided me with conservation research knowledge, but most importantly it exposed me to a culture vastly different from my own. |
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? | $0 |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
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? |
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? | Getting to know local people is one of the most meaningful parts of the trip. |
