SIT: Fortaleza - Social Justice and Sustainable Development Past Review
By Taylor S (Anthropology/ International relations, University of Arkansas - Fayetteville) for
Study Abroad Programs in Brazil
Of course. There is nothing like going abroad and living abroad. I am much more confident now, more patient, more understanding, more adventurous, and more excited for my future knowing that more experiences like this one await me. Oh, and now I finally have conquered another language. I am going back as soon as possible.
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | None |
| 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. |
SIT in general I feel is caught in a bind. They are required to have so many classroom hours so that they may be an accredited American university, but they preach the philosophy of experiential learning. It is frustrating for students who want to have a different study abroad experience in which they can be immersed in the culture to spend 7 hours a day, 5 days a week sitting in a classroom. SIT needs to step outside of the box and come up with more creative ways to live their philosophy while accomplishing their requirement of having a certain number of classroom hours. The lectures get so long and boring in the classroom. Plus, the topics were very general anyway. They can delve deeper because most of us had studied something about the area, its history, and its situation. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Everyone was really helpful, but at times, they were too busy. Having individual meetings with them to address certain issues was not always easy. Also, communication about logistics was not always good, creating some confusion and tension between the students and faculty. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Wonderful. They live in a bairro called Cristo Redentor in a nice house with a gate. I had my own room, but lived with my mom, sister, and my sister's husband-to-be. One of my brothers and his family lived over our house. <br /><br /> I loved everything about my host family. I have nothing to complain about. They were fun, helpful, would show me around, and were always dancing and singing. They are my family forever. |
| * Food: |
Fortalezan food in general is really bland. It is just not my favorite type of cuisine. I was always well-fed though. That was never a problem. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The excursions were wonderful and should be extended. Fortaleza is not truly indicative of most realities in the Northeast of Brazil, so the excursion allowed us to visit and truly begin to understand the fusion of cultures and the different ways of life present in that region of the country. I made so many connections and had such a great time exploring the new places that we were taken. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Fortaleza and Salvador are not safe cities. You can take all of the precautions that you want and unfortunate things still may happen to you because of the crack epidemic in these two cities. I was fortunate enough to never have anything happen to me, but everyone constantly tells you how dangerous certain places are. |
| 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? | $30 maybe. Everything is really cheap. You do not have to pay for your meals or transport to and from school. If you do not like to go out, you basically can spend nothing each week. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Receiving health care services is by far the most expensive thing. If you do not have traveler's insurance, this expense can set you back about $100+ each visit. If you go with SIT, though, you should be reimbursed for this expenditure if you file correct paperwork and save all of your receipts for visits and medication. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
My improvement had everything to do with me eventually surrounding myself during my research project with all Portuguese speakers. I lived on an island off the coast of Salvador for three weeks, and there, the language finally clicked with me. Before that, the poor language instruction and the constant interaction with American students made it difficult to fully grasp the language. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | If you a laid-back and can go with the flow, you will experience some amazing things in Brazil. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Portuguese I |
| Course Department: | |
| Instructor: | Diana |
| Instruction Language: | Portuguese/English |
| Comments: | This was my least favorite part about the whole experience. Immediately, when you arrive in country, you are tested in the language. This would not be a big problem if all of the language classes offered were directed by well-equipped teachers. More than half of the group did not speak a word of Portuguese, but those that knew Spanish were put into the intermediate class. The rest were put into Beginner I. This was the group of students that needed the most help with the language, but the teacher was far from the person that could help us learn. She was not prepared. She spoke in English most of the time. She would go off on tangents. She would play games almost every day, which did not help us learn the basics that we needed. Even when we addressed here within the first week about moving faster to try to catch up, our requests were not heard. She continued to teach in the same manner. I believe this greatly inhibited my ability to gain some control of the language for the first 2 months that I was there. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | I do not know yet about transfer credits |
