Crazy Things Happen in Russia Past Review

By Rachel F (The College of William and Mary) - abroad from 05/30/2012 to 07/13/2012 with

William and Mary: St. Petersburg - Summer in St. Petersburg

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?

I will be living in Russia through a different program next semester, and I think the best thing I got out of this program was the chance to acclimate myself to Russia a bit before my longer, language intensive program begins. It will be a very new and slightly daunting situation, but I have a good feel now for what life in Russia is like, and going back to Russian in the fall will feel almost like going back down to Virginia for school.

Personal Information

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?
* Food:
* Social & Cultural Integration: How integrated did you feel with the local culture?	This is one of the points which I think the program should really improve upon. I know that we were there in the middle of exams, and it was therefore hard to find any students or such with whom to get us speaking, but finding a way for us to have some kind of conversation partner or local contact would make such a difference. I found it to be really hard to get acquainted with locals other than my host family, and the program didn't really help us in this area.
* Health Care: How well were health issues addressed during the program?
* Safety:
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)
* Was housing included in your program cost?	Yes
* Was food included in your program cost?	No
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week?	50 USD
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants?	Don't go to lunch at restaurants every day; this will get really expensive. Try bringing things from home, stopping at a grocery store to pick up something, or going to reliable street vendors. If you do go to restaurants, give places like Teremok or Chainaya Lozhka a try; they're cheap but still good.

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	Outside of our language classes, we were not really encouraged to use Russian unless we were in a situation which demanded it, such as purchasing something.
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?	Russian 392
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?	Find people outside of the study abroad group to speak with. This can be pretty difficult to do, but if you want to practice speaking Russian, it is your best bet. Don't rely on the people in your group to make much of an effort to speak the native language. Also, take advantage of your home-stay situation and only speak Russian to your host family.

Other Program Information

* Where did you live? Select all that apply	Apartment
* Who did you live with? Select all that apply	Host Family
* Who did you take classes with? Select all that apply	Americans
About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with?	0

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?	The cultural excursions The trip to Moscow The food
* What could be improved?	Lack of contact with locals Low amounts of Russian use Almost total lack of days off
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program?	I really wish I knew that this was a research centered and not language centered program

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:	Phonetics
Course Department:
Instructor:	Nadezhda
Instruction Language:	Russian
Comments:	Even though I was at first surprised to see this course on our list, I really was glad to have it by then end. We covered a lot of material which we do not normally touch upon in class at William and Mary, but is none the less extremely important for speaking Russian correctly. I feel that my intonation and pronunciation improved after having this class. The teacher was also great for listening practice because she spoke with such natural speed and vocabulary, but was always quite willing to stop and explain things to us.
Credit Transfer Issues:	I don't think there were any credit transfer issues.