I really did have a great time in Israel. The program provided a few field trip opportunities that I absolutely loved, and I was of course sure to go on several independent weekend trips when I could. Israel is a great place to learn about so many things: religion, politics and conflict, and archaeology (what I study). I was, however, kind of disappointed with the location of the university. It was up on a hill and very secluded from the rest of Haifa. The bus ride to the 'fun' parts of town was pretty long--and, of course, buses barely run on the weekends! Over all, I didn't feel like I was truly immersed in an Israeli town. I was definitely overlooking one, but the campus is very Americanized and didn't feel too different from home (other than the cheap falafel :) ).
Haifa's campus is absolutely beautiful, and I very much enjoyed all of my professors. They were very accommodating and quick to help if I had an issue with the course material--which happened frequently in my Hebrew class. The classes themselves were also very interesting, stimulating, and discussion based.
I did not, however like the administration, at all. They really didn't seem to be too helpful. I did not receive my insurance card at check in, and when I finally needed to go to the doctor for a very bad case of vertigo, no one at the international office answered my calls or the doctor's office's calls! They say they have an open office policy, which is true, but we always joked that no one is actually in the office to help you.
Similarly, my internship coordinator placed forbid me from doing the internship I truly wanted, and instead placed me in an internship that was less relevant to my career choice. I tried to speak with the program director about this (requesting, at the very least, a partial refund for an internship that seemed largely a waste of my time and definitely an experience that I could get for free at home) and she actually berated me. She also had other adults sit in on the meeting, as if to be intimidating. I felt really unheard and hurt, and never went back to that office again.
I would recommend skipping the internship totally. The placements were not the best and most interns that I knew were doing filler/busy work. While that is relatively common for American internships, it is not worth the $1200 fee ON TOP of the tuition you are already paying for those credit hours. As mentioned, the support staff is not the greatest and doesn't really listen to your concerns. I interned on campus. I asked the program director to explain why the fee existed in the first place, as I didn't necessarily understand why it cost so much to provide a service to the university, and she told me that 'you are doing nothing for the university, and you are certainly not providing a service!". Yikes.
