Great! Past Review

By (The College of William and Mary) - abroad from 01/18/2012 to 05/20/2012 with

William and Mary: Seville - William and Mary in Seville

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
Confidence to call myself fluent in Spanish =)

Personal Information

If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: Pablo de Olavide
How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 6 months+

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I love them!!!!

* Food:

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

I felt very safe, despite what happened to another girl at the beginning of my program. -- That was a freak incident.

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

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)

I will be honest and say that I was VERY lucky because my parents gave me some spending money. If they hadn't, I wouldn't have been able to travel. However, without the traveling even with my budget I would have been totally fine

* Was housing included in your program cost? Yes
* Was food included in your program cost? Yes
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? not much (except for traveling, as mentioned above)
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? You need to budget in expenses for the metro!!! I was not expecting this, and it definitely added up. I would say about 10 Euros a week to get to and from school.

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? Yes
How much did the program encourage you to use the language?

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? Advanced
How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? Fluent
What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? in the 390's
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? Talk to your host family a lot!!!! Try to make Spanish friends. Meet up with your intercambio as much as possible. Don't take any classes in English.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Host Family
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Americans
  • Host Family
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • 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?
  • Host family and speaking the languge
  • Living in Sevilla
  • Making friends with other WM students I didn't know before
* What could be improved?
  • Having classes NOT at Pablo de Olavide, but the Universidad de Sevilla
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? Metro costs It was not too easy to make Spanish friends