Great Experience! June 28, 2024
By Gabriel G (Earth Science, Bowdoin College) - abroad from 02/17/2024 to 05/29/2024 with
SIT Study Abroad: Iceland - Climate Change and the Arctic
Learning about Icelandic culture Scientific writing and talking more about climate change Independent living
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The low stakes academic atmosphere was nice, but I would have definitely liked the courses to be more in depth. We did a lot of learning in the field and meeting with locals for classes, which was very cool. The independent project in the last month was the most rewarding part of the program academically. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Academic director and local coordinator were helpful and planned a great program. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The homestay was really great, during the independent study it was nice to have flexibility and live in different towns. Would have been great to have a little more guidance about recommendations of places to live for the independent study. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We did a lot of learning from local farmers, scientists, etc, and the homestay was great in terms of felling connected. Would have liked more language instruction to feel more integrated. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Didn't have any health issues. |
| * Safety: |
Iceland is a very safe country. |
| 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) |
We had a stipend which was definitely adequate if cooking meals most of the time. Groceries and eating out in Iceland is particularly expensive. |
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 |
We had a few days of language instruction, would have been nice if it were more consistent. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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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? | N/A |
