Truly changed my mindset about the world Past Review
By Mia DiMeglio (University of Connecticut) - abroad from 01/15/2016 to 05/15/2016 with
UConn: Granada - UConn in Granada, Spain
You learn a lot about your limits, what you are capable of doing on your own. You're forced out of your comfort zone and tested to adapt.
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. |
Never got a syllabus for some of my classes. All of the classes were under 25 students and some professors didn't even bother to know our names. When finals came around it was kind of a jam trying to figure out what resources we could use to study, there were no textbooks. It wasn't necessarily a bad experience, just different than what I would do in the states. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I loved living with my señora because I was the only student in the apartment and had my own space. Some of my friends lived with children or other students who they had to share a space with, and I don't know if that would've worked for me. At times, students on my program had wished we were able to live together in Resedencia's to be able to have our own place to congregate and pass time. |
| * Food: |
Food in Spain was not exactly what I expected. My Señora made me a lot of sopa... kind of wish I could've just cooked for myself. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Going on this program with 30 students from UConn made it really difficult to branch out and meet natives and practice the language. The fact that our classes were taught 100% in spanish was awesome and definitely helped immerse us. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Was kind of difficult for me to deal with the CISI insurance while abroad. I had a situation where I had to set up direct billing... because I couldn't pay for it on site and deal with the reimbursement process (which was also a hassle), and setting up the DB was not a process that was easy to start up, but eventually it went smoother. |
| * Safety: |
I felt really safe in Granada by the end of it compared to what I came in thinking it would be like. As long as you watch your belongings, and keep your purse in front of you, pick-pocketing wasn't much of an issue. I wouldn't advise students to go into the Albaicin alone at night either, generally you should try to be with a group. |
| 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) |
You do more spending on leisure items because it feels like you are living on vacation. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | around 100-200, some weeks I would try and spend less. I would spend most on weekend trips. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Don't go shopping, just wait for the right item to stumble upon you. You will find cooler things and spend less that way. |
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 |
I wish our program director enforced us to speak spanish more amongst the group, other than that we really had to use our skills with others. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | 3000 level spanish |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Really try to speak it with the students in your program, or with other students in the city. |
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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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
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 wish I had made videos using a GoPro to remember my experience better. But I am so glad I kept my journal and wrote in it throughout the trip. |
