Please read and share this post if youre even considering having your son or daughter study abroad with International House. My son had a very unfortunate experience during his study abroad program at International House. Upon his arrival, the person who was supposed to pick him up to drive him to his host familys address, was not in the arrival area where all the other drivers were holding up signs with their arrivals name. Instead, the driver, was outside the airport and my son finally found him. While he attended the school, a majority of the staff was rude and unhelpful when our son asked for guidance or direction. Shortly after his arrival, he discovered a park that he enjoyed visiting where the people seemed friendly and accommodating. Upon one of his visits, he was invited to join a group of musicians who performed songs while sitting in a circle in a section of the park. While my son was enjoying the performance, he was pushed to the ground by one of the group members who robbed him of his wallet with his ID, debit card and 50 Euro. Thank God he wasnt beaten, stabbed or worse! When we spoke with the Program Director, she couldnt have been more insensitive. She stated that our son came from New York City. Didnt he know that he should be careful in these places? She blamed our son for not following his curfew, which he was. She also said that our son could have been mugged anywhere. I could go on, but I will say that she exhibited an astounding lack of concern or sensitivity; basically blaming our sons mugging on him! Needless to say, we cut our sons trip short because our primary concern was his safety and well-being. After speaking with the Program Director about, at least a partial refund, she took a very cavalier attitude and said we knew the terms and conditions of the papers we had signed. So, if we wanted to to pursue our options re: a partial refund, we would have to consult an attorney because they were standing pat in their stance to give us zero compassion, zero respect and zero dollars back. This was a perfect way to heap on insult to injury. The only thing the Program Director was interested in was protecting her program, not our son. All-in all, it was a harrowing experience for our entire family. Were just glad to have him back home.
Posted on: Fri, 11 Jul 2014 15:35:04 +0000
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