SMCM Greece Study Tour: A Review Past Review
By A student (Biology, General., St. Mary's College of Maryland) - abroad from 06/06/2012 to 06/28/2012 with
St. Mary's College of Maryland: Athens - Greece Study Tour: Athletes, Actors and Sages
I learned that you should be eager to try new things, whether it's food, activities, whatever. When you're abroad, everything (or at least, a lot of things) are different, and you can't be afraid to step a little bit outside of your comfort zone and enjoy what is there. It's not likely you'll regret at least trying something while you have the chance, even if you end up finding you did not like it. This trip was absolutely worthwhile -- I wish it had been longer than three weeks!
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
In addition to on-site learning at archaeological spots and in museums (and occasional "fun fact" lectures during our travels), we read several plays and other ancient works, attended 11 or so evening seminars where we had group discussions, and we wrote several 2-3 handwritten essays about our readings. Sometimes, between the workload and trying to experience the local culture, the amount of work felt overwhelming, but it wasn't ridiculously difficult and I would probably expect as much for a 300-level history class. In addition we have three other research papers to write and an extensive take-home exam. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Our trip was put together with the help of a travel agency that the professors have enlisted the help of for many previous Greece study tours. Overall, aspects of our trip, including hotels, (some) dining arrangements, and transportation, were well orchestrated. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
The food was excellent! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We were able to speak to locals in English, for those who were fluent, but there was a definite language barrier since we were very limited in our Greek, and the trip focused more on the educational benefits from visiting archaeological sites and museums and our readings than from getting to speak to the people and learn about their culture. I'm sure this is in part because the course(s) that fulfill this study tour are of a historical/philosophical nature, rather than anthropological or sociological. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
We had multiple individuals with sufficient first aid items, and there was no need to visit any local hospitals (thankfully). |
| * Safety: |
I felt pretty safe overall. I was always conscious of other people around me and made sure to travel with a group of friends. I didn't feel any immediate threat to my person by being in the area, and the vast majority of Greek people I engaged with were friendly. I was slightly concerned about all of the stray cats and dogs, partially because I'm allergic to them, but we never had issues with animals. |
| 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) |
Thankfully, the professors gave us a 250euro "refund" prior to the trip, which was helpful in the first week and a half (or less, depending on the student) for expenses such as food and souvenirs. I think it would be possible to live on a student's budget if you're only buying food (and even then, if you're careful about what you're buying), but adding souvenirs and other things to the mix can become costly fairly quickly. It is also difficult to easily picture how money you're spending abroad, which has a different "value" than American money, translates in USD. |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | Yes |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 170 euro |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | As the professors advise, bring some snacks in your checked baggage. Meal times in Greece differ from those in the US and there is a longer time between meals. |
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 were encouraged to use the language, but we didn't have much training in the language other than the alphabet and useful phrases. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Beginner |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Learn essential phrases and try to speak Greek to the locals as much as you can. Most can speak English and enjoy when we try to speak to them in their language. You will also find Greeks who cannot speak English, so be prepared. |
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? | I'm not a history or philosophy major, so I wish I had known a little bit more of the history of Greece so I could've benefited more from or better appreciated the magnitude of what I was seeing while I was there. A better understanding of the language would have been helpful too, but truth be told I got by just fine without much of a command of modern Greek. |
