SIT Mexico is amazing. Oaxaca - Sustainable Development and Social Change Past Review
By Isabel H (Women's Studies., Tufts University) for
SIT Study Abroad: Reviews from Former Locations
The experience, especially my independent study gave me new direction to pursue a field in health care. Living in an apartment and in hostels has given me the confidence to live abroad in a Spanish speaking country. One of the things that I took away from it academically was the need to question my Western lens continually.
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. |
Professors really care about students' experiences. We had the opportunity to meet and learn from many prominent people in different social service agencies in Oaxaca, Chiapas, and Mexico City. One of the most valuable things about the program was learning from and engaging in discussion with the other students, who all brought a very interesting, valuable, and different perspective to the program. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
All of my expectations were met concerning administration in the host country. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Treated as a family member by my host family in Oaxaca, more as a guest in the shorter home-stays in Chiapas and Santo Domingo, but that is to be expected. I always felt completely safe in every neighborhood we stayed, including Santo Domingo. |
| * Food: |
Very accommodating to vegetarians. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Chiapas on Semana Santa was amazing, also I went to a wonderful family birthday party with my homestay family in Oaxaca. Nightlife and dancing in Mexico City was one of the best parts of the experience. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Safety was never an issue. Even though Mexico has a reputation for being dangerous, the way the program was set up we were never in any kind of dangerous area or situation. As far as health issues, be careful about food in Chiapas, and the water in large office-style coolers might need to be sterilized again. I got sick in Chiapas but healthcare was easily accessible and cheap, and medications were cheap and easily available at the pharmacies. |
| 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) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | In Oaxaca it is possible to eat all your meals at your homestay house. When I was in an apartment in Chiapas I spent very little on food, and bought all my food at a local open air market. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | No unanticipated expenses. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Spanish 34 |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
No one spoke English, I practiced language with my host family and improved with every lecture, all of which were in Spanish. |
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 do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Choose this program if you want to improve your Spanish, and are looking to be challenged both academically and by going outside of your comfort zone. If you are looking to party in Mexico every night for the whole semester, this probably isn't the program for you. Students who would benefit most from this program are critical thinkers willing to broaden their point of view. |
