The SITA Compatibility Quiz
by Ali Millard, Fall 2012 SITA alum
Having trouble figuring out if SITA is the right choice for you? Sifting through a melange of study abroad options and feeling like you can’t tell up from down anymore? Well, you’ve come to the right place. I have designed a compatibility quiz below that should help point you in the right direction based on your goals and expectations for your time abroad.
First, for some context - here is a bit about me. I love learning about different cultures and peoples and religions and for this reason, I’ve actually “studied abroad” twice already in my life: once at SITA as a 3rd year college student, and then later at the Qasid Arabic Language Institute in Jordan. These two different experiences have given me some perspective about what aspects of an abroad program are important, why, when, and to whom. I know from experience that it can be hard to determine exactly what you will value in a study abroad program before you embark on the adventure. After all, how could you know your favorite kind of ice cream if you had never tried it? With this quiz, I am hoping to answer some of the questions you might not have known were important to ask and ultimately, to help you pick what makes the most sense in your life.
TAKE THE SITA COMPATABILITY QUIZ
A. What do you want to learn?
1- German / Biomedical Engineering
2- Honestly, I’m not totally sure but definitely something!
3- About the culture of South India.
B. Who do you want to meet?
1- Lots of international students my age from all over the world.
2- Everyone! I am excited to meet people who don’t go to my college whether they are Americans, Indians, or from any other country.
3- Locals - the people of South India . . . after all, that’s where I’m going.
C. When you think about partying abroad you think:
1- I like to party with a CAPITAL P and I’m really excited to go clubbing.
2- I’m not really sure.
3- I can leave the partying behind for a few months. My dream would be to hang with my host family as much as possible and maybe go to an Indian wedding!
D. Are you a picky eater?
1- Uhhhhh yes. I am vegan/gluten-free/non-GMO/raw-only/bee-friendly and I only eat foods that bloom from perennial plants in the moonlight.
2- Sort of. I have this one constraint on my diet.
3- Ha! As if. Bring it on interesting new food! Bring it on!
E. How do you feel about acquiring and wearing an Indian wardrobe?
1- I have my clothes that make me happy and I don’t want to wear anything else. Count me out of Indian clothing.
2- Ok I guess . . . a little trepid but we’ll see.
3- YES YES YES YES YES.
F. At the end of my trip I want:
1- As many friends as possible scattered all over the world. How cool would that be, friends from France to Japan.
2- To have learned something new, something I can’t quite name right now.
3- To have made a few truly incredible friends and to have a family in Madurai.
Great. Now add up your score to the items above. Each answer has a number in front of it; add up the numbers to each of the questions you chose. Find your total score below:
14–18: SITA is your dream come true, darlin. You are ready to dive into the culture of South India with a group of friends by your side. You don’t want to leave any rock unturned. Decision made.
9–13: In my opinion, SITA would be a great move for you. You are ready for an adventure, but just not entirely sure what that adventure looks like. There are probably a bunch of other programs that would also serve you well. But I can promise you that at SITA, an adventure is exactly what you will get.
6–8: Maybe look elsewhere? There are hundreds of different fantastic options for study abroad. If you aren’t super excited about Indian culture and getting outside your comfort zone a bit, you might be happier somewhere else. However, if you remain curious about studying with SITA, but have a concern or two about friends, host families, clothes, food, free time, or research/class focus: get in touch with folks at SITA to talk about them — you might be surprised by the options available to you in Madurai.
________________________
I hope that sheds a bit of light on some of the things you should be considering when thinking about your time abroad. At the end of the day, though, I wouldn’t stress too much about this decision. You will never be able to make a completely informed choice about which option is best for you because, well, you haven’t done it yet. You simply can’t know what will be transformative and important and hard about any of these experiences before having them.
My three months in India was were like nothing I had imagined. Yet, they far exceeded anything I could have hoped for. When the time came to study abroad during college, I knew that I wanted to go somewhere as culturally different and “exciting!” as possible. India loomed high on my list. My mind was full of fresh mangos, colorful fabrics, bollywood, streets full of Chana masala, camels, and pretty much every other stereotype that you can cook up. I wanted the “most intense,” “most immersive,” and “most culturally different” experience I could find. Well, intense and immersive is exactly what I got - but not in any of the ways I had dreamed of. I never went to an Indian wedding; it wasn’t mango season in December; Chana masala (like most Indian food in the US) is actually a North Indian dish and not made in Tamil Nadu, and no one sings and dances in public like the Bollywood movies, much to my dismay. Instead, I learned how to roll chappatis and cook dosas; I rode on the back of a Vespa with my host mom (the coolest woman on this planet) to buy groceries; I spent afternoons laughing uncontrollably as my adorable host sisters covered my arms and legs in their eight-year old attempts at Henna; I made puja with my tiny host grandmother; I befriended students at the Lady Doak College who shared with me their opinions on marriage, jobs, their future, and just life in general, and ultimately, I learned how to be a member of a family, a friend, and a responsible student of culture. SITA gently took my naive, excitable, 21-year-old self and gave me exactly what I was asking for- an adventure that stretched me within reason, a place to learn and grow, and some truly fantastic friends.
And now it’s your turn. I hope that you find the adventure you seek and that you are delightfully surprised beyond any of your hopes or dreams. But I also hope this happens in none of the ways you expect- since after all, that is kind of the the whole point isn’t it?
