Samoa: I love the Islands! Past Review
By Cherrie R (Anthropology., Ithaca College) for
SIT Study Abroad: Samoa - Social and Environmental Change in Oceania
YES!
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Really great - I feel like I have it too easy at IC, though, and I had to step up my game while I was abroad. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
All good! Jackie Fa'asisila is amazing! |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
We needed to buy cookware when we stopped eating in the cafeteria during ISP period, but otherwise everything was provided. The cafeteria left much to be desired, so a lot of us went downtown to the market to buy fruit. Downtown is a short and affordable cab ride away, or one bus ride away. We tended to go down to Apia in groups, so this was all manageable. Nightlife, grocery stores and restaurants were all in Apia. Host-families were very welcoming, and treated us like guests in the beginning and like family by the end. |
| * Food: |
Cafeteria food is all fried and relies on foreign imports even though the school is an agricultural campus (which I found strange.) However, cheap and delicious produce is readily available downtown. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Drop-offs! Home-stays! Kava night! Excursions to Savaii and Fiji! These were all amazing learning experiences |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Health and safety is addressed well, but if anything serious comes up, students need to be medically evacuated to New Zealand or Hawaii for treatment. |
| 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? | We were given a stipend for food, so we only spent money on gifts and entertainment-type things. On average, we might have spent $25 US/week |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | You will not be working while you are in Samoa, so be sure to save up around $400 or so |
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? | N/A |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
We practiced language in intensive language classes with our academic director, who has lived in Samoa for a very long time. Most people spoke English to varying degrees, but we used Samoan whenever we could. The SIT students spoke to each other in a weird English and Samoan hybrid language. |
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? | If you want to go off the beaten path and break out of your comfort zone, this program is for you! |
