I am a pre-vet student that was interested in gaining experience in veterinary medicine that would help boost my resume for vet school application. At first glance the Veterinary Medicine Research and Observation Program looked like everything that I could have asked for. My family and I looked up reviews like these and only saw one that was of any concern. Adelante “explained” to me that this review had no factual base. Please don’t let them do this to you about my review.
Before leaving for Scotland I received a document that outlined my responsibilities. It stated, “During your visit, you will have the opportunity to see and participate in animal research at the Welcome Trust Critical Care Laboratory for Large Animals. You will have the opportunity to observe the care of horses and other large farm animals and observe modern techniques being used in clinical case management in the large and small animals undergoing major surgery and visit with our research teams and staff and other animal care clinics.” Unfortunately, the only one of these responsibilities that we were allowed to participate in was to observe modern techniques being used in clinical case management. Even more limiting was the fact that our supervisor in-country stuck us solely in the anesthesia department with little hopes of exploring other departments. This lead to a very boring experience spent standing around in one place.
The first two weeks were very educational as we worked alongside knowledgeable fourth year students and learned a lot of valuable new information. The next four weeks were a nauseating repetition of the same introductory information as new fourth year students came to anesthesia for the first time. I did my best to contact our in-country and out-of-country supervisors to speak with them about other opportunities to see something other than anesthesia. Our in-country supervisor was very inaccessible by phone and email and our out-of-country supervisor put us into contact with another clinic but we were never allowed to go and visit it.
As it may now be clear, we were unable to make contact with anyone who could tell us where to go, what to do, or what was new to see. This frustration ran over into the foretold responsibility to participate in research. Of the fourteen days that were outlined to us by our in-country supervisor as opportunities to research only two of them were actually semi-productive research days. These two days only came about because I did the investigating MYSELF to find the research center and show up there IN HOPES that I may be able to speak with someone face-to-face. When I contacted Adelante to see what if anything we could do to not miss any more of these research days than we already had and how to better access our in-country supervisor their response was, “The ‘research days’ on the schedule you received are new to us” and “in past placements, ‘research days’ were never a part of the program.” This simply does not match up with the list of responsibilities that ADELATE gave us; it CLEARY STATES that we would get the opportunity to research!!!!!! Adelante suggested that we camp outside our in-country supervisor’s office or to ask reception where he was. What good would sitting outside his office all day do other that force us to miss observation of surgeries in the hospital next door?
Fortunately, I did enjoy getting to know the residents in anesthesia because they were incredibly nice and did their best to make our experience enjoyable. I also enjoyed all of the tourist activities that we got to do on the weekends.

When I first arrived to Edinburgh, the first thing that stroke me was how friendly and supportive the citizens were. It immediately built up the excitement I had to spending 6 weeks in the city. On top of that, the accommodation that we were assigned to couldn't have been more convenient: right off the Royal Mile; the historic heart of Edinburgh that is filled with tons of things to see and do. The landlord was also extremely helpful in terms of recommending which tours we could trust. The observation program was phenomenal: the other interns had different levels of experience and came from diverse background so it was great to share our insights and perspectives on distinct experiments that we conducted.

Additionally, since I wasn't yet familiar with the process of data analysis, the professors were very helpful in guiding us through the softwares to accurately conduct experiments, collect the data and then analyze it with specific guidelines.

Traveling around Edinburgh was quite easy and I highly recommend purchasing a bus card (Ridacard) as it significantly facilitated the daily journeys and allowed me to explore around Edinburgh. There's also a bus station that has daily trips to other cities such as Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee for decent prices.

There were tons of activities to keep me busy in the city after our days at the lab; from film festivals to free museums to dance classes...... Meeting people is then not so difficult and you can quickly feel like you belong to the city.

If you are a person that likes to walk around beautiful scenery, explore hidden gardens in addition to loving research: what are you waiting for? This is your chance to improve your skills and challenge yourself socially! Oh and keep in mind that wee means little :)

I wasn't entirely sure what to expect headed into this program, but I definitely got everything out of it that I was looking for. The central living location was awesome for exploring around Edinburgh & our landlord was incredibly friendly and accommodating. The internship itself blew me away and was exactly the sort of experience I was looking for. All the interns and I had a lot of independence in planning our schedule at the University and working with the staff to create our own unique plan. Being we all came from different amounts of research backgrounds, it was nice that the professors tailored each of our experiences to be more specifically suited for our individual needs while still covering a range of the research process (running participants, coding data, learning new software, developing study ideas, etc.). Being in Edinburgh as well was phenomenal because there were plenty of easy ways to travel allowing me to visit the highlands, Glencoe, Loch Ness, the Isle of Skye, Manchester, and I even took a weekend trip to Venice. I would definitely recommend this program to any individual who loves a high level of independence and is looking to further enhance their research abilities-- you will not be disappointed!

Adelante's study abroad program exceeded my expectations, I received equal levels of cultural experiences and academic knowledge. The program's lecturers were beyond knowledgable about their respective subjects and wanted us to have the best time possible. This is the easiest and funnest way to earn some college credit whilst you are a in another country.

The staff did struggle with communication to the students about daily activities but it allowed us to learn to be flexible. It was frustrating at times because our course paperwork was not outlined in an orderly fashion but was ultimately finished.

Overall the experience allows participants to juxtapose management systems in Scotland with those in the United States.

This study abroad trip with Adelante to Scotland was my first experience to see a completely new environment and culture. Although I have been a well versed travel in the Untied States. None of my past experiences come close to the experience I have had in Scotland this past month. For a country that is so small compared to the United States, Scotland has such a diverse landscape. One day we drove about an hour away from our campus with our instructor. All he told us was we were going to take an overnight trip to Loch Lomond and we would be doing some work on the side of Ben Lomond. As we started our hike up Ben Lomond with a spade in one hand and a pair of wellies in the other, we realised was going to be a long day. After a two mile hike up the side of the "wee" hill we started making dams in the peat bogs out of peat. The view from the side of Ben Lomond was definitely worth the hike and labour. From the Lowlands to the Highlands, Scotland has some of the most magnificent scenery I have ever seen. This trip has made me want to visit more places around the world, but hopefully in the near future I can come back to Scotland.

Overall, this program provided a great balance between education and culture. From working in peat bogs to banding birds... even climbing a mountain, we were able to fully experience Scotland and all its beauty.

The positives:
- The work we got to do was unlike any traveling experience. You wouldn't get to do anything we did on any other tour.
- We had Sundays off to explore what we wanted (I recommend the Highlands, Aviemore was such a cute ski town that provided great access to some Highland walks).
- Such a variety of landscape! We got to walk in peat bogs, climb mountains, and walk in sandy beaches. Everything is so close you could do it all in one day.
- The class work never got in the way of having a great time on the sites.

The negatives:
- Lack of communication was a concern. The schedule was changed so many times that we had little to no time in advance to know what we were going to do that day. It would have been nice to know in advance, as we could have planned more outings to Edinburgh and longer weekend trips.
- Food lacked nutrition and there were no substitutes in protein and iron if you are a vegetarian.
- Because of the students on campus, we were not able to call for taxis. Their behaviour spoiled our source of transportation and we needed the staff (and community members when we were off campus) to call the cabs for us.

The positive far out way the negatives. Given the chance to go again, I would do it in a heartbeat!

Prepare for cooler weather and high winds in Scotland, as well as high 60's to mid 70 degree temperatures. Scotland is a beautiful area, with beautiful weather. However, "Scotland can get all 4 seasons in one day" is a very real statement made here, so be prepared for varying weather and tons of fun.

This trip was an amazing experience. Every day was different - sometimes we would go to nature reserves and speak to habitat managers about their work, other days we would work out on peat bogs, and some days we could sneak in a visit to a castle or two. I learned a lot about conservation in Scotland, and I look forward to applying what I've learned in the future.