205 reviews
3.85 / 5 based on 205 reviews
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2
tricia d
Student life
Describe host city:
Students equally interact with the local and student community
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Nightlife, Travel: Takes place mostly outside the university/student environment
Activities: Takes place both within and outside of the university/student environment
Personal social experience
Personal comments
none
if you are over 22, you will be shunned like the plague
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0
tricia d
Housing
Type of housing:
Arranged by:
If returning, I would choose:
Why?
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0
tricia d
Languages
Language of instruction: English
Was learning English a key decision factor?
No, it wasn't.
Language difficulties
Administrative / Institutional
Personal comments
Since I am over 22, very few (if any) local students dared to interact with me. Fortunately, I interacted with the international community
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1
tricia d
Academic
Course recommendations
Shockingly poor selection of English courses! The fact that the instructors spoke stilted English and the students spoke 1/2 English and 1/2 Dutch should be addressed (especially since I wanted to study ENGLISH LITERATURE).
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My academic experiences
Interaction with teachers
Interaction with international students
Interaction with local students
Personal comments
I thought this was a world class school. The academic program seems to have lowered itself to pander to the students. I mean, come on, several students wrote their essays in DUTCH for an ENGLISH MASTERS! That makes no sense!
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My opinion of the university assessment
Exams throughout the course
Essays and/or projects at the end of course
Essays and/or projects throughout the course
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0
tricia d
Expenses
Main source of funding:
Other
Other sources of funding:
Personal savings
Work opportunities:
I worked during my study abroad experience
Personal spending habits
housing costs are astronomical (for relatively small space)
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Food, Telephone, Housing, Overall:
was more expensive than at home.
Nightlife, Travel:
was the same price as at home.
Accessibility of student needs
Second-hand household items
Personal comments
The books are VERY expensive and second-hand text books are quite difficult to arrange.
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1
tricia d
Overall
I wish I had known...
That the Dutch are not as tolerant as I had always dreamed, the low standards of academic performance, honors courses are unheard of, and that if you are over 25, you will be the grandpa/ma of the class and avoided at all costs.
If you are a mature student, do NOT waste your time!
The Dutch also don't really like Americans that much so if you feel like being accosted about everything that has happened in America as if you're responsible for it the few times they will dare to speak to you or respond to you, you'll love it.
It's not the liberal, open-minded paradise I had always dreamed of (don't let the soft drugs laws fool you)
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In my opinion:
Stay home.
Important factors in my choice
(1) Unimportant – (4) Very important
Personal recommendation
Under 22 = wonderful1
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During my experience abroad, I ...
(1) Never – (4) A lot
Became familiar with another culture
Met people from other countries
Experienced a change in life
Advanced my studies & career
Final comments
I wanted to be completely honest so take what I say with a grain of salt. This country doesn't really believe in lifelong learning so I'm sure people under a certain age would love it here. I'm just in my 30s and had expected something else. It doesn't make this a bad university per se but just not the kind of place you should go if you are mature.
Maybe I have too much life experience and am too critical but this was a MAJOR disappointment.
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