Past Review
By Rebecca R (Nursing., SUNY - Binghamton) for
SUNY Binghamton: Juan Dolio - Community Health in Dominican Republic
Extremely worthwhile. I was able to see how people in a third world country live.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
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 |
The instructor had a vast knowledge of the country- mostly in regards to its health care system. The program allowed us to truly learn about how people in the Dominican culture live. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
resort <br /><br /> The resort was about thirty minutes from where we worked every day. Most everything was included, such as meals, we just had to bring toiletries. |
| * Food: |
The food affected most student's GI systems. Traveler's diarrhea was a very common ailment. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We got to go to Santo Domingo which is the capital. This trip showed the contrast between the rich and poor here in this country. When we were here it felt as if we were in a first world country when in reality we were in a third world country. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
It is not a good idea to go to certain hospitals here for care because many patients will get worse in these specific hospitals. The problems we had were easily addressed by the instructor- some people just needed over the counter medications. It is necessary to get the required vaccines before traveling here. |
| 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 50 dollars. Most meals were eaten at the resort (it was all inclusive) but snacks needed to be bought at grocery stores. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | bring enough to buy some snacks and to go out to dinner once or twice. if planning on shopping bring money for that- other than that not much money was spent. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
I was able to speak the language with many of the citizens of the country, including the patients we saw. Advice: don't be afraid to speak the language, practice will only help you get better. |
| 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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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Be prepared to encounter things you may have never encountered before. It is an amazing experience. If you have an interest in health care- go! |
