UCEL is what you make of it Past Review
By Allison K (Spanish Language and Literature., Shenandoah University) for
Universidad del Centro Educativo Latinoamericano (UCEL): Rosario - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
Of course it was worthwhile, although I think it could be much more accessible financially if it were not a GEL program. While it was nice to have the travel arrangements made for us and to have a faculty leader in the airport arriving in Argentina, this could be done away with and everything be far less expensive. The $1500 more that it was between 2009 and 2010 was not worth the small amount of confidence and convenience.
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | UCEL |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The host program administration was excellent; THIS DOES NOT NEED TO BE A FACULTY-LED PROGRAM, that was a waste of money!!!! |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My housing location was beautiful, slightly far from university so I would not place anyone there who was not willing to walk a lot or take MANY cabs and/or buses... My host family was very adament about my Spanish improvement;I ended up living alone with my host-brother,I would not recommend this for undergraduate students, it was lucky I am older and MUCH more flexible. |
| * Food: |
Food at host's house was wonderful and well-adjusted to my vegetarian diet; arranged meals through UCEL were NOT very vegetarian friendly... |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Traffic was VERY dangerous, but this cannot be avoided... |
| 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
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
I spoke Spanish ONLY in my host home, but several of the students were with hosts that eventually refused to speak Spanish with them. That was very discouraging to witness. |
Direct Enrollment/Exchange
| * Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? | Direct Enrollment |
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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A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | I benefitted greatly from the GEL trip to UCEL. My Spanish improved drastically. I believe this was a combination of the great teaching provided by UCEL and my own willingess to speak Spanish only as much as possible. While I spent every evening talking with my hosts about all sorts of topics, and struck up conversations with people outside of the program, I did see some of the other students avoid using Spanish at all costs and manage to get away with it. That was discouraging. This program can be just a 3-week-long trip to see some of Argentina and take classes with native-speaker teachers, or it can be an almost full-immersion program. It is what you make of it. Tell your hosts you would prefer to use little to no Engligh at all times if possible. Think about this as IMMERSION!!! |
Comments
Reviewed by Jean Hayes, SU Study Abroad Coordinator
deleted-1543242593Shenandoah_Advisor June 22, 2011
