Once in a lifetime experiences, over and over again June 18, 2024

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Classes were rigorous and academic expectations were high, but in a way that felt purposeful. I appreciated the lack of busywork and how deeply connected all of our academic lessons were to our field excursions.

On-site administration of your program

For the most part, very smooth! The staff is small and sometimes it felt like they had a little too much to juggle, leading to a few lapses, but they're very experienced and know exactly what to do and when.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Fantastic! My host family was amazing, everyone lived relatively close to the academic building and at least one other student in the program, and accommodations during excursions were out of this world- they were integrated into their natural environments, but extremely comfortable and unique!

As a vegetarian, I was a little nervous before starting the program, but it was no problem at all. Ecuador has a wide variety of cuisines, my host family was wonderful and made me slightly different dishes, and staff on excursions always offered options in line with dietary restrictions. There were occasional mix-ups on excursions for one person in our group, but overall, excellent! Trying everything from street empanadas to Chifa (Ecuadorian Chinese food) gave lots of options, especially in Quito.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Experiences with host families contributed the most to this, so it depended somewhat on placement, but I went all over Quito with mine doing errands and learned a lot in the process. I got to see everything from how barbershops operate to multiple birthday parties and an art exhibition and interacted with a huge variety of Ecuadorians through these adventures. A lot of students' host siblings also joined for some dinners and nights out, which was our primary form of contact with people our age. Our excursion guides and visiting lecturers were all Ecuadorians and offered a lot of different perspectives, too. Beyond that, it took a little more effort to branch out, but the independent research month really made everyone live fully immersed in their respective communities, and I felt most "integrated" during this period.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I was very sick on one of our excursions and the professors were great about checking in with me and giving me extra time to rest. In general, healthcare was quite accessible and utilized by many students.

Despite hearing nothing but warnings about safety issues in Quito and rising danger due to organized crime/drug cartels, our entire group had no incidents and felt extremely safe. Common sense still holds: not to walk alone at night, not to hold your phone out in touristy areas that have lots of pickpockets, etc, but we were able to use public transit, go out to popular areas at night, go shopping, walk to school, and explore many areas of the country without program staff, and nothing felt risky. Uber stipends are provided for travel to school, but I felt very comfortable walking by myself to a variety of places all the time.

This was definitely the best choice for me! I got to explore environmental science/ecology topics at depth, do a ton of fieldwork with immediate real-world implications, improve my academic and conversational Spanish, experience Ecuadorian culture and all its delights, and travel all around the country!

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

One of the best parts of Ecuador and this program! Ecuador uses the US dollar, but everything (except technology and sunscreen) is significantly cheaper. SIT covers everything, including food, lodging, transportation to school, funding for the independent research month, and pretty significant travel through excursions. You could spend practically nothing if you chose, or go out for dinner, see museums, buy souvenirs, and travel on weekends for less than $25 a week.

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

Classes were conducted mostly in Spanish (completely with guest lecturers), but with occasional English as well for tricky concepts. As a group, students used mostly English, but we tried to sometimes make days "Spanish-only," so that really depends on the effort you put into it. Outside of class, everything in daily life is Spanish and it's absolutely necessary for communicating with host families, restaurant staff, taxi drivers, etc.

Select all that apply

• Other
• Host Family
• Hotel
• Hostel

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• Americans
• Host Family

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• Americans

• Field excursions and travel to all parts of country
• Hands-on learning
• Working with amazing Ecuadorian professionals

• Clarity of grading/feedback on assignments

The Avid Adventurer