A Quick Glimpse Past Review
By A student (Brandeis University) - abroad from 02/20/2018 to 06/04/2018 with
SIT Study Abroad: Chile - Public Health, Traditional Medicine, and Community Empowerment
I learned that I was capable of going to an unknown country and making everlasting relationships and friendships, something I thought I'd struggle a lot more with.
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 most intense part of the program would have to be the Independent Study Project. I will also say that I had an advantage of being a native Spanish speaker and therefore did not struggle with the language as much as my fellow peers did. |
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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? |
I was lucky enough to be placed in a family that made me feel at home. |
| * Food: |
Food provided by my host family was great, but Arica is a very small city and that means that there is not a great range of foods to actually try. However, what is available is delicious. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I choose SIT partly because I wanted to be greatly integrated in the local culture and that was done. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
The administration staff was very concerned and was always understanding of individuals' health needs. |
| * Safety: |
Extremely safe. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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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) |
SIT allows for most of your needs to be covered being that you are provided with a host family that looks after you. |
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 |
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| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Fluent |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Fluent |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 10+ |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | The best advice is to continuously practice and push yourself to partake in conversations with locals and your family. |
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? | I would want to know that they make it very hard for you to travel within Chile itself. They make it very hard for you to go anywhere without permission, and at times may not allow you to go. The program is also very intense and days could be long. |
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. |
