Program Reviews

Overall, I had a good time. I was able to hone my Spanish skills, travel around a bit, get to know Montevideo, and learn to live the Uruguayan life. However, my first host family was an absolute disaster, which was an unfortunate stain on an otherwise mostly positive experience. My second housing situation was far better, though, and I was able to conclude my experience in a safe and comfortable environment.

I was lucky enough to spend an entire school year abroad with the Middlebury School in France, and I had the time of my life. The Middlebury program is the most academically rigorous than other student abroad programs in Paris. But, if you really want to improve your French dramatically and immerse yourself in French culture, this program is the way to go. I loved my classes at the Middlebury Center, had a great host family experience (they're coming to visit me in NYC this summer!), and I improved my French immensely. Going abroad for an entire year was really such a great experience for me, and I highly recommend this program to anyone who wants to have a fun yet fulfilling year abroad.

Middlebury offered me the opportunity to return to Russia, continue my education, and form ties in Russia that have kept me here since.

My Russian levels went from a 1+ to 4 within several years of studying at Middlebury and all instructors were of the highest quality. Furthermore, Nana and Shushana were not only excellent professional resources, but wonderful sources of support. I remain in close contact with them to this day. For example, when it became clear that graduate students probably should be able to live on their own in Moscow, they quickly adapted the program for us as living with a host family was stressful as an independent adult. Their flexibility is one of the best parts of the program.

In this vein, there’s a lot of free time, which I used to find a job and create a social circle, in turn helping my language skills immensely. It can be a blessing or a curse as some students will simply spend this free time at home talking to their family and friends on Skype. This is less true for the undergrad students, whose lives are more structured within the program.

The academics provided by Middlebury are strong, but the courses provided at host institutions are less organized and students are left to fend for themselves a bit, which in actuality is an excellent opportunity for language practice. A lot depends on the student, so it really is what you make of it. While I loved and thrived from the lack of confines in the program, others in our group felt as though there could have been a bit more guidance.

Overall, the graduate program is great and I highly recommend it for its flexibility and intensive language-learning environment. I only recommend it for those grad students who are willing to take initiative and be independent, however. Middlebury provides a genuine Russian experience - Moscow is not a place to go on vacation, but a place to learn, live, and try to get by.

My experience in Hangzhou last semester helped me grow and learn a lot about the Chinese culture, language, and myself. The Middlebury Language Schools is a very academically rigorous program and students must be prepared for this from the beginning. We all had a language pledge which helped immensely with language improvement. However, on the other hand, it also hindered the social scene. I felt isolated at times during this program, confined to my room and stuck doing my homework. We had week excursions, but they did not seem as relaxed and casual because teachers and program directors also came. I wish there had been more activities with the other local Chinese roommates and the other American students in the program as well. I felt very stressed because of the academics because the classes were very small and the pressure to perform well increased since the teachers' focus was on their very small class of students. I also personally put a lot of pressure on myself to do well and learn the language, but that hindered my social enjoyment of the overall experience. I finally found frisbee, a few people in my program played frisbee. We went to local fields in Hangzhou to practice with other players weekly. This made my experience so much better and I am very grateful for having that outlet during my time in China. It gave me exercise, a place to meet people, and a outlet from my stress. The teachers were very kind and patient and sweet and very good at teaching us Chinese. The food and transportation in China is very affordable.

Additionally, as an adoptee from China, I look Chinese. This made it hard for me to interact with local people because they always assumed I spoke fluent Chinese, especially when with other foreigners/white people. They always assumed I was their local translator and got confused and frustrated when it became apparent that I could not speak fluent Chinese. It made my lack of language skills feel more obvious than the other American students and foreigners there because it was deliberately pointed out and drawn to attention. They also (perhaps subconsciously) went easier on white or foreign looking people, thinking it was a feat just when they could say one or two phrases in Chinese. However, when I spoke, they thought it was just surprising I couldn't speak better and I was just speaking bad Chinese. It was also hard to explain, and for Chinese people to understand, my status as an adoptee from China who had two white parents and no relation to China, other than just being born there. They asked where my parents were from, assuming they had immigrated to the United States from China earlier, or something like that situation. However, it always got a little awkward when I had to explain they were white and I don't speak Chinese at home and they were born and raised in the United States.

Overall, this experienced made me grow as a person. It made me realize that I should not take my ability to speak English and communicate freely in the United States for granted. I developed more confidence in myself because I now know I can live and travel in China where I can barely speak the language, then I must be able to do well for myself in the country I grew up in and can fluently speak its language in.

With the right attitude and a decent level of Spanish, you have a very good chance of having a very good time. Argentina is amazing and the Middlebury staff and directors in Buenos Aires work very hard to make sure your experience there is safe, informative, and authentic. The option to enroll directly in public universities and complete an internship means you can tailor a porteño experience to what you want to do, and the traveling with and without the program can't be beat.

I loved my semester in Belo Horizonte, affectionately referred to as "BH" by its residents. Though not located on the seaside, it has a unique accent, culture, and culinary tradition that are definitely worth getting to know as a study abroad student. The people in BH are especially welcoming, which I discovered in my day-to-day interactions with others and my fantastic host family. And as the third largest city in Brazil located in a beautiful state with lots of day/weekend-trip worthy sites, you will never run out of things to do.
This study abroad program is very independent, which can be positive or negative depending on what type of experience you're looking for. I studied in Spain for one semester with a much more highly structured program, and though they offered far more in terms of cultural adaptation support I felt as though I only superficially engaged with the culture. With Middlebury, there are very few students at each program location which forces you to make friends with Brazilians. I loved the freedom and managed to create a life for myself in BH, with routines and relationships with local people and places. If you're looking for a self-driven program that offers an authentic experience in Brazil, this is the program for you.
A note on language skills: I went into this program with a moderate/high language ability in Portuguese, and this enabled me to quickly adapt to the new cultural environment. Part of the reason I loved BH was that there is not a large English-speaking population, which allowed me to practice Portuguese all the time. That being said, I've heard from other students with lower language abilities upon arrival who had a very difficult first few months due to the low level of support from the program.

First of all, anyone interested in studying abroad in Brazil should ABSOLUTELY look in to going to Belo Horizonte. This was the perfect place to study abroad, as the city is large (2.5 million people) with plenty to do, but it's also known for its warm and welcoming residents- something I can attest to. For me, it was absolutely the best of both worlds. I had friends visit me who were studying abroad in other cities in Brazil at the time, and they said the same thing- the genuine warmth of BH's residents just doesn't compare.

The program itself is great for students looking for a really independent experience. You're really able to make the semester what you want, with the downside (for some people) being that the staff, while supportive and present throughout the semester, do not hold your hand through it all. In my experience though, they were there when I wanted them to be and that was all I needed. Another strength of this program is the degree of immersion you get into local language and culture-- from what I understand, all Middlebury programs are like this, but I would say that this is especially true in Belo Horizonte as it is relatively easy to make local friends and to get involved in local life. This program also offers the opportunity to participate in an internship, something I highly recommend as this really deepened my involvement in the city and allowed me to be a part of an entirely different community. The program is imperfect as are all, but if I could do it all again, I would easily still choose Middlebury's program in Belo Horizonte as my study abroad program.

I attended MIC Kunming in the fall of 2016 during my junior year of college. Overall, this program/experience was extremely transformative for me. It was my first time in China, and while culture shock was indeed a real thing for me, I quickly got over it and found myself calling Kunming home within no time. The program is very well-organized, and is truly designed to help you improve your Chinese. The language pledge, which seemed daunting at first, is designed to facilitate this, as well as having a Chinese roommate. In addition, the teachers are all extremely passionate and really want to see you do well. Kunming is a beautiful city, with SO much to do, from hiking, biking, and badminton, to museums, temples, and concerts. The cafeteria food at the university is decent, but the surrounding area has tons of great restaurants. It is worth noting, however, that the program is VERY academically rigorous. Having all four classes in a semester be entirely in Chinese is no doubt a big change from what most college students are used to for a normal course-load, and definitely takes some adjusting to at first. Be prepared to memorize lots of characters each week. With that said, simply being so immersed in Chinese 24/7 for a semester will have an incredible impact on your language skills, and you'll see improvement in no time

I studied abroad at Lady Shri Ram College in New Delhi with Middlebury's program in Spring 2017. I studied economics at LSR and Hindi at Zabaan. I lived in Kailash Colony, located in South Delhi and very close to LSR. I felt very safe while I was studying in Delhi, although that was a huge concern for me prior to arriving in India. I had a lot of time to travel throughout India; I visited Jaipur, Mumbai, Kolkata, and the Sundarbans. I also did a lot of exploring in Delhi after my semester at LSR ended. My study abroad experience was absolutely amazing. I learned about Indian culture, economy in a developing country, and a new global outlook. I learned a lot about India by traveling throughout the country and becoming friends with locals. I loved my study abroad experience and am definitely considering on returning in the future to work in Delhi. I highly recommend students study abroad in India. They will have a unique and enriching experience and step out of their comfort zones.

What I liked most about this program was the strength of the academics. I directly enrolled at Universidad Torcuato di Tella, a very small university in the Belgrano neighborhood. This could not have been more different from the gigantic Universidad de Buenos Aires where some of my fellow students were. The classes at UTDT were small, no more than 30. The course offerings were fairly extensive and I had no problem finding several that worked for both my Spanish level and my academic interests.

The best course I took was a class on the foreign policy of the United States. It was fascinating to look at my own country's foreign policy (and to be honest, its aggression) from a different perspective.