The Education Abroad Network

I absolutely loved my time abroad. The TEAN staff were incredibly accommodating and helpful. Throughout the semester, our contact in Australia took us on trips around Sydney, from tours of the Opera House to surfing on Bondi Beach. Additionally, they contacted us often with lots of useful information before the program started. We also had the opportunity to go on excursions to other parts of Australia and the surrounding countries. I was able to take a weekend trip to Melbourne and a week trip to Fiji beforehand. There I made some amazing friends and lifelong memories. During the semester, I studied at UNSW in Sydney and had the most magical time. Studying abroad is definitely worth it.

Thank you TEAN for giving me the experience of a lifetime! Four months after my study abroad I still think about Australia every single day. I dream about my daily beach walks and swimming in the aqua waters. Pretend that my drip coffee is as good as their lattes and make my own smashed avocado toast and wonder what they do different. I text my abroad friends daily and we reminisce on the good ole days. Somehow all the trips, beach days, classes, and movie nights in the apartment helped me develop into a more independent and open-minded person. None of this would’ve been possible without TEAN. They made helped every step of the way starting with helping find us deals on flights, organizing an orientation where we spent a couple days meeting everyone in the program, setting up the best housing, and even having fun events throughout the semester before helping us get back home. I have struggled to find a critique for TEAN but my only complaint is that I am graduating and can’t do it again!

I must start by saying that my time abroad in New Zealand was absolutely the best experience of my life. I stayed there for the full 6 months that my student visa allowed me to, and I am so grateful to have gone through TEAN's program. I met some of my best friends (from all over the globe), went on multiple road trips around the entire country, walked on a glacier, surfed, and so much more.

TEAN was absolutely AMAZING. They were always just a quick email or phone call away if I needed anything. My university did not have any courses pre-approved for the University of Otago, but TEAN helped me immensely throughout this pre-approval process. Additionally, I was very unsure about what university I wanted to study abroad at in New Zealand. I switched around three times before settling on the University of Otago! TEAN was so incredibly flexible and understanding and helped me ultimately decide on Otago (which was undoubtedly the right choice for me).

The TEAN representatives at the University of Otago were also outstanding. They were Kiwis (from New Zealand), and were a great resource for any questions about Kiwi culture, recommendations for travel, food, or just about anything! They went above and beyond to plan fun outings for their TEAN students. What I really appreciated was that they were there if we needed them, but they also let us explore and have our own individual experiences. Planned events were frequent enough to keep in touch and check in, but spaced out enough to let us explore on our own. I really can't say enough good things about how TEAN takes care of its students while they are abroad, while still allowing them to be independent with their experience. Thank you TEAN!!

Dunedin is amazing. I've been home for a few months and I'm ready to go back. TEAN made the transition to New Zealand go smoothly and relieved a lot of my (and my parents') arrival stress. TEAN's orientation sets you up for success and the continued events during the semester showed me attractions in Dunedin that I did not know existed. The outdoors were incredibly accessible and close and every place that I visited was my new favorite location. The whole country is right out of an adventure blog. I traveled as much as my class schedule would allow for, but still have a massive list of everything that I still want to see. Dunedin and New Zealand will always hold a place in my heart.

Deciding to study at the University of Queensland in Brisbane through TEAN was by far the best decision I have made. Throughout the process of deciding on which school I wanted to study at and looking at classes, TEAN was extremely helpful. My experience in Australia began in Cairns with TEAN orientation. This was a great opportunity to meet other students and begin to embrace the Australian culture. Orientation also included a snorkeling trip to the Great Barrier Reef, white water rafting, skydiving, and a trip to Hartley's Crocodile Zoo where we got to see koalas and kangaroos. Brisbane was such a beautiful city and always so many things going on such as farmers markets and concerts and festivals. Our Brisbane TEAN advisor also scheduled various events and check-ins for us throughout the semester to make sure we were adjusting smoothly. I loved all my classes at the University of Queensland and also had lots of opportunities to get involved and join clubs. Studying abroad through this program I have also met such awesome friends that I know I will have the rest of my life. I highly recommend this program, I only have positive things to say about it!!