We spent a great majority of our day at Austral University in Pillar. Austral wasn’t exactly the Argentinian version of Pitt, but there were quite a few similarities between the two. Both Austral and Pitt are well known for their medical schools and university hospitals. I was very impressed by Austral’s reputation as the number two university in all of Argentina and the number one private university in Argentina. Austral and Pitt are recognized in their respective countries as prestigious universities. I thought Austral was also very similar to Pitt in terms of places to study and chat with peers. As we toured the campus I saw plenty of people relaxing outside talking to friends or studying which reminded me a lot of the Cathedral Lawn back at Pitt. Austral also provided several dining halls and a Starbucks for students and faculty, similar to the dining options at Pitt. Judging off of our lectures today from Austral representatives it seemed that they most likely lecture similarly to Pitt professors using PowerPoint as a visual aid. Despite many similarities between Pitt and Austral, there were also plenty of differences. One difference was the layout of the school building in the hospital. The layout almost resembled a high school with lockers and smaller classrooms compared to the empty hallways and large lecture halls at Pitt. Another difference between Pitt and Austral would be the location of the campus. Austral was located in a much more open and much less urban area than Pitt, which made for an enjoyable walk when we toured the beautiful campus. Another important difference between Pitt and Austral would be that Pitt is a public university and Austral is a private university. In Argentina, private universities require tuition fees but public universities are free. In the United States, we all know that both private and public universities cost a pretty penny to attend, but private universities are normally more costly. Austral University also did not have near the amount of students at Pitt. Pitt’s attendance was about three times that of Austral’s. Many students at Austral often commute or do not live on campus and they did not seem to have anywhere near the amount of dorms that Pitt had. Austral is also a school with a religious background from its Catholic founders and they had a small chapel in the center of campus. This reminded me of the Heinz Chapel at Pitt, however Pitt is not a religious school by any means. After a great first day at Austral University, I look forward to returning and actually getting the chance to talk with students about their great school.