Life Changing Kenya Semester Past Review
By Anna L (CMD, Ithaca College) for
St. Lawrence University: Nairobi - Kenya Semester Program
Absolutely! I was able to grow so much as a person and really expand my cultural awareness. I would love to go back one day!
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. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
It's very structured which is to ensure our safety but at the same time it could get frustrating feeling like we were in high school again and had a lack of freedom however, at the end of the day it was worth it. It's strengths are the programs ability to immerse the students in the culture and really take a lot away from the semester. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
We did one 1 week rural home stay, a 3 week urban home stay and then the majority of the time we stayed on St. Lawrence's compound in Nairobi living with the other students on the program. |
| * Food: |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
It's pretty safe, you definitely have to be careful and listen to what the program tells you. There were a few muggings but everyone was fine at the end of the day and this could have happened anywhere in the world. You shouldn't walk around at night and girls typically shouldn't walk around by themselves. It was very rare though that I felt that my safety was at risk. |
| 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? | About 10-20 dollars. The program provides stipends and everything is pretty cheap. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | N/A |
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? | No course taken in Swahili prior to the semester |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
Most people spoke English in Nairobi but we were still able to practice our Swahili on a daily basis. |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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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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