A Different World Past Review
By A student (Nursing, University of Maine - Orono) - abroad from 08/23/2015 to 12/17/2015 with
USAC India: Bengaluru – Culture, Society, and Global Perspectives
I learned to be more adaptive. I am so glad that I went and had that experience. I gained a lot of confidence in myself and learned to be more independent and brave.
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. |
There was not much homework until the very end. However, once at the end there were long papers due in almost every class. Along with this, the professors did not give very clear guidelines and, even after being prompted for more clarity, were very vague on what they expected. This made it difficult to provide what they wanted. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Jacob and Seema were wonderful and extremely helpful! |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
We had some problems with the apartments (water filters breaking, shower heater not working, etc.) but overall it was adequate and really all that I needed. |
| * Food: |
Indian food it delicious!! Just go easy at first... |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
As long as you are smart, Bangalore is 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) |
My spending varied depending on what I was doing but there were some weeks when I spent almost nothing! Food and travel (between the apartments and school) are very cheap! |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | <$50 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Bring a decent amount of western clothes! I had to spend money buying some there. Believe it or not, Indian clothes are pretty much just for school! You will want some western (not too many) clothes. |
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 |
Most people spoke English so it was not really an issue! But you could definitely try your hand at Kannada/Hindi. |
| 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 |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 0 |
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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| 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? | How intense India was going to be. I also wish I had known that India, while different, still has some western attributes! |
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 AdventurerThe 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. |
