Abroad101: Study Abroad Reviews

I hiked, skied, surfed, fished, and camped all semester. It was epic Past Review

By (Middlebury College) - abroad from 07/03/2017 to 11/12/2017 with

University of Otago, New Zealand: Study Abroad Programme

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
Lots of real-life skills (dealing with a broken car, cooking, organizing trips, living on your own, shopping on a budget).

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 2 weeks - 1 month

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I took a mix of classes. Two were very hard, two were easier intro classes.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

Nothing problematic. They are very used to having a lot of abroad students and managing them well.

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Great

* Food:

Lots of cooking for yourself, and I didn't particularly enjoy the New Zealand cuisine.

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Spent significantly more time with other abroad students than local kiwis

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Didn't have any, but I know people who did and they had no issues

* Safety:

Very safe. A college city and New Zealand in general does not have major violence issues

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

Classes were not too much work and New Zealand is awesome. It is such a fun country to explore and it is hard to find this much time to get there if you aren't studying

Finances

* 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)

USD/NZD exchange rate wasn't great. The travel budget for journeying around NZ was also a little tough.

Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? $300
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? Save money beforehand and enjoy it when you are down there. It is worth it to have a great experience when studying abroad and to try not to worry about money if possible. It is just expensive living on your own, and it is difficult to do much about it

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? No

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

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Apartment
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
  • Americans
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
  • Americans
  • International Students
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?
  • New Zealand is beautiful
  • A good group of International students
  • Classes weren't too demanding
* What could be improved?
  • Classes weren't that interesting
  • It's cold down there
  • Hard to get a job summer before b/c of when the semester starts
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? It is awesome but also fleeting. Be organized and adventure as often as you can (take easier distribution requirements so you have more time). You need to buy a cheap, old car.

Reasons For Studying Abroad

To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you.
The Avid Adventurer
The wardrobe you packed was better suited for a semester of camping than club hopping. Outdoorsy, you might forgo a crazy night out for an early all-day adventure. You'd rather take in the rich culture of an old town than the metropolis of a modern city, but for you getting off the grid is ideal.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:

Environmental Economics
Course Department: Econ
Instructor: unknown
Instruction Language: English
Comments: This was a solid class--probably my favorite taken abroad. Challenging but not too hard. It was well taught and seemed relevant to take an environmental economics course in NZ
Credit Transfer Issues: Not yet.
Course Name/Rating:

GUI interfecaces
Course Department: Computer Science
Instructor: David Eyers
Instruction Language: English (swift)
Comments: Hard course that demanded a lot of time. Good practice though, and I enjoyed the material, just might be a little ambitions to take abroad.
Credit Transfer Issues: I should get 300 level cs credit
Course Name/Rating:

Maori Studies
Course Department: Maori Studies
Instructor: Varied
Instruction Language: Maori and English
Comments: This was a pretty easy class that didn't demand a lot of work. The Maori are the indiginous population in New Zealand, and it was interesting to study their culture.
Credit Transfer Issues: No. I think it is an AAL credit
Course Name/Rating:

Epistemology
Course Department: Philosophy
Instructor: varied
Instruction Language: english
Comments: Pretty boring but very easy.
Credit Transfer Issues: None.