Argentina: Appreciating the Value of a Different Culture and Different Educational System Past Review
By Robert W (Music., Carleton College) for
Universidad Nacional de Cuyo: Mendoza - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
It was definitely a good experience. Academically, I don't know that it was on par with my college in the states, but studying abroad is much more than just the classes and I feel that I benefited greatly from the experience of living in a different culture and different language.
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, Unicersidad de Congreso |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
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 program definitely provided the support that I needed, especially in dealing with a lot of the administrative processes. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
IFSA Butler arranged my housing. I was very happy with my host family and really couldn't have asked for a better living situation. |
| * Food: |
The food that I had with my host family was excellent. In the end I didn't try as many of the local restaurants as maybe I could have, because I had such good food at home. I wouldn't want to be a vegetarian in Argentina though. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
There was generally one activity arranged by the program each month. My favorite was an Argentine cooking class that we all went too. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
The city of Mendoza, where we were all housed is fairly safe. I did not have any health-related issues while there, but health care was available. |
| 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? | While in Mendoza, I spent relatively little money, especially as I ate most of the time with my host family. Most of the money that I spent was to travel outside of Mendoza. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | My spending advice would be to take advantage of the discounts that are available. With a certificate from the university, there are discounts available for public transport, both local and long distance. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Fluent |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | SPAN 242 -Intro to Latin American Liturature |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
I used Spanish except when talking with others in the study abroad program. A number of people in Mendoza know at least some English, but we always spoke in Spanish anyway. |
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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