Exploring Iceland’s spectacular natural beauty! January 06, 2023

By Ella R (Environmental Chemistry, Middlebury College) - abroad from 08/24/2022 to 12/03/2022 with

SIT Study Abroad: Iceland - Climate Change and the Arctic

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

I gained an understanding of Icelandic culture and how it may influence their sustainability. I met a lot of Icelandic people as well as fellow American students that I learned a lot from. I loved exploring the diverse and beautiful natural places. I also thought the Arctic Circle conference was a very valuable experience

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program?	2 weeks - 1 month

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.	Academic director was great at allowing us to explore things we were interested in more deeply, but the program itself was much less rigorous than my home institution.
* Host Country Program Administration On-site administration of your program
* Housing: How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?	We moved around a lot but I liked the places we stayed in and this allowed us to see a lot of the county.
* Food:	Cooked a lot in hostel kitchens and moving a lot made it a little difficult to grocery shop. Produce in Iceland can be inconsistent and worse quality compared to what I’m used to in the US. Otherwise fine!
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	Staying with a host family and having an Icelandic director helped me learn a lot about the culture. Participated in several cultural/community activities such as sheep herding and pools.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?	Program handled the cases of covid well.
* Safety:
If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program?	Yes Yes, it was an awesome experience even if it was not the perfect program for me. I met lifelong friends and explored amazing natural places.

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)	A lot was included in the stipend and did not have to purchase much on our own.
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	$200
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	If you don’t eat out you’ll have plenty of stipend!

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component?	No

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Other Host Family Hostel
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Local Students Host Family
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	Americans
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?	Exploring all the natural beauty of Iceland Meeting new people - Icelandic and fellow American students Learning about Icelandic culture
* What could be improved?	Academic rigor Scheduling
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	I wish I had known that the academic rigor of this program was less than I was used to. Other than that I think my advice to people is to go with the flow and ask questions when you are curious!

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 Avid Adventurer The wardrobe you packed was better suited for a semester of camping than club hopping. Outdoorsy, you might forgo a crazy night out for an early all-day adventure. You'd rather take in the rich culture of an old town than the metropolis of a modern city, but for you getting off the grid is ideal.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:	Climate Modeling and Carbon Management
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Comments:	I liked the relevant field trips. Teachers were knowledgeable. I think I wish there were more ways to demonstrate/use what we had learned, as well as optional additional readings to give us deeper knowledge on the topics.
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Course Name/Rating:	The Arctic: Changing Ecosystems and Resilience
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Comments:	Material was covered pretty quickly/broadly, which was maybe frustrating since I had background in the subjects already. I liked reading some scientific papers for this course. Our one field experience for this class was too open and brief to feel helpful, but we did learn about Iceland ecosystems in a less structured experiential way as we traveled the country. I wish we had more discussion time.
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Course Name/Rating:	Research Methods and Ethics
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Comments:	Relevant for the independent research project, but overall a pretty brief/broad course, although I don’t think it needed to be any more. No assessments specifically for this course.
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Course Name/Rating:	Independent Study Project
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Comments:	This was my favorite part of the program. We had flexibility to explore and dive deeply into a topic/question we were interested in. It was awesome practice in designing and conducting a research study, doing data analysis, writing a paper, and presenting.
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