Tell me more:
Summer in Barcelona!
IES Abroad: Barcelona - IES Abroad Barcelona Center
Program Information
Study abroad in Barcelona—capital of the autonomous province of Catalonia. The IES Abroad Barcelona program provides students with opportunities to learn or perfect Spanish while studying business and liberal arts.
| Provider: | IES Abroad |
| Location(s): | Barcelona, Spain |
| Year Founded: | |
| Website | Take me there! |
Review By:
Blair F. (Advertising, The University of Texas at Austin) on August 16, 2011
Overall Rating
Personal Information
| * Start Date: | 2011-05-23 |
| * End Date: | 2011-07-09 |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Everyone was very nice and helpful. I have no complaints. |
| * Housing: |
Everything was great. My host mom was wonderful. I do wish I lived a little closer to the center of the city. |
| * Food: |
Bo de Be. Milk. Bordiny. Princesa Z. Anywhere in El Born. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We had a required "study journey" in Costa Brava, Spain. I LOVED it. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Barcelona is full of pick-pocketers. You need to be VERY aware ALL THE TIME. Don't walk alone at night. Always look like you are walking with a purpose. |
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* Home Institution Advising:
How well did The University of Texas at Austin prepare and support you for your time abroad? |
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
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| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Eating out adds up. Going out adds up. Cabs were the death of me. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
I practiced with my Spanish teacher and classmates, my host mom, and locals. Locals appreciated when you tried to speak to them in Spanish, although I think most vendors understood English. |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * If you could do it all over again, would you choose the same program? | Yes |
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Have an open mind! Enjoy because who knows when you will get to come back! |
| * What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile? | HUGE appreciation for America. Love for travel - I want to see everything now. I am very hopeful to return to Europe in the near future. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Summer 2011 Advanced Grammar and Usage 1 |
| Course Department: | SP 301 |
| Instructor: | Laura Mier |
| Instruction Language: | Spanish |
| Comments: | Good. I learned a lot. It was ALL in Spanish so it was pretty tough. I didn't like the organization of the book. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | N/A |
| Course Name/Rating: |
International Marketing |
| Course Department: | IB 350 |
| Instructor: | Jay Moran |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | I loved this class. I learned a lot; the class discussions were interesting and fun. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: | It counts as my International Business credit for my Business Foundations Certificate. |