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Program Description
ProWorld: Study Abroad Program in Peru
Ratings and Reviews
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Beautiful Country! Beautiful People!
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Study with ProWorld if you are looking for a close connection with students, staff, and the local community!
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I pride myself in being a world traveler. Every last cent I save goes to exploring a new country, moving to a new continent, or learning a new language. That said, my fall semester in Cusco, Peru with ProWorld stands out as the single-most positive overseas experience I've had in my lifetime.
ProWorld is unique as a study abroad in that they give students the opportunity to work in tandem with local communities with weekend development projects. In my three months as a ProWorld student I worked on free health care campaigns in the Amazon, reforestation programming in the Andes, and built clean-burning stoves in a dozen communities. For anyone looking to travel during their study abroad, ProWorld provides the opportunity to visit otherwise inaccessible, indigenous regions- all of which is included in the price of the study abroad.
Students live with host families, offering another deep connection to the local culture. My host family welcomed me so wholeheartedly into their homes that we still call each other, and Facebook regularly, even though it's been two and a half years since I left Cusco. When I needed to go to a clinic, my host mom took the day off work so she could go with me and sat next to me in the waiting room for over three hours until I was seen. It was an enormous comfort to truly feel like I had a home away from home during my first extended trip abroad.
For anyone looking forward to enjoying local nightlife, Cusco offers a lot for a city of its size. As the gateway to Machu Picchu, Cusco boasts a great degree of diversity for travelers of all nationalities. Walk down one side street and you have a cozy cafe brewing coffee grown just 25 miles away. Try another, and you have white water rafting companies, vegetarian restaurants, and an LGBTQ nightclub. Looking for newly released DVDs, clothes, or electronics? Tell a taxi driver you want to go to 'Molino,' and enjoy aisle after aisle of shopkeepers looking to haggle. Fortunately for study abroad students, not only are local joints very foreigner friendly (even for non-Spanish speakers), but Peru's low cost of living ensures access to hundreds of new experiences without breaking the bank.
I highly recommend ProWorld's study abroad to any student looking to gain a new perspective on an ancient, and culturally rich society. By offering classes taught in Spanish by Peruvian professors, I really feel as though I got the 'authentic experience,' while also being able to greatly improve my Spanish. Our class size was quite small, at 8 American students, allowing me to get one-on-one attention from my professors, and a solid grasp of course material. We met up with ProWorld's staff every week, offering us time to voice any concerns, or make changes in projects and classes we may have struggled with.
If you are looking to truly connect with the local community, develop lasting friendships with fellow students, and contribute to international development, I can only recommend ProWorld Service Corps.
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An overall AMAZING experience
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Volunteer. Learn. Experience. Have an unforgettable time. Participating in a study abroad with ProWorld was without doubt the best decision I ever made. When I arrived I was given an orientation about what to expect and was then greeted warmly by my Peruvian family. I was constantly surprised at the immense support that was shown to me and the other volunteers in every aspect.
Volunteering in the countryside was both greatly rewarding as well as a very good learning experience. We worked on a project for 'healthier living' in which we built cleaner burning stoves, shelving and ecological refridgerators for the community. In my opinion, the best thing about the work was that ProWorld was not trying to change the way of living of the people we worked with but rather used materials that the community normally used to create anything that we made. The community also had to come to agreement before any project was done because ProWorld did not want to enforce anything on the community that they did not want.
Our classes provided us with real-world applications and tied in nicely with the volunteer work we were doing. During our breaks from school we were also able to travel to places like Arequipa, the Colca Canyon and Mollendo. One of my most memorable experiences was hiking the Inca Trail and peering down at Machu Picchu from the Sun Gate.
Because of this experience I have made life-long friends from around the world and now that I am home I find myself daydreaming about returning to Peru and even have my next trip planned.
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I will never forget ProWorld Peru
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My ProWorld trip to Peru was easily one of the greatest and most memorable times of my life. The ProWorld staff was always there to help and answer questions. I used the convenient, free internet at the ProWorld office many times. They were passionate about the projects and helped make it a comfortable and fun experience. I will never forget Machu Picchu and visiting the floating islands on Lake Titicaca. Constructing cleaner burning stoves made me feel as though I made a major positive change in the lives of rural Peruvians. I improved my world outlook, my mastery of the Spanish language, and my understanding of other cultures and traditions. Peru will always have a place in my heart.
Alumni Interviews
Interview with Jack Hayford, ProWorld-Peru Alum
GO: Why did you decide to study abroad with ProWorld in Peru?
Jack: When I looked into the different programs that I could study abroad with, I decided that ProWorld fit me the best because of the trips we got to take, and the volunteering we were able to do. The classes that were offered at La Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola were great to fit my double major in History and Sociology. I had also heard that Peru was a great place to study Spanish. They speak slowly in Cuzco, and it was really awesome to be able to live with a local family.
Jack enjoying his time in Peru with ProWorld
GO: What made your study abroad experience unique and special?
Jack: One of the may things that made Peru a special location was the history. Cuzco was the capital of the Inca Empire. My school was only 5 minutes by foot from the very center of the Inca Empire, the Plaza de Armas. ProWorld incorporates trips in with the program as part of the program fee, so we had the opportunity to see different ruins around the Cuzco Valley area, and we took a trip to Machu Picchu!
We were also able to visit the Amazon for a weekend. The volunteering was great as well! We got to build a school for a small community from adobe bricks. Aside from volunteering with ProWorld, we were given the opportunity to chose an internship. I taught English to children between the ages of 6-12. The whole experience was fantastic.
One of the many beautiful sights around Cuzco
GO: How has this experience impacted your future?
Jack: After being given the opportunity to teach English to kids, I have decided that I would like to spend some time teaching English in other countries in the future. My whole time abroad has made me more interested in studying foreign languages and cultures. One thing that I gained that I wasn't expecting was a new appreciation for my own culture and country. It seems that the more I study other cultures, the more I learn about my own.
I learned a lot from my different classes. The people were very helpful and kind, and the teachers went out of the way to assist me. It is a bit difficult to stay healthy the whole time you are there, but overall it was a fantastic experience!