Abroad101: Study Abroad Reviews

Poa Kichizi Kama Ndizi Past Review

By (Middlebury College) - abroad from 01/20/2016 to 05/04/2016 with

SIT Study Abroad: Tanzania - Wildlife Conservation and Political Ecology

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
It was worthwhile. I learned to be very independent, I learned Kiswahili, I grew very close to my friends on the program, I made many friends and I plan to go back after I graduate.

Review Photos

SIT Study Abroad: Tanzania - Wildlife Conservation and Political Ecology Photo SIT Study Abroad: Tanzania - Wildlife Conservation and Political Ecology Photo SIT Study Abroad: Tanzania - Wildlife Conservation and Political Ecology Photo SIT Study Abroad: Tanzania - Wildlife Conservation and Political Ecology Photo SIT Study Abroad: Tanzania - Wildlife Conservation and Political Ecology Photo

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 6 months+

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

We were only given specific reading resources and were unable to do much outside reading, our courses were biased.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

The Tanzanian staff was wonderful

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

* Food:

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

There were aspects to the program my semester- administrative aspects that were really uncomfortable, unnecessary, inappropriate- that I would not want to relive. Reese has since been removed and I believe they are overhauling the program as to avoid that in the future. I wouldn't want to do that again. Other aspects of the program- ISP, Kiswahili, safaris, home-stay families- they are incredible and made it worthwhile.

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)

There were really not many expenses outside of personal shopping. They gave us a stipend of about $12 a day when we were in the city for housing and food so we all had to stay at the cheapest hostel which was fine. Then we had about $5 for food a day which was often not enough so we used personal money.

Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? $40
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? I would buy snacks at the "muzungu market" which were expensive and I could have easily saved like $200 not doing that.

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? Yes
How much did the program encourage you to use the language?

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

How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? None
How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? Intermediate
What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? I had never taken Kiswahili before
How many hours per day did you use the language?
Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? Do an ISP alone, without any English speaking friends and just speak Kiswahili.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Other
  • Host Family
  • Hostel
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Americans
  • Host Family
  • Other
* 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?
  • Kiswahili
  • ISP
  • Home stay
* What could be improved?
  • Staff
  • academics
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? I wish I had learned Kiswahili beforehand so I could have had a baseline to work from.

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 Nearly Native or Trail Blazer
Craving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.'

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:

Research Methods
Course Department: Anthropology
Instructor: Reese Matthews
Instruction Language: English
Comments: No, they barely gave us any instruction on how to properly conduct research, I had previously taken this course at Middlebury so I felt confident in my research abilities but I felt like there was no support, no academic literature shared on proper research methods, and no assessment to see whether we were ready to go off alone.
Credit Transfer Issues: Unknown, haven't received my transcript yet.