Fun Past Review
By Thomas R (Plymouth State University) - abroad from 01/23/2016 to 05/14/2016 with
SAI Study Abroad: Sorrento - Sant'Anna Institute (SA)
Learned a lot about other cultures.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
|
* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
This school provides a very weak educational experience |
|
* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The staff at Sant'Anna university is very unqualified and never seems to know what they are doing. They put in the least possible amount of effort. There are some exceptions and a couple employees who are great but the staff as a whole is not impressive. They are also constantly looking to get kids in trouble and find reasons to send people home and take their money. They will issue warnings to students for causing no trouble at all just because they want to eventually send you home. |
|
* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Good location and not a bad apartment but it was constantly broken and the school rarely put effort into fixing it and I lived with black mold in my apartment the whole time I was there |
| * Food: |
Sorrento has great food |
|
* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Met some great people throughout the community. Consistently hung-out with local italians and made lots of friends in Sorrento. |
|
* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
My friend broke his ankle and the school did absolutely nothing to help him and the hospital was a complete joke. The doctors where extremely lazy and it was a long miserable process that he had to go through with just the help of his friends. The school would not even provide him with crutches or transportation to and from classes. |
| * Safety: |
Don't have to worry too much about pick-pockets. Some local italians might try to start fights at the clubs but they are really small anyway so it should not matter. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
Sorrento is great and probably the best place you can study abroad but the school is the most unprofessional college and a total waste of money. |
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) |
If you cooked and shopped for yourself you could definitely live off of $100/week-$150/week. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $120 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | eat at home |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
|
How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
|
| 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? | Nothing |
| 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? | Interact as much as possible with italians and speak italian with them |
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? | 10+ |
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? | How bad the school was. |
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 Outright UrbaniteA social butterfly, you're happiest in bustling cities with hip people, and took advantage of all it had to offer. You enjoyed the nightlife, and had fun going out dancing, and socializing with friends. Fun-loving and dressed to the nines, you enjoyed discovering new restaurants, shops, cafes, and bars in your host country. |
