Tell me more:
Barcelona, the city that never sleeps, unless it's siesta.
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:
Gabi S. (Electrical & Computer Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin) on August 31, 2011
Overall Rating
Personal Information
| * Start Date: | 2011-05-25 |
| * 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. |
Very well-balanced and educational workload |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
No particular comments about the administration because I did not really deal with them a sufficient amount. |
| * Housing: |
We had a FANTASTIC Senora, she made healthy and delicious dinners and was very helpful with anything that we needed. Our house was close to school (4 stops by subway) and it was easy to get around |
| * Food: |
the Boqueria is an awesome place to get lunch for cheap |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We took trips every weekend because there was no class of fridays. We went to Interlaken, Italy, & Brussels and Amsterdam. The IES students took a trip to Ibiza, which i wish i had gone on. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
There is a HUGE problem with pick-pocketing and mugging,many of the students experienced this. But if you are smart about it, you should have no problems. There were also riots near the school during the time i was there, so we almost got caught in a couple but the school made sure to email us about the potential risks and to stay out of certain areas. |
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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? | Make a budget for travelling, that was the most expensive. And for food when going out to eat. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | none |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
I practiced most of my spanish with my Senora at my homestay. I used Spanish everyday, but i also made an effort to use it everyday |
| 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?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
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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? | You are about to have the most amazing time of your life, soak it all in because it passes so quickly. TRAVEL A LOT! |
| * What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile? | It was the best time of my life. I came back a more independent person with big plans for myself. |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Spanish |
| Course Department: | SP101 |
| Instructor: | Sandra Becerril |
| Instruction Language: | Spanish |
| Comments: | I learned a lot of spanish because i was immersed in the culture and also learning how to communicate with formal instruction. The teacher was a local Spanish native who knew tremendous amounts about the subject and culture. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
| Course Name/Rating: |
International Marketing |
| Course Department: | IB |
| Instructor: | Jay Moran |
| Instruction Language: | English |
| Comments: | I thoroughly enjoyed it. I learned a lot, the teacher was excellent! I participated way more in class than here in the United States, the class was smaller and more comfortable. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |