Galway Ireland: The most revealing, powerful, and wonderful experience of my life! Past Review
By Nicolette B (Interpersonal Communications, University of Wisconsin - LaCrosse) for
University of Wisconsin - La Crosse: Galway - National University of Ireland
5 hands down. I learned more about myself than I ever deemed possible. It was positive, rewarding, revealing about who I was, empowering, and simply magical. I made some beautiful and life long friends, brought about new cultural awareness and showed that I can be independent and brave. Traveling is now in my future plans and I am so amazed at how 3 weeks in Ireland really changed me for the better.
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
We were taught by American instructors so it was basically what we were used to. We had class for 4 hours out of the day, 3 days a week (monday, wednesday and thursday), and we each required to take 2 classes. There were essays and reading but no quizzes or tests. The work load was manageable, interesting and taught us to look into ourselves. We also tied it in with Irish Culture which was applicable and worth it. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Our program size was completely ideal for me! There were about 32 girls which gave a lot of opportunities to meet new friends and cement connections, although it was sometimes challenging in class to have everyone's opinions expressed. Ireland was absolutely beautiful, exciting, and there was very little culture shock and I felt very comfortable traveling and exploring the local sites. The classes were challenging, yet interesting, and we had plenty of time to travel if we wanted and have fun as well (and we most certainly did)! The instructors and I became very close and they made themselves readily available to all students at all times, which was so wonderful to see that they truly cared and supported us. The campus was lovely, the dorm we stayed in was absolutely fantastic complete with two bathrooms and a full kitchen and living room, we each got our own rooms with plenty of space and it was just wonderful. Easy access to everything we needed at all times :) It well exceeded all expectations. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
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| * Food: |
Perfect for anyone and everyone of any type |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We went surfing, explored castles, did karaoke every other night, danced with the locals, listened constantly to live music, went to several farmers market, shopped and explored the square, ate at a different restaurant every night, went to Dublin Pride and explored all around Dublin, Guinness Factory tour, constant dancing and pub crawling, different shows displaying Irish culture(Trad on the Prom), we had birthday parties and hen parties, and just explored everywhere, going on every tour possible and having an absolute blast! |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
No vaccines needed, the climate was much colder, rainier and drearier overall so many girls caught colds but nothing severe. There was plenty of safety precautions took and it was really wonderful because the whole campus area locked up after 9pm so we constantly felt safe and protected. We also learned to never walk alone (the usual) and cab drivers were always friendly and offering safety advice. We felt very very safe. |
| 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? | A lot more than I anticipated, although it was all worth it. I am not entirely sure how much I would spend in a week.. dinner, drinks (very expensive!), souvenirs, any fun activity like surf lessons, shopping.. it got a bit pricey. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Cabs and bus fares were something I was not anticipating. I was very stressed about money until I learned to just go with it! There may never again be this opportunity or adventure in my life so if I loved something I got it, if I wanted to eat at a certain restaurant, I did, simple as that. There are ways to save money such as shopping for groceries instead of eating out but it depends on individual taste and style. |
Language
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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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? | Do it! Don't think, just do! Put yourself out there, make friends, eat new foods, explore different places and have a blast! It is so worth it! Don't stress yourself out trying to travel every where, either! I stayed in Galway most weekends unless it was us traveling as an entire group and I still had a worthwhile experience! For this particular program given the curriculum, females definitely benefited more than males. |
