Why bother leaving home?

By: Kim Sanchez InteRDom Correspondent, Kim, has completed three years of her Bachelor's degree in Film and Video at the Visual Arts College at the University of Toledo in Ohio. She is participating in the 2013 10-week Caribbean Summer Program. You can read more about Kim and her participation in the Correspondent Program here. "The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page." St. Augustine Everyone around me seems to have a fear of traveling. They believe that other countries are foreign and dangerous. However, I believe the world is simply too big to stay in one place. I have this unsettling feeling that I’m living in a... Read More

Hello bold, brave world!

By: Lindsay Tatum Lindsay has completed her first year of study at the University of Georgia School of Law and is one of three students participating in the 2012 pilot of the InteRDom Correspondent Program. She is participating in the 2012 10-week Graduate and Gap Year Program. You can read more about her, her interest in the Correspondent Program and her career ambitions here. As usual, I am here to update you on my time and travels in the Dominican Republic. And further, per the usual, those time and travels have been fruitful and enjoyable. I have spent these last few weeks traveling and as you can probably guess from the title of this post...... Read More

Category: language acquisition

Supporting the Community

By: Anna Groesser Graduate and Gap Year 32-week Program, 2012 You can read about Anna's internship with Grupo PUNTACANA on the InteRDom website here. Well, here I am writing another blog for InteRDom! First off, the basics about my employer: I am here as an InteRDom intern within the Social Community Projects department of Grupo PUNTACANA, a huge resort corporation (which includes two hotels, golf courses, water/power/security infrastructure, lots of restaurants, an ecological preserve, an outdoor shopping area and more). While being the very first resort in Punta Cana and spearheading the whole tourist industry in this region, Grupo PUNTACANA has taken it upon itself to contribute and improve the local communities through development projects... Read More

Adjusting to Life in Santo Domingo

By: Anna Groesser Graduate and Gap Year 32-week Program, 2012 You can read about Anna's internship with Grupo PUNTACANA on the InteRDom website here. I have been living in Santo Domingo for about one month now, and luckily arrived during their “dead of winter” season. To them, this means comfortable breezes and temperatures in the mid-80s. To me, coming from Northern Michigan, this is the height of summer! That being said, you can be sure I have enjoyed the temperatures while my friends and family in Michigan freeze. Honestly, my past month has been pretty relaxed. I’ve focused on getting adjusted to daily activities- for example, weekly shopping and visiting the local colmado for avocados... Read More

Achieving DELE Language Certification in the Dominican Republic

By: Caitlin Lowery Graduate and Gap Year Program Fall 2010 When I applied to the InteRDom program, I mentioned that one of my goals was to take the DELE (Diploma de Espanol como Lengua Extranjera) exam and the InteRDom team worked hard to help me accomplish that aim. The DELE is a test of proficiency in the Spanish language for non-native speakers, comparable to the TOEFL exam required for foreign applicants by many universities in the U.S. to demonstrate linguistic competence in English. The DELE is only offered a few times a year and has three levels: Inicial, Intermedio, and Superior. InteRDom set up private Spanish language tutoring sessions for me, twice a week, for... Read More