Edinburgh: A needed divergence from school in the states Past Review
By Ian R (COMPUTER AND INFORMATION SCIENCES AND SUPPORT SERVICES., SUNY - Binghamton) for
SUNY Binghamton: Edinburgh - Exchange & Study Abroad Program at University of Edinburgh
Yes
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I would recommend taking one or two hard classes, preferably in your major. Don't push yourself to do more than this or you will be spending more time than you would like to doing schoolwork instead of getting to know Edinburgh and/or other parts of Europe. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Very independent. The school does not do much in terms of orienting students. Though I missed the orientation due to flight cancellations during bad weather conditions, not much information was given to me by Binghamton explaining how/where to get things done. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I lived in a dorm, where I expected to have a local roommate. I ended up, like the rest of the students, living in a single room. I would recommend renting a flat, as you live with a small amount of kids and it is much easier to meet people. |
| * Food: |
Dorm food was worse than New Paltz's, but food in Edinburgh was good. Much more mediterranean and middle eastern food than most places in the states. I would not recommend Chinese food here, I ate from four different restaurants and they were all terrible. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
At the university of edinburgh, they end lectures nearly a month before final examinations(at least in the spring). This is a great opportunity to travel with friends. Flights to Europe are cheap, as are hostels. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Visiting the on-campus doctors offices is easy. |
| 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? | Personally, I probably spent around 25 GBP(40 usd) a week. I was eating breakfast and dinner in the dining hall though. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Beer and ale is expensive, though much cheaper than that of the states. If you go to a pub, you do not need to tip! It is not customary. |
Language
| 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?
Select all that apply |
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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 do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Meet people and try to travel around. Explore the city. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Computer Security |
| Course Department: | Informatics/Computer Science |
| Instructor: | Mike Just |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | Too challenging. Could easily have been a graduate level course here at New Paltz, while it was third year at Edinburgh. 90 percent theoretical, with two small labs. Students were expected to learn most material on their own, and it being computer security, not an easy task. With a different professor it may have been better, as the topics were interesting. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
