Good bread, good meat, good God let's eat Past Review
By Max Carlin (College of Saint Benedict and Saint Johns University) - abroad from 01/20/2015 to 04/15/2015 with
Round River Conservation Studies - Patagonia, Chile Program
Very formative...Some Spanish, some wildlife skills, a whole new breadth of perspective on the overlap between culture and ecology.
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. |
It is important to recognize that the academic aspects of Round River programs are not directly comparable to those you are probably used to at school. Due to the field based nature of RR programs, opportunites to learn are constant. It becomes clear that effective synthesis drawn from unique examples based primarily in experience and secondarily in instruction is the important (and not easily mastered) academic skill available in RR programs. It calls for attentiveness, critical thinking, and constant reassessment as new situations present themselves. The best thing to do is to dive in! |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Administration varies between RR locations and between semesters, due to the fairly regular rotation of staff among programs. The program I participated in had a number of instructors, and I found it especially helpful that we had some instruction from Chileans and native Patagonians. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Dwelling in tents/shacks/in bags on the ground. This is what a RR program is all about! |
| * Food: |
We ate like dang KINGS during my semester, even during our extended backcountry trips. I am always happy to carry an extra heavy pack in exchange for the peace of mind provided by redoubled food security. Also, cooking/eating was a very important social activity in our program. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
More opportunities to work with locals would have been nice, but it is impossible not to have a fair amount of cultural exposure simply being in rural Chile, visiting town, and having Chilean instructors speaking Spanish around you constantly. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Obviously, there is a good deal of risk associated with field based programs involving long walks, heights, and living out of tents. That is just part of the deal. No serious incidents occurred during our program, nothing more severe than your average bout of food poisoning, and it was clear that both instructors and fellow students were absolutely experienced enough to significantly mitigate such risks. |
| * Safety: |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
Each RR semester is unique, but one thing that is common to all of them is the very awesome opportunities they provide. Take advantage of them! |
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) |
Housing, food, etc is all covered under program fees. Having some personal funds in your pocket for nonessential purchases is highly recommended (a couple hundred for a semester, basically the money you got from your grandma when she got all excited after she heard you were going abroad. Thanks Grammie:) |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | A few bucks |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | See above, Grandmother Subsidy Program. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| 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? | I had never taken any Spanish |
| 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? | Spanish language is not a requirement of the RR program, but being in Spanish-speaking country I enjoyed (attempting to) figure out the language that was constantly being spoken around me. |
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? |
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? | What Feña's favorite food is so I could impress him right off the bat and we could become best friends even faster than we already did. |
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.' |
