A Good Beginner's Guide Past Review
By Paige A (Siena College) - abroad from 02/13/2012 to 07/20/2012 with
WorldStrides Study Abroad in Perth, Australia
Never traveled abroad before this and was very hesitant, but everything went better than could be planned. I feel empowered, like I could live anywhere and figure it out.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Classes only meet once a week, and most work is major research assignments, but they were not overwhelming and I genuinely feel like I learned a lot. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Like any other university administration. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Port Lodge is a fun environment, but an old building. Generally liked living in a single, cooking for myself. |
| * Food: |
You cook for yourself, and have community dinner twice weekly. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
It's impossible to not be a part of the community, Perth/Fremantle is small and comfortable. I worked at a community bike workshop and met people that way. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Two friends had health issues and were covered by Australian visa healthcare completely. |
| * Safety: |
Fremantle is a small city, 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 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
Australia is just more expensive than America. I was spending about 100$ per week for basics and then a bit more for fun things. |
| * 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? | $100 |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | There's a 300$ community dinner fee! |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
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? | $5000 is not enough, save more!! |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Aboriginal People |
| Course Department: | Aboriginal Studies |
| Instructor: | Steve Kinnane |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | Challenging because I knew nothing about Aboriginal culture prior to this course. Steve is extremely relevant and knowledgable. Fair workload. You must be opinionated and share your opinions in this class! |
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| Course Name/Rating: |
Social Justice, Service Learning and Community Engagement |
| Course Department: | Social Justice |
| Instructor: | Martin Drum |
| Instruction Language: | Englsih |
| Comments: | If you have any desire to have a career talking to, working with or interacting in any way with other people TAKE THIS COURSE. Guest lecturers each class introduce you to a variety of perspectives and reflection time at the end of each class helps you to sort your ideas and form opinions. |
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