Comments about the ESSP Program from Past Participants

for more complete comments, please check out the binders in 1055 BIF

Useful Advice

"The European Summer Study Program (ESSP) was an extremely valuable experience. It was very beneficial to be able to spend time in four different countries in just five weeks. It was also very nice having all of the hotel accommodations, all of the traveling accommodations, and some city tours planned for me. I felt that in these four weeks I not only was able to see several areas of Europe, but I was also able to further my education by learning about the European Union from several different professors. In addition, it was great meeting and spending time with students from three other universities located in Kentucky, Florida, and Canada. The housing in Manchester, England at Victoria Hall was nice. We each had our own room and bathroom, and we shared a common room that included a TV area and kitchen. The hotels we stayed at were also nice and safe. Although they were not extremely luxurious and usually fairly basic, they were comfortable places to stay, and the breakfast provided was good. The only hotel that many students were dissatisfied with was Hotel Etap in Paris due to its poor location and below average accommodations in comparison to the other hotels. Some of the hotels were located far from the city center, especially in Prague and Paris. However, the metro was always located close by, and we were able to spend an entire day in the city and return at night. The course included several lectures the first week given by a professor at Manchester Business School. There were also various lectures given in the other countries about the economic condition in that country. In addition, we visited some companies, factories, and markets as we traveled through Europe. The visits were interesting and were all very different. They included a car manufacturing factory, two breweries, a wine and champagne tasting, an electric company, two wholesale food markets, and an event center. It was disappointing that many of the visits solely included a tour, and we were rarely taught how business is conducted in European countries. When we returned to Manchester the last week, we completed a group paper on one of the industries we learned about and took an exam on the first week’s lectures. The paper was easy to complete, but the exam was a little more difficult. Overall, the course was not very demanding. Although there were a few miscommunications that caused minor problems, the program was organized and provided many benefits to the students. Not only were we able to travel as we completed our coursework, but we were also often given walking or bus tours of the cities, and we were provided transportation to visit some popular areas such as the Alps in France. " - Maura Farrell, Summer 09

“My overall experience of the European Summer Study Program was completely amazing. To be able to spend 5 weeks in Europe traveling around the largest and most popular cities in the world, and have the opportunity to earn credit and learn is something no one should pass up. This trip has provided me with so many experiences that I will remember for the rest of my life. Each city had such entertaining and educational value that you learn so much from just living in each place, outside of the classroom. The material covered in class was on topics that I have not personally studied yet on the UIUC campus, and it was very interesting to learn so much information regarding the European Union and doing international business…This program is incredible.” – Andrew Schneider, Summer 06

“I thought it was an amazing experience that was both educational and incredibly fun. For someone without the time to study abroad for an entire semester, you really get a lot done in a short time. However, as you are entirely in major cities and with horrible exchange rates, the program is very expensive. If the credit and educational aspects (though great) are less important to you than the traveling, your money would be better spent traveling around Europe with friends on your own accord.” – Rohit Dhake, Summer 07

“Overall this trip was a great experience to me. I had a ton of fun and learned a lot at the same time. The students we met while over there I still talk to daily, and it was something I will never forget.” – Timothy Clifton, Summer 06

“My overall experience was amazing because I got to meet so many other students from other schools and to travel the world.” – Jennifer Chen, Summer 06

“I had a fantastic time. Traveling through Europe is an amazing experience which you will want to repeat.” – William Arnost, Summer 06

“Overall, I thought my experience was good. I want other students to know that studying abroad is one of the most enriching parts of my education. It allows you to learn about business from a different perspective and allows you to experience and appreciate other cultures.” – Anvita Kumar, Summer 06

Location

“All of the cities we traveled to were amazing in culture and history. I found Prague to be the most beautiful and the most fun. However, every city had its own specialty. Barcelona had beaches, Paris had romantic cafes, and London had city life.”

Manchester was relatively an uneventful and industrial city. Also, we only spent a day and a half in London and spent two days in a city in southern France, Montpellier, which seemed pointless as there were no lectures, nor was there much to the city itself.” – Rohit Dhake , Summer 07

“The locations in which we traveled with this study program were all amazing. We traveled all over Western Europe, staying in Manchester, Prague, Madrid, Barcelona, Montpellier, Paris, and London. Each place on this trip was unique and educational. In each city we traveled, we were able to learn and explore European communities that contain such a deeper historical background than that of the United States…Overall, every city felt safe, communicating was manageable, and the location in general was incredible.”

“Mostly, the location of every city we stayed was amazing.” – Andrew Schneider, Summer 06

“The location was good. I liked that we visited many countries and various major cities that were also industry hubs. It allowed me to get a better sense of how business worked in Europe, while getting to enjoy the different European countries.”

“I wish that the course spent more time in other countries and less time in Manchester. Particularly the last week, which seemed like time could have been better spent visiting more companies/long visits in other/additional cities. Possibly more time in London could be spent learning about industry companies in such a big European city.” – Anvita Kumar, Summer 06

“Prague and Barcelona were two of the best locations on the trip. The lectures in Prague were particularly useful in that they explained how the economy moved from a state economy to a free market economy. Barcelona was also an interesting experience when we learned how they are converting from a manufacturing to services economy.”

“I found Montpellier to be the least interesting location. The visit to Perrier was just a tour; there was no business presentation.” – William Arnost, Summer 06

“The main reason I chose this program is because we had the opportunity to visit and explore many countries for educational purposes. This turned out to be extremely valuable because it gave us a chance to learn the culture and business style of many countries. There is absolutely no substitution for learning the business environment first hand.” – Ross Pevitz, Summer 06

“The location of the hotels provided in each city, were very far away from the center of the city and I found it very inconvenient.” – Jennifer Chen, Summer 06

“Manchester was a good location to study; it was not as exciting as the other cities we toured, but for focusing on the final exam and group project it worked out very well. Of all the other locations Barcelona was my favorite. The food, people, and city itself were all great.”

“My least favorite location was Prague and Montpellier. Prague was very dirty and at times I did not feel the safest especially going out at night. Montpellier had pretty much nothing to do aside from going to the beach.” – Timothy Clifton, Summer 06

“The countries and cities that we went to were very nice. It was a good range of cultures and experiences to have. It was also very interesting learning about the European Union from a European perspective.”

“While staying in the different cities some of our hotel accommodations were not very nice. Specifically in Prague our hotel was very far from the city centre which made the experience a little less enjoyable.” – Nisha Patruni, Summer 06

Courses

“The courses were very interesting. The lectures were all very relevant and allowed you to get a local perspective that you wouldn’t get in the United States. The professors were very knowledgeable and challenged the students during lectures.”

“Some of the courses were a bit repetitive. As we had several different lecturers, they would often repeat many of the same things, especially about the context of globalization in Europe, before getting to the core of the lecture.” – Rohit Dhake, Summer 07

“The courses were extremely beneficial and I learned a lot. The accommodations at the school were also very nice.”

“Sometimes we did not have any idea what was going on in our courses because instructors were not completely clear about what we would be doing for the day.” – Nisha Patruni, Summer 06

“The course we took over there was fairly interesting. We only had a little over a week of lectures and then the last week we took a small final exam and did a large group paper. The course allowed us to see all of the tourist sites in each city which was very nice.” – Timothy Clifton, Summer 06

“The courses were very interesting because we had the opportunity to go to company visits and learn about the Euro and the importance it has on many European countries.” – Jennifer Chen, Summer 06

“The information we learned in class was interesting and relevant to what we did outside the classroom. Meeting with a variety of companies and governing boards from different countries provided us a great overall view of how the EU affects countries differently.” – Ross Pevitz, Summer 06

“The courses on the European Union were invaluable. The parts I found most interesting were those about the difficulties of coordinating monetary policy among member states with a single currency.”

“My main complaint about the coursework is lack of guidance. We had little feedback on our projects and coursework and little information as to grading criteria.” – William Arnost, Summer 06

“This program only contained one, six credit course. We met daily to have 4-5 hours of lecture during the first have of the 5-week course. As we traveled, our lecture halls transferred to new universities in respective cities and it was a great opportunity to see different schools and academic ambiances in Europe. The course focused on history of the European Union and doing business with the EU. Also, as a part of our course, we participated in many company visits where we were able to discuss business strategies with company visits where we were able to discuss business strategies with company executives and gain insight as to how they prefer to work within the EU.”

“The only thing to improve in the course is to make the company visits more in depth and applicable. Some of the company visits we went on only discussed what they were about and their history, where we would be more interested in their strategies and inter-working with the EU.” – Andrew Schneider, Summer 06

Housing

“Some students were displeased, but they were basic hotels. In Manchester we had our own rooms and the last week there we even had a kitchen. All of the hotels were in very close proximity to metro stations to get to the city center. Considering how little time we actually spent in the hotel, I thought accommodations were very adequate.”

“In Spain, we weren’t actually in Barcelona. We had to take an hour and a half train to get to the actual city of Barcelona. Although fine in most places, the breakfast in Prague was horrible, and there was almost nowhere in walking distance from the hotel to eat.” – Rohit Dhake, Summer 07

“Housing for this program was broken up into two different styles. When we studied in Manchester, we were put in the Manchester Business School’s single person dormitories. These were really nice, spacious, and they included breakfast for us every morning. Every dormitory also had its own shower and toilet, which was quite nice. In other locations in which we traveled, we were put in hotels; mostly nice, well-maintained, safe hotels. These places also offered us breakfast every morning, and we were in a room with another person in our traveling group. The housing for this trip was very safe, clean and fun.”

“Some of the hotels in which we stayed were a little far from the city and required sometimes two modes of public transportation to get there…however such transportation makes going into the city a day event rather than a casual thing. This was only the case in a few of the many locations in which we stayed.” – Andrew Schneider, Summer 06

“Housing overall was good. It was nice to stay in hotels and hostels that were for the most part, high quality.”

“The living situation was great in all countries, except the Czech Republic. It was fantastic having our own rooms during our stay in Manchester.”

“While staying in the different cities some of our hotel accommodations were not very nice. Specifically in Prague our hotel was very far from the city centre which made the experience less enjoyable.” – Nisha Patruni, Summer 06

“The housing at the Manchester Business School was very good. It was clean and had good service.”

“Some of the hotels provided in the other countries were not as good as I hoped considering the amount of money we paid. The location of the hotels provided in each city (Prague, Paris, Madrid, and Barcelona) were very far away from the center of the city and I found it very inconvenient.” – Jennifer Chen, Summer 06

“For the most part the hotels we stayed in were very nice. The hotels in Spain were by far the nicest.”

“The hotel in Prague was like a jail cell. There was no air conditioning and the people spoke absolutely no English, which made it very difficult to get things fixed.” – Timothy Clifton, Summer 06

Things you wish you had known before you left

"I wish I had known that I did not require as formal of clothing as I brought on the trip. I was under the impression that I needed to have three business casual outfits, but I only had to dress in semi-formal attire once throughout the trip. I also wish I had known more about things I would need at the first place I stayed, Victoria Hall. The room did not have a towel, toilet paper, or hand soap, so we had to buy these on our own after arriving." - Maura Farrell, Summer 09

“I thought I was fairly prepared for the trip. However, I expected dress to be more formal than it was, and so I packed more dressy clothes than I should have. Aside from that, I thought the program coordinators did a good job of letting you know what you did and didn’t need. The only trouble some people had was packing too much. With traveling in large groups on trains, etc, it is very important to be able to lift your own baggage up stairs and into overhead compartments.” – Rohit Dhake, Summer 07

Cost

"I spent about $210 each week on food. A textbook was not required for the course. We were provided with all of the materials needed (binder, lecture notes, pen, flash drive). " - Maura Farrell, Summer 09

“Strictly on food and not on any other entertainment, I spent about $210 a week. All textbooks and course material were included in the program fee” – Rohit Dhake, Summer 07

The most valuable thing learned on the trip

"I had a very good experience on my study abroad trip, and I feel it was one of the best summers I have had in a very long time. The combination of completing class work in another country, touring various cities of Europe, and meeting and spending time with students from three different parts of North America made the trip as remarkable and dynamic as it was. I would definitely recommend the ESSP program to those students who are interested in spending time in multiple countries in Europe but who are either unable to or do not desire to spend an entire semester studying abroad." - Maura Farrell, Summer 09

“I learned to be more adventurous. Aside from classes, anything you do there is entirely initiative based. Wile there, especially with such a short time in each place, you are more willing to take risks and simply do something or go somewhere simply because you don’t know if and when you will have the opportunity to do so again.” – Rohit Dhake, Summer 07

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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