A Few Americans Roam the Cobblestone August 15, 2022
By A student (Secondary Education, Northern Arizona University) - abroad from 05/31/2022 to 08/11/2022 with
USAC Germany: Lüneburg - German Language, European and Sustainability/Environmental Studies
I learned how to confidently interact with people who don't speak my native language and gained lots of self confidence in the process
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. |
Professors genuinely enjoyed teaching and were incredibly helpful and supportive. |
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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? |
I was warned that it was going to be an independent living situation in a Homestay with one other student, but what I wasn't warned about was how far outside of town I was. Every day, it was an hour bus ride (or hour walk) to town and to the university. This was incredibly isolating since buses stopped running at 8 on weekdays and earlier on weekends, and most of my peers lived within 10 minutes of town by foot. |
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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: |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
I would do a semester long program instead of a Summer program. |
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 housemate and I took turns buying groceries and cooked big meals to last the week, so financials were easy abroad because of our system. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $100 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Explore a German supermarket to know what ingredients you're familiar with and which are new, this will help when you're meal planning for the week. |
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 |
Every day! |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | German 202 |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Just talk! You will make mistakes and that's how you learn |
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 clique-ish the different living situations became, i.e. Apartment squad, in town Homestay people |
