New Zealand: A fantasy land that will always be a big part of who I am today Past Review
By Jaime D (Film Production, Keene State College) for
The Education Abroad Network (TEAN): Wellington - Victoria University of Wellington
YES.. my study abroad experience was so worthwhile and is something that I will never forget and will remain a huge part of my life/me. This experience has made more open to people, and countries and it allowed me to experience life in a different culture. Because of this, I feel stronger, more personable, open, adventurous, wiser etc. This experience allowed me to learn more about myself as well and I like to think that New Zealand helped make me a better person! I also met so many amazing and inspiring people that I hope will be my friends for life. Now, I have plans to travel a lot more.. studying abroad definitely gives you the risk of catching the travel bug.
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. |
There was a pretty significant difference in the school system in New Zealand vs. America. It took a little bit of getting used to. The grading system was both harder and easier compared with most American universities. While the professors at Victoria expected more from your written assignments and thorough knowledge of the subject, the grading system is easier, which kind of balanced it out. While in America a 55 is usually an F, in NZ it's a C, so unless you wrote a terrible paper with nothing relevant to the subject, it seemed that you would most likely pass. In New Zealand, each class has a tutorial, which some American universities have, but I never had a tutorial till NZ. I didn't know about them till I went to my classes for the first time and we had to sign up for them. It was a surprise and made my schedule busier then I expected but they helped out a lot. They usually care more if you attend the tutorial then the class because during the tutorial they do assignments and discussions. Overall, it was pretty different but over time it was relatively easy to adapt too! |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
They hosted several events to bring together the international students which was really awesome because by the time we left, most of us recognized each other. They were very welcoming and helpful and were easy to reach. However, it wasn't too much of it which I liked.. we had the option of going to these events but it wasn't required. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Initially, my friend and I requested to live together since we were traveling there together and they had allowed that, which was really nice. The apartment was one of the few that still hadn't been renovated so it was a very uncomfortable place to live and was old, drafty, gross, etc. We did not have buy many things to settle in, which was also nice. It was also very close to classes which was ideal. The only downside was the actual condition of the house. |
| * Food: |
Being a vegetarian, I was nervous I would have trouble finding foods to eat in New Zealand. However, that wasn't a problem. There are many vegetarians and vegans in NZ as well as vegetarian restaurants. As far as grocery foods go, there is pretty much everything you would find in America, minus some foods and the name brands. As for restaurants, there's a little bit of everything, there's greek, pubs, grills, fast foods, mexican, sushi, pizza etc. There is a lot of tasty foods in this country! If studying in Wellington, I'd recommend Heaven's Pizza and the Flying Burrito Brothers on Cuba St. These places are AWESOME and delicious! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The orientation organized by TEAN was AMAZING. We got to explore a couple of cities in NZ, we went zorbing, white water rafting, ate delicious foods, etc. I loved the orientation and it also brought everyone in the program closer. The pre-semester trip to Fiji was also amazing as well. The island is beautiful, the people are so nice and welcoming, the trip-leader was fun and was around for us but we could do whatever we wanted - time of my life. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
As far as healthcare, I never really had to do anything with it. As for safety, New Zealand (Wellington in particular) is a very safe place, we could walk the streets and night and we never had any problems. However, there was one incident with a friend that happened in town on a pretty busy night so even though its a safe place, you should always be smart and still be aware! Most people are very friendly and very helpful if you ever need it! |
| 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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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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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? | Take every opportunity that you are offered. A trip to New Zealand may be a rare one, so make the most of every second you have there. Don't be afraid to go out of your comfort zone and meet people. Become friends with international students and Kiwi's themselves and just live it up! Also, traveling is relatively cheap, take advantage of that. There is so much to New Zealand, every part differs from the last in some way.. see as much as you can and do as much as you can! |
