A Learning Experience That I Would Never Trade Past Review
By Alanis Hickman (Susquehanna University) - abroad from 01/19/2018 to 05/26/2018 with
University of Nicosia - Global Semesters: Nicosia - Semester in Cyprus
How different cultures and countries live.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The class structure was interesting but way too long. Having to learn 3 hours worth of information for each class and each class only meeting once a week was intense. Also, the professors went over topics in depth, to ensure that the students obtained the information, which was helpful! The professors accents were slightly tricky to understand in the beginning but as the semester continued it was much easier to understand. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
It was great! |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The living arrangements were better than expected. The solar power heating for hot water took a little longer to get use to but it was not as bad once I was use to using it. The wifi could have been better especially since that was my main form of communication to my family. The mattresses and beds were horrible, I have experienced pain multiple times due to the beds. |
| * Food: |
The food was good! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
At times I would feel left out in class especially if the professors and students would speak in greek. Overall, the people of Cyprus were pretty friendly. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
The pharmacy was extremely helpful, especially being so close to the apartment. I did not have any other health issues that required immediately attention. |
| * Safety: |
Cyprus was pretty safe just never go out alone especially at night. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
I would like to experience another country. |
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) |
I spent a lot of money, I did not budget as well as I should have. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | An average of $100 a week |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Budget all trips and personal expenses prior to coming. |
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 |
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| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | College level spanish |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 0 |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Practice the language, it would help a lot especially speaking to the locals |
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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* 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? | That knowing the language could have made things a lot easier and traveling does not always go as plan. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Psy-285 |
| Course Department: | Psychology |
| Instructor: | Dr. Xenia Hadjicharalambous |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | The professor was unorganized and late to every class. The concepts and assignments that were expected for us to understand and complete were unclear. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
| Course Name/Rating: |
Phil-101 Introductio to Philosophy |
| Course Department: | Philosophy |
| Instructor: | Dr. Christos Panayides |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | The class included interesting topics but the professor was uninteresting. The professor was good at explaining topics, what was expected of us and what would be on quizzes and exams. However, the professor was unfairly strict on wording for the exams and quizzes. He expected us to memorize the notes verbatim and deducted points if the answers were not in his words. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
| Course Name/Rating: |
Biol-431 Bioethics |
| Course Department: | Biology |
| Instructor: | Dr. Angeliki Laoutari |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | The class was really interesting and she was extremely helpful with what she expected for us to know for the exams. However, her accent was a bit strong and challenging to understand at times |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
| Course Name/Rating: |
Biol-241Immunology |
| Course Department: | Biology |
| Instructor: | Dr. Stella Nicolaou |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | By far my favorite class! It was a bit challenging because it was a lot of information to understand. However, the professor was great at explaining lecture in terms that was easy to understand. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
