An incredible, eye opening learning experience Past Review
By A student (University of Hartford) - abroad from 09/02/2019 to 12/14/2019 with
USAC Spain: Valencia - Spanish Culture, Language, and STEM Disciplines
I became much more independent while growing my Spanish language skills greatly. It was absolutely worth it and I would do it 100 times over.
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. |
Compared to my home University, the classes were not very intense, but that is largely due to the types of classes I was taking abroad. All of my teachers were very eager to help us succeed. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The administrators were always available and would answer any questions that we had. They planned good field trips and helped us make sure things were in order with our home universities. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I stayed in a homestay and it was an incredible experience. My host mom was eager to help us learn and make us comfortable. She is the reason my Spanish improved so greatly. She lived in a nice comfortable apartment where I had my own room and shared a bathroom with the other girl studying abroad. |
| * Food: |
My host mom was a very good cook and prepared lunch and dinner for us daily. She loved introducing new foods to us. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Most of my cultural integration was through my homestay, but I also had a Spanish conversation partner and took three cultural immersion classes: windsurfing, dances of Spain, and cooking. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
When I had to go to the doctor, the program directors made an appointment for me and brought me to the appointment to help me check in, and they were willing to come to the appointment and translate for me if I had needed. |
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| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
The biggest draw for me was the Spanish classes. I love that the classes were in a track so I could take three Spanish language classes during the semester, plus a Spanish conversation class. I also loved the program location and the one credit cultural immersion classes. |
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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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 |
Many people had very few language skills so it was difficult to have everyone speaking Spanish, but they were very willing to let me practice with them when I wanted. |
| 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? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | AP Spanish in high school |
| 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 to people in Spanish as often as possible. Don't worry about making mistakes, just practice speaking and getting your ideas across and the grammar and vocabulary skills will follow. |
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? | I'm not sure. I feel like it was very easy to discover everything that I learned, and the whole semester was a great big learning experience! |
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 Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
