Study Abroad: Learn Beyond the Classroom! Past Review
By Therese K (University of Northern Iowa) - abroad from 05/12/2012 to 05/20/2012 with
University of Northern Iowa: Taipei City - Entrepreneurship in Taiwan
So much! I have a new appreciation for our culture and a better understanding of Taiwanese and Chinese culture. It was so worthwhile, I'd do it again for twice the price.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
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 |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
Options were great, I'm just really picky. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Our host buddies made us feel so welcome, but there were some stares. We light-haired midwesterners looked pretty out of place. It wasn't uncomfortable, just something I noticed. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
No real health issues. Katherine always had band-aids though. |
| * Safety: |
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| 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) |
It wasn't cheap, but with all the preparatory information, I was able to budget really easily. |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | Yes |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | I spent less than $200 US on "extras." I suppose that includes nearly all our meals, but Katherine helped us plan for much more than we actually spent. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Get a budget breakdown, understand general meal costs and understand the exchange rate. Restaurant eating is extremely affordable in Taiwan, something I didn't expect. |
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 say three because we only learned a few words. But we used those words often! |
| 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? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | None |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 0 |
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? | The point of the consumer behavior class. I wouldn't have put so much time/effort into it because it was only a two hour class, many things were just top level observations. |
