Experience of a life time Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

All the lectures were interesting and discussions were precious. Although the French classes lacked rigor and intensity, balancing an extremely academically rigorous environment with cultural/social hands-on learning experience at home stay would have been impossible, so I think it was a reasonable trade-off. Sometimes I even felt overwhelmed by the amount of assignments while trying to integrate. However, I had less amount of work in comparison to what I do at Middlebury. Resources were limited in terms of books and internet, but SIT was resourceful in human contacts.

On-site administration of your program

For a program set up in a disorganized country like Cameroon, the SIT staff did an amazing job to hold everything together. They dealt with students at a personal level, which also helped with our integration. They did their best to clarify assignments. Although their Cameroonian mentality caused some misunderstandings, problems were dealt with with reasonable attention.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Home stay was the best part about my study abroad experience. Although stressful at first, SIT did a great job selecting the host families. Home stay was my biggest insight into the Cameroonian culture and people. I love all my families. Having multiple families in different regions gave me a broader perspective of the country. Although it was difficult to move around so much in such a short period of time, I think it was necessary and rewarding

I love Cameroonian food. My host families cooked much better and healthier meal than the repetitive junk the dining halls at Middlebury fed me. It takes some getting used to at first, especially to the Cameroonian high carb diet, but with an open mind and desire to explore, I had a very positive experience.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Home stay experience definitely made me feel socially and culturally integrated. However, it was a little difficult making Cameroonian friends of my age until the Independent Studies Project at the end of the semester, because the program has limited interaction with local universities. Once ISP started, I quickly found people of my age to hang out with, because I was out on my own, and I was much more comfortable with the language and culture by then. I also tried wearing Cameroonian clothing as often as possible and getting Cameroonian hair-do helped. As cliche as it sounds, the willingness to 'look' Cameroonian gave others a signal that I appreciate their culture.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I didn't have major problems, but when I had a minor worries, the health coordinator immediately took me to the SIT designated hospital. I felt very safe.

I felt very safe in general because the local community was watching over me. As long as you follow the safety rules like curfew and dress code, I think you're okay. Making Cameroonian friends is very important, especially once you are on your own during ISP. In terms of harassment, there was nothing I could do about that. Being female and 'white' made me a target on the street for various creative verbal harassment. It would have been better to be mentally prepared for that.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

SIT also gave weekly stipend included in the tuition.

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

We had no choice but to use French at home and outside, but lectures and homework was mostly in English. We spoke English amongst the students because there was a big disparity amongst us in French proficiency. Later on in the semester, the SIT staff encouraged the students to use more French amongst ourselves, but that didn't really work out well. We also learned Fulfulde, but it was more trivial than anything. I used it in markets in Ngaoundere, and said couple of phrases at home stay, but did not come any where close to being fluent.

Select all that apply

• Host Family
• Hostel

Select all that apply

• Host Family

Select all that apply

• Americans

• Host Family
• ISP
• Group dynamics of the students

• More opportunities to foster local Cameroonian friendship
• More French used in instructions

The Nearly Native or Trail Blazer