Erin in Philippines

First Name:

Erin

Last Name:

McCarty

Major:

MOVESCI

Class Year:

Junior

Contact E-mail:

mccartye@umich.edu

Location:

Philippines

Country:

Philippines

Term(s) Abroad:

SpSu 2008

Affiliation:

University of Michigan

How did you find this program?:

email, word of mouth from other students

Courses Taken:

GIEU course (2 credits)

Fluency Required?:

English is a primary language in the Philippines but I had no proficiency in Tagalog. For the most part we did not run into any trouble with communication and when we dealt with different local dialects we had translators to help us.

Would you recommend this program? :

Yes, I feel it was inexpensive for the length and type of experience of my trip. It provided plenty of interaction with different cultures and people. The program is also very helpful in making sure that you are prepared to go abroad and gives you some classroom time to learn how to best enter a different country.

Advice:

Make sure you have some extra money saved up to spend. There will be many opportunities to do things you may never be able to do again. Also research the country beforehand to know the exchange rate, simple phrases in the local language, etc.

Will this help you in your profession?:

This experience just reconfirmed my decision to pursue medicine, specifically in rehabilitation.