Program Reviews

Going to Vietnam was a great experience. I was not encouraged to do any particular country, but the IPSL director loved Vietnam and it seemed like a good fit with my love for history and Buddhism. I did a content course, which put me in a different structure than others. Sometimes that was a bit challenging, so for Vietnam in particular, I would recommend volunteering. Even then, the staff at CSDS was so kind and helpful. IPSL was as informative as they could be and I feel like I have relationships with both IPSL and CSDS. The excursions I took were great, too. I would go back to Vietnam to do more.

The IPSL program in Cusco was incredible. I learned so much about Inca Architecture, Spanish language, and Peruvian culture. Everyone involved was very friendly and supportive, especially my host family. Cusco is a beautiful city filled with so much life and history. There was a healthy balance between structured routine and freedom to explore. The architecture class was a highlight; I had the full attention of an expert on the topic, and every other class was a field trip to an important site.

This amazing experience in Hanoi allowed me to meet wonderful people. See beautiful history, and embrace their resilience against those who imposed oppression on their people! See how they still showed grace when the tables turned.

The Women’s Museum is a must!!! It allows you to experience/understand the different ways how families/marriages are led. Gave beautiful accounts/depictions of women’s contributions to War/military very empowering to me as a woman! The multiple tribe clothing and jewelry show-casings were very beautiful. Buy something from the shop they have, something I should have done!

The adult/children’s home visit was very rewarding because one of them made designs by hand and she finally allowed me to do something after messing up 😂 She was very particular about how she wanted me to make them!!! I knew I was doing good when she walked away to do something else then came back with snacks and gave me the good job nod!!!!

The preschoolers/kindergarteners were so adorable watched them during lessons, joined in some activities then played paper rock scissors(had some competition 😂)

My time was well spent enjoying being able to see and learn about others’ strengths and resilience!!!!!!!

I think that future participants should absolutely keep an open mind about how their experience will go and trust the people in charge. I never felt underprepared and whenever I had questions, someone was there to support me. My experience was unforgettable. I happy cry even months later thinking about it. I miss being in Hanoi, it is magical. It's amazing the culture you're able to expose yourself to. I am so happy that I went, absolutely you should go too! The staff will provide you with excursion ideas, you'll meet 20+ new friends from all over the world while you're there, depending on how long you stay, of course. I saw sights I never dreamed of, and felt so safe doing it all, I even took college classes while I was there which provided me with insight to the culture that surrounded me. I miss it every day.

My experience in Chinchiná, Colombia was like no other. The accommodations and assistance provided by Minga House and IPSL made my short time program amazing and unique. Highly recommended!!

PLEASE READ. An email I sent to IPSL when they requested a summary of my experience of the program in Cartagena:

Goal: Create and implement a project focused on women's issues in La Boquilla

Specified goal: help FAMB give classes on sexual health and reproduction to the youth to lower the rates of unwanted pregnancies

• Challenges: A lot of misinformation on the IPSL side and the FAMB side about the effectiveness and capabilities of FAMB.

• Opportunities: There are good team members at FAMB that I see as valuable and capable of getting tasks done

• Suggestions:

o FAMB- There needs to be more organization in FAMB, and tasks need to be delegated. For example, the vice president should learn to delegate tasks to other members and volunteers. He seems to hold many different jobs outside of FAMB, cannot complete tasks on time, and is unable to give direct orders.

o IPSL- One of my main issues was the excursions. I paid money believing that three excursions were included and mandatory to attend, and although I asked several members from IPSL, it was still difficult to understand how the excursions should have been handled. The excursions were not done until the last minute. I suggest the excursions be spread out throughout the internship so the student/intern can apply what they learned about the culture to the project, instead of excursions at the end of the program, which do not add much value.

• Critiques: Did you get the support that you needed? - I would say in the case of a severe issue, I was attended to, but even then, I do not feel like I had substantial support in La Boquilla. My on-site provider was constantly busy or applied to messages very late, or never responded at all. Even though he suggested to take us around La Boquilla, we never got to know the area. There should be someone if not him to give a proper tour of La Boquilla, explain the ins and outs, etc. There was enough information provided about the possibility of danger, I just feel like there should have been more to know about the area.

• Do you think the project will be sustainable with the community? - I can say that I do not think the project is organized enough to be considered a project at this time. A lot of work needs to be done to accomplish such a project, starting with the foundation's internal organization. They should learn about program development and member roles before taking on any projects in the future.

• What did you learn about working in this environment and/or with this population, and anything else you want to share?

o My on-site provider was not attentive to my needs. He responded late to messages or did not respond at all for days. When I made suggestions about the program, he considered what I said but ultimately made his own decision. When I asked for his assistance with something at the apartment or elsewhere, he may or may not show up. If he shows up, he may show up hours late. But, when he asks that I get ready to go out, not only does he not ask my permission or if I have the time, but he also orders me to hurry up, which continued throughout my time in La Boquilla. He only seemed to want to set up meetings to develop new ideas for the project but did not do any actual work or research outside of the meetings, so each meeting was just a recap of the last meeting and suggested additional ideas with no plausible supporting evidence. This misogynistic behavior significantly interfered with my time in La Boquilla, and although I brought attention to it, nothing was done about it. (Example: my roommate had a faulty electric outlet that started to smoke and burn the rubber insolation due to a makeshift air conditioning placed by the on-site provider). I immediately texted the on-site provider to let him know. Not only did he say he would come over the next morning instead of at that moment, he never showed up the next day and did not ask about the situation until he happened to stop by days later.)

o The coordinator explained to me from the beginning that there would be challenges based on culture and religion, so I was expecting to face some difficulty completing the project. However, I feel as though I was made to believe that the people in La Boquilla were determined individuals who wanted to get things done. Being that the coordinator is Colombian himself, I believe he and IPSL knew the customs and behavior of the people in La Boquilla and somehow tried to convince me otherwise. I think they are good people, but they do not show enough enthusiasm to get things done. The coordinator asked me what he believed the problem was, and I found it difficult to believe that he did not already know the situation since he had been working with this community for some time.

o The coordinator tried to state that I had all the reign in the project and that I did not have to attend excursions if I did not want to. I wanted to be in charge of this project, but I expected more direction and a better knowledge base about program management, a topic I only learned about through my Spanish classes. I also was the one to make initial contact 90% of the time to receive an update or a next step.

• Positives: I can say that my Spanish classes at Nueva Lengua were the best thing about this internship. I learned so much about Spanish and the history of Colombia, and my teacher was intelligent and kind. I had a great time, and I would recommend this Spanish school to others

Overall, I would not recommend or participate in future programs with IPSL. I do not think that this internship was worth my time or money. I believe I was fooled into thinking I would be a great person for this project 1) because I am a veteran like the person who helped onboard me and 2) because the company wanted money. I feel as though I was promised a lot of things that I did not acquire out of this internship. I am not sure if my experience was due to this program being "made for me," but I believe the biggest issue is the lack of coordination and organization from both IPSL and FAMB. There is never any clarification about how the money is being spent and each individual seems to have a different set of ideas about how things are run. I understand this was an internship "experience," and I tried to make the best out of this experience. I learned as much as I could and tried my best to apply my skills to help FAMB develop their women's project and learn new skills along the way.

Thank you for your time and patience. I hope this email answers all your questions, and I hope this information helps improve future programs for IPSL and the future interns who partake in these programs

I cannot speak highly enough of my experience with IPSL Global Institute and the positive impact it has had on the trajectory of my life since participating in their study abroad program in the Fall of 2019.

My circumstances were rather non-traditional, working full-time in Chicago with one semester left of my master's degree. Despite the many obstacles that presented themselves (one being that I was the very first graduate student at my university to study abroad, so we literally had to pave the way), IPSL was there every step of the way; to answer all of my questions and cater a program *perfect* for me!

Finishing my master's degree in Greece with IPSL was the experience of a lifetime. My program director and professor there guided me throughout my trip and made me feel like family. I had opportunities to explore outside of the city including Mount Olympus and was connected with local organizations serving vulnerable populations. Through them, I coordinated and taught Trauma Recovery Yoga classes to children experiencing homelessness and refugees in a camp outside of the city.

Besides being incredibly responsive, intuitive and knowledgeable, the staff at IPSL took the time to get to know me and what I truly hoped to get out of this experience. I've since learned the extent to which they connect with their community partners and genuinely care for invest in the communities their participants are serving.

It was genuinely one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life, and it wouldn't have been possible without the staff at IPSL genuinely striving to "make my dreams come true," as they do for each student that joins their programs.

If you're ready to make the world your classroom and gain life skills in expansive, thrilling ways, IPSL is the grassroots organization that can help you do just that!

This was the first time the program was run independently from any school and it was a bit disorganized.
My service site (the main reason I did this program) was an 2:30 hrs away from where I lived and getting there was pretty expensive. The program director gave me 100€ to pay for the transportation but it only covered one of the three months I was there. I found my own service in the city and volunteered there as well. The program was only two students and this made socializing hard. Overall, it was a good experience but there was still some things that need to be taken care of if they want to have a very successful program. My host family was great, the food was always excellent and Thessaloniki is a fun city to live in. I wish I had spoken Greek and had more Greek classes.

The study abroad program and service learning provided by IPSL was an amazing experience that will last a lifetime. The classes I took were Swahili and a class about the community, which met three days a week. These taught me a lot about the community and its culture as well as the basics of the local language. Not many people in the U.S. can say that they have taken a Swahili class in their life before. I also loved the service incorporation part, I volunteered in a small, private clinic four days a week and absolutely loved it. In my future, I would like to be a doctor, so this exposed me to what this is like, not only the field but in another country, which is a priceless experience.
My program director made my experience even better. He would take me on excursions on Fridays, he provided me with different places to go for food, excursions, and shopping, and he gave me advice for when I was feeling homesick. I was the only student in the program at the time, so there was a lot of one-on-one time, which was very helpful when he was teaching me Swahili and about the community if I had any questions.

Traveling to Peru with IPSL changed my life. Everyone says that happens when they study abroad but for me it is true. When I decided to go abroad with IPSL I was looking for a program that could help me increase my Spanish language skills, was academically rigorous and had service-learning so that I could learn to become a better activist and engage in the community. I did not want to be another tourist abroad. IPSL checked all these boxes for me. What it also did was help me change my life path through their eye-opening and engaging volunteer placements. Not only did I build skills that has allowed me to become the activist I am today but my volunteer placement working at an animal sanctuary helped me realize that I wanted to work with animals, something I never thought I would be engaged with. My experience with IPSL was so profound that I changed colleges and went on another IPSL program to Greece! There are many choices that you can make in your life but one choice you will never regret is studying abroad with IPSL.